Lowan posted the endorsement from the president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs on social media on Friday, with Phillip saying he was "totally honoured" to endorse the candidate for Saanich North and the Islands.

The Green leader also cast her vote in the provincial election on Friday at a polling station in her riding of North Saanich and the Islands alongside her father and grandparents.

"We are all just so thrilled to be casting our ballots," she said after voting.

With days left to go until general voting day on Oct. 24, Lowan said she will be spending a lot of time in her riding and others on Vancouver Island, which the party has targeted.

"We have a real amount, as the B.C. Greens to say exactly what we want, to put forward bold proposals and help be a lightning rod to inspire non-voters, disillusioned and young people to get out and vote." Lowan said.

Lowan lives in the nearby riding of Victoria-Beacon Hill, not in the Saanich riding. People can vote at any advance voting place in the province, although they must cast the ballot for a candidate in their own riding.

The NDP later issued a statement saying Phillip had endorsed Eby as premier, calling him "the best choice as leader of this province."

"David Eby has a good heart, and true genuine friends and allies are forever," Stewart said in the statement .

Phillip has been a strong supporter of the NDP, with his wife Joan elected as a New Democrat legislator in 2024 before she died this past summer.

He backed the NDP in 2024, standing alongside Eby and telling an audience in Victoria that a vote for the Greens was a vote for the B.C. Conservatives.

In his statement posted by Lowan, Phillip said the Green leader's understanding of the climate crisis as well as her "proactive, principled, evidence-based approach" to finding solutions were key reasons for his endorsement.

"She is a strong and courageous ally for Indigenous Peoples in B.C. and approaches environmental stewardship with full respect for Indigenous rights," the statement said.

Phillip previously had a falling out with Eby over the NDP government's handling of B.C.'s Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act.

Eby backed down earlier this year on changing or suspending parts of the legislation in the face of opposition from Stewart and his late wife, among others.

Phillips' statement about Eby on Friday said he strongly supports "the principles and ideology" of the NDP under Eby and called on voters to place their trust in him.

"I have been a longtime supporter of the BC NDP since Dave Barrett, and my late wife Joan Phillip was a proud BC NDP (legislator) in David Eby's government," he said.

"We have known David Eby and his family for over 20 years. He attended Joan's funeral and went to her graveside in our community cemetery."

Phillips said he was supporting Lowan "in a riding that the Greens have held for the past three elections, because she has earned my full respect and admiration and is part of our future."

Eby said during an unrelated campaign announcement on Friday that his government had points of disagreement and differences with Indigenous leadership.

"But at the end of the day, the only way this province will be successful is working in partnership with First Nations," he said. "It not just lifts up the whole province, it lifts up First Nations communities that have been living in grinding poverty."

Eby said he and Lowan share a commitment to working with First Nations and noted the Conservatives have proposed to toss out the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act and other economic partnerships.

"Doing so will create unbelievable chaos at a time we need to be building up this province," he said.

Eby was in Coquitlam on Friday, while interim Conservative Leader Lorne Doerkson was in Port Moody, both in Metro Vancouver.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 16, 2026.