On August 30th, 1972 Emery Barnes was elected as the first member in the double-member riding of Vancouver Centre, along with MLA Gary Lauk. He and Lauk were re-elected in 1975, 1979 and 1983. In 1991, Barnes was elected to the revised single-member riding of Vancouver-Burrard; and at this time he was appointed Deputy Speaker of the Legislature.
In the 1972 election, Rosemary Brown won the riding of Vancouver-Burrard, becoming the first Black woman to sit in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. She served as an MLA for 14 years. She also ran for the leadership of the federal NDP in 1975.
