 The 11 most interesting mayoral races in British Columbia | | |  | | | The speculation phase of the 2022 municipal election is over.
The registration deadline for the Oct. 15 vote passed on Friday, locking in place candidates in 161 municipalities, 60 school boards, 27 regional districts and five park boards across British Columbia.
Oh, and the Islands Trust.
In 2018, a grand total of 3,321 candidates ran across the province. It’ll take a few days to know whether there are more or fewer people running this year, more or fewer incumbents seeking re-election compared to 2018, and better or worse representation of women and people of colour on the ballot.
The entire CBC News team will be covering all of that in the weeks to come, along with all of the important policy promises, key debates, and campaign controversies, with this newsletter functioning as a recap for what will feel like a lot of municipal news, particularly if you’re interested in things happening outside your own home.
But first, a ranking.
Every election matters deeply to those who vote in it, but some are more interesting than others — at least when it comes to the number of people it will impact, what it reveals about a local political culture, or how competitive it might be.
With the candidates now all confirmed, the following are the 11 municipal campaigns across the province we’re going to be watching most closely, in approximate order of importance.
1. Vancouver: Ten political parties, five main mayoral candidates, with a big question being whether those opposed to Kennedy Stewart will coalesce around one candidate (likely Ken Sim or Colleen Hardwick) or whether vote-splitting will allow Stewart to be re-elected despite a populace that hasn't exactly warmed to him in the same way they did to Gregor Robertson.
2. Surrey: It’s rare for incumbent mayors in big cities to lose after a single term, but there’s a symmetry in B.C.’s two biggest cities this election. Surrey also has five main mayoral candidates and questions over whether vote-splitting will allow Doug McCallum to be re-elected despite criticism over his criminal charge for mischief (to say nothing about his 60,000-person stadium pledge).
3. Victoria: Lisa Helps deciding not to run again has led to a wide-open matchup between sitting councillors Marianne Alto and Stephen Andrew, with a debate over whether municipal governments should “stick to its lane” front and centre. But with only Ben Isitt seeking re-election to council, it’ll be a whole new dynamic at city hall no matter who wins.
4. Kelowna: Another big city, another mayor seeking re-election in a more difficult environment than last time around. Colin Basran, seen as a centrist politically, is seeking a third term and will face his same challenger from 2018, former Chamber of Commerce president Tom Dyas. But Dyas has been campaigning for months, and hopes anger over rising crime will benefit him in a city that normally elects candidates to the right of the political spectrum.
5. Kamloops: Incumbent Ken Christian isn’t running again, and no less than three sitting councillors (Arjun Singh, Dieter Dudy and Sadie Hunter) are running for the role, along with Reid Hamer-Jackson and Ray Dhaliwal. All five have been in the race for months, with what to do about the intersection of crime, homelessness, mental health and affordable housing a focal point of discussion.
6. Langley Township: Longtime B.C. Liberal cabinet minister Rich Coleman would like a happier ending to his political career than the move to opposition and money laundering controversies that marked his final years as MLA, and hopes voters in Langley Township make him mayor. But councillors Eric Woodward and Blair Whitmarsh have well-established campaigns, making this race a big question mark.
7. Port Moody: There are fewer than 35,000 people in town, but it could generate as much social media debate as some municipalities five times its size. It’s a battle of councillors in Meghan Lahti vs. Steve Milani, but it’s current mayor Rob Vagramov that looms large in the campaign, with Milani supporting Vagramov’s past agenda and conduct, and Lahti very much not.
8. Saanich: It certainly won’t get as much interest in Victoria. But next-door neighbour Saanich has more people and an equally interesting race for mayor, with past councillor Dean Murdock challenging current mayor Fred Haynes. Housing policy, budgeting and leadership are big questions, and two left-leaning councillors not running again could change the political culture of the council as well.
9. West Vancouver: Four years ago, councillor Mary-Ann Booth was elected mayor, defeating former mayor Mark Sager and another sitting councillor for the top job. This year, Booth is hoping to defeat … former mayor Mark Sager, and another sitting councillor (this time Marcus Wong) for the top job. But Booth only won by 21 votes and tensions over development and transportation have increased in the last four years, making her re-election no sure thing.
10. Langford: The City That Stew Young built is likely to elect Young — first elected in 1993, a year after Langford incorporated — for a 10th term. But it has been a rockier last four years for him, with more backlash over the laissez-faire way Langford has grown and been governed. It means a battle for council between new political party Langford Now, and Young’s new Community First Langford team.
11. Lytton: And finally, a town that has not been a physical place of gathering for people the last 15 months will have a wildly different council after this election, with just one incumbent running again. Among those running for mayor is Denise O’Connor, who has emerged as the most public critic of how various levels of government have handled the recovery process. Whoever wins will have a tall task in front of them, for obvious reasons.
Honourable mentions to Langley City, Maple Ridge, Quesnel, Prince George, Penticton, Pouce Coupe, Prince Rupert, Vernon, Nelson, Trail, Williams Lake, and many, many other places we’ll have our eyes on over the next five weeks. | | |  | | | 2. Stepping down | Conversely, there were several last-minute announcements from those not running again: Comox Mayor Russ Arnott pulled a U-turn, as did Richmond councillor Linda McPhail. Meanwhile, several Metro Vancouver councillors decided another four years wasn’t in the cards, including West Vancouver’s Craig Cameron, North Vancouver District’s Megan Curren, and Coquitlam councillor Chris Wilson.
Read more in the Tri-City News | | | |  | | | 3. Running twice? | Perhaps the strangest set of decisions came from Port Moody’s Zoe Royer: she announced she wouldn’t be running for re-election for Port Moody council, instead running for Coquitlam school board … and then she decided to run for Coquitlam council as well. One can run for school board and council at the same time, but there isn't a lot of precedent for it. Read more in the Tri-City News | | | | | |  | | | 5. Victoria | And speaking of housing, Victoria was scheduled to finally make a decision on whether to convert large swaths of the city into zoning that would allow a wider array of housing types than was previously allowed. But despite months of study and consultation, council wasn’t ready to make a decision … so it will fall to a brand new group after the election to decide what to do. Read more | | | | | | Share this newsletter | | or subscribe if this was
forwarded to you. | | | | That's it for this week! In the meantime, check out the latest headlines at cbc.ca/bc and follow our municipal affairs reporter Justin McElroy on Twitter. And if you have any questions you might want answered in a future mailbag, drop Justin a line at metromatters@cbc.ca. | | | |
