B.C. Municipal Election: 5 take-aways after a tough night for incumbent mayors

Pete Fry celebrates his win during municipal election night at the Slate Event Space in Vancouver on Oct. 17. Photo by Arlen Redekop /PNG

Article content

Votes have been counted and most of the 3,479 candidates who ran for municipal office across B.C. in the municipal election know their fate.

Article content

Here is a look at five of the interesting things to emerge from the election:

Article content

Article content

Article content

Voters deliver verdicts on mayoral incumbents in B.C.’s two largest cities

Article content

Vancouver’s Ken Sim and Surrey’s Brenda Locke were both turfed as mayors in Saturday’s municipal election.

Article content

Article content

Article content

Article content

These results were unusual, as statistically incumbent mayors get re-elected.

Article content

Hugh Chan, a political analyst studying at the University of B.C., said that Fry won by over 22,000 votes, while McCallum’s comeback from last election’s loss to Locke was stunning.

Article content

“No matter what, you have to think that voters are angry,” Chan said. “And they may turn their anger on the provincial government next Saturday as well.”

Article content

Fry said that his political campaign was positive, with no attack ads, and it worked.

Article content

The election saw Sim’s ABC Vancouver party wiped out on the park board and the school board, while McCallum’s Safe Surrey Coalition has a solid majority on city council with six seats.

Article content

Article content

Other mayoral incumbents take a hit

Article content

It wasn’t only B.C.’s two largest cities that saw incumbent mayors take a fall.

Article content

Article content

Article content

“Across British Columbia, it looks like a huge anti-incumbent wave,” Chan said.

Article content

Article content

Article content

Some big winners and losers

Article content

One of the biggest winners among Metro Vancouver municipalities was incumbent Port Coquitlam Mayor Brad West, who captured almost 90 per cent of the vote.

Article content

This will be West’s third term as mayor, after being first elected in 2008 and running unopposed in 2022. Before being mayor, West was a three-term city councillor.

Article content

A big loser was incumbent and two-term Delta Mayor George Harvie, who was running against a former council ally in Dylan Kruger and newcomer Melissa Granum.

Article content

The race appeared to be between the feuding Harvie and Kruger, but on the night Granum started strong and never looked back, winning with 49 per cent of the vote compared with Kruger at 28 per cent and Harvie with 23 per cent.

Article content

In her victory speech, Granum said she wanted to see more harmony and co-operation on city council.

Article content

Another big loser was controversial incumbent Kamloops Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson, who came in fourth place.

Article content

Article content

Weak mayor system highlighted in Richmond

Article content

Rob Howard will be the mayor-elect of Richmond after defeating Alexa Loo and Kash Heed.