By Elizabeth Gautschi, Civic Affairs Convenor
It’s Election Time! Across BC, municipal elections will take place on Saturday, October 15, 2022. Within Metro Vancouver, 12 mayors of 17 of the region’s largest municipal governments have confirmed their incumbency.
Mayor Kennedy Stewart and all of the present members of Vancouver City Council are standing for re-election. There are many contenders and more parties than previously. Some of the current City Council members have left their parties and joined new ones, or even started new ones. Vancouver voters will decide on:
- 1 Mayor and 10 City Councillors 9 School Trustees
- 7 Park Board Commissioners
- 3 Capital Plan questions
At our October 3 Vancouver Council of Women Meeting we will have an election panel made up of some women candidates running for Mayor, City Council, School Board and Parks Board. At this time, confirmed speakers at our event are the following candidates:
| Mayor | Colleen Hardwick (TEAM) |
|---|---|
| City Council | Sarah Kirby Yung (ABC Vancouver) |
| Cleta Brown (TEAM) | |
| Adriane Carr (Green) | |
| Iona Bonamis, (One City) | |
| School Board | Susie Mah (COPE) |
| Krista Sigurdson (One City) | |
| Park Board | Laura Christensen (ABC Vancouver) |
| Maira Hassan (COPE) | |
| Tricia Riley (Green) |
We are also expecting candidates from Forward Together Vancouver, NPA, and Vision.
Plan to attend and bring lots of questions!
Some of the current issues in Vancouver for the upcoming election include: homelessness, mental health and addiction, and The Broadway Plan, which is a 30-year plan to integrate new housing, jobs and amenities around the new Broadway subway. According to a survey by Research Co., just over half of Vancouver’s likely municipal election voters want to see the elected body of commissioners that govern the Vancouver Park Board abolished, with the responsibility of governing the city’s parks and recreation system then transferred to Vancouver City Council.