Vancouver voters dealt a blow to Mayor Ken Sim and his ABC party on Saturday, throwing their support behind two left-leaning candidates in a byelection widely seen as a critique of their governance. Read More
Meanwhile, Vancouver’s city manager acknowledged that one-to-two-hour wait times during Saturday’s byelection were “unacceptable”
Meanwhile, Vancouver’s city manager acknowledged that one-to-two-hour wait times during Saturday’s byelection were “unacceptable”
Article content
Vancouver voters dealt a blow to Mayor Ken Sim and his ABC party on Saturday, throwing their support behind two left-leaning candidates in a byelection widely seen as a critique of their governance.
Article content
Article content
While the ABC party still holds the balance of power on council with seven of 11 seats, the results showed clear disenchantment with the ruling party, which won a landslide victory in the 2022 municipal election on a promise to fix a dysfunctional city hall and improve public safety.
Article content
Story continues below
Article content
The byelection drew higher-than-normal turnout and saw voters waiting in line for up to three hours at chaotic and understaffed polling stations.
Article content
Sunrise
Article content
Sean Orr of COPE and Lucy Maloney of OneCity claimed decisive victories, capturing 34,448 and 33,732 votes, respectively, according to unofficial results posted online.
Article content
In an early morning call on Sunday, Orr said he was still absorbing the win: “I have to pinch myself.”
Article content
Orr said voters showed they are ready for change.
Article content
“Citizens felt alienated by ABC’s lack of responsiveness and lack of integrity, running roughshod over our democratic institutions, firing the park board, pausing the work of the integrity commissioner, barely showing up to council meetings, increasing his [mayor’s office] budget to $1.5 million, increasing property taxes while cutting services,” said Orr.
Article content
On Sunday, Sim released a statement to Postmedia that said, in part, “While the results didn’t go the way we had hoped, I want to be absolutely clear: We’re all on Team Vancouver. Congratulations to Lucy and Sean for their win, we look forward to working with both of them to build a better city for all of us.”
Article content
Story continues below
Article content
Maloney, a first-time politician, said she believes ABC councillors are ready to “vote with their conscience” on items of importance to Vancouverites, rather than vote along party lines.
Article content
Stories You May Like
-
Vancouver election office says record high voter turnout reason for long lineups for byelection
-
Vancouver byelection: Seven candidates from five parties make their pitch
-
Advertisement embed-more-topic
Story continues below
Article content
“ABC is not a cohesive unit, they are already not voting as a block. I’m sure that in some instances we are going to have great success at getting reasonable policies through that improve the lives of ordinary Vancouverites,” said Maloney.
Article content
Maloney said her first step will be to reestablish the City of Vancouver’s Renter Office, a tenants’ rights body abolished by ABC against the advice of city staff in 2023.
Article content
Maloney said housing affordability was the No. 1 issue she heard about while door-knocking during the campaign.
Article content
“This victory signals that voters want a truly vibrant city that makes sure our young people, our artists, our seniors can stay in our city,” she said.
Article content
Orr said he expects a steep learning curve, but he’s ready for it.
Article content
“I plan to report back to the people on everything I’m seeing and use my position for full accountability and transparency, advocate for workers and reverse the punitive and cruel ban on supportive housing,” said Orr.
Discover more from World Byte News
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
