ABC Vancouver announces its candidates for 2-seat byelection
Mayor Ken Sim’s party to run VPD union boss Ralph Kaisers and ex-B.C. United candidate Jamie Stein
The candidates for Vancouver's April 5 byelection are set, with Ken Sim's ABC Vancouver party running VPD union boss Ralph Kaisers and ex-B.C. United candidate Jaime Stein.
Sim and ABC held a news conference at the Olympic Village on Thursday to announce Kaisers and Stein's candidacy.
Sim said the pair "share a deep commitment to making Vancouver safer, more prosperous and more livable for all."
When Sim won the mayoral race in 2022, he and his ABC party were endorsed by the Vancouver police union, which Kaisers heads.
"I've spent 34 years as a Vancouver police officer serving my community, and I'm ready to take that commitment to the next level as your city councillor," said Kaisers.
Stein, who has a background in the tech industry, was nominated to run for the ill-fated B.C. United Party in October in the riding of Vancouver-Langara.
"Now more than ever, we need strong, experienced and compassionate leadership at city hall," said Stein. "We need to continue to create safer streets, invest in the city's aging infrastructure and ensure businesses, families and communities can thrive."
ABC is the last major party to announce its candidates, with voting day six weeks away.
The byelection comes two and a half years into council's four-year mandate, with OneCity's Christine Boyle resigning in December after being elected to the provincial legislature.
Green Party of Vancouver Coun. Adriane Carr quit in January, saying she had lost confidence and trust in the mayor.
In 2022, ABC ran on a platform of public safety and fiscal responsibility but has recently attracted criticism over decisions around supportive housing, climate policies, championing bitcoin for the city, questioning the work of the city's integrity commissioner and a move to dissolve the elected park board.
In the past week, Sim has also been criticized for adding an extra $5 million to the Vancouver police budget for a project that aims to flood the Downtown Eastside with extra foot patrols and investigations targeting organized crime.
"With his performative promises to 'barrage' poor neighbourhoods and cancel important services for marginalized people, Ken Sim has eroded trust and won't make Vancouverites safer," said OneCity candidate Lucy Maloney in a news release. "He's not working for you."
Rivals are also pouncing on controversy within ABC, following the ousting of Coun. Rebecca Bligh.
She was kicked out of the party because she's "not aligned," not a "core value fit, choosing her own way, "ahead of the collective work of the team," ABC said in a statement on Feb. 14.
Of the 18 candidates across council, park board and school board that were elected under the ABC banner in 2022, only 13 remain in the party.
Ken Sim has shrugged off concerns there are cracks in his party and says he has high hopes for the party's latest candidates.
Contesting the April 5 byelection will be:
- Ralph Kaisers, ABC Vancouver
- Jaime Stein, ABC Vancouver
- Annette Reilly, Vancouver Green Party
- Colleen Hardwick, TEAM for a Livable Vancouver
- Theodore Abbott, TEAM for a Livable Vancouver
- Sean Orr, Coalition of Progressive Electors
- Lucy Maloney, OneCity
All candidates must be declared by Feb. 28. Mail-in ballot packages for eligible voters will be available starting on March 18, with advance voting on March 26 and April 1.
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With files from Courtney Dickson