No one in Surrey has received David Eby’s memo that only one person is allowed to run for leadership.
Former White Rock mayor Gordie Hogg announced on Wednesday that he would like to be leader of a second town, tipping his hat in the increasingly crowded ring to become mayor of Surrey in October’s election.
“When it comes to the October election, the question for Surrey voters is clear: have you had enough and do you think we can do better, together?” said Hogg.
Hogg (a former Liberal MP and MP) joins Brenda Locke (a former Liberal MP), Sukh Dhaliwal (a Liberal MP) and Jinny Sims (an NDP MP) in hopes of usurping incumbent Doug McCallum , who wants to be re-elected.
The five candidates have differences in ideology and promises: Sims is the only person to run on the traditional left of the political spectrum, Locke is the only one to explicitly promise to return to the RCMP to police Hogg is the only one to promise “the voters have the final say” on the issue, with Dhaliwal the only one to promise to reverse a $200/year increase in the city’s package tax.
But in this race, political ideology and specific promises may not matter as much.
The ground game matters
Former Surrey councilor Barinder Rasode, who ran for mayor in 2014 and finished third, believes traditional political ideologies matter less to Surrey voters.
“Partisan political support at the federal or provincial level does not translate to the municipality,” she said.
“All of the traditional goals, from voter turnout in neighborhoods like South Surrey and Cloverdale, to involvement in Newton, it’s all thrown into the mix in a very unusual way.”
Rasode said that although McCallum has caused a lot of controversy, his ability to keep his two promises on police and public transit means he could still retain much of the 41% of the votes he got in 2018. .
However, she stressed there was room for other candidates to undermine her electoral base with residents questioning the taxes introduced by her council and her openness.
“I think transparency and ethics at City Hall is definitely an issue that continues to make headlines in Surrey,” Rasode said.
With four candidates vying for the anti-McCallum vote, each with slightly overlapping ideologies or platforms, one candidate’s ability to stand out could prove difficult.
This is why participation and organization will be essential.
“Whoever has the best running game will probably come out on top in October,” said University of the Fraser Valley political scientist Hamish Telford.
“It will depend on the slates the candidates have put together. Do they have attractive slates with reputable people that appeal to different parts of the city and help push the mayoral candidate to the top?”
Scramble for supporters
He created a stampede across Surrey to create the widest possible team: in organisers, in candidates, in supporters.
Consider Dhaliwal’s announcement earlier this week: One of his council candidates, Jasbir Sandhu, was an NDP MP. One of its main organizers is Brad Zubyk, a longtime Liberal agent from British Columbia. Its opening event brought together much of the city’s South Asian media.
At the same time, The Sims held an opening event with hundreds in attendance. Locke’s team has been campaigning for over a year. And Hogg brings with him a practicing adviser and many connections from his 30 years in local, provincial and federal politics.
In other words, everyone still has a path to follow.
“Vote splitting is what happens in democracies. And that’s part of the strength of democracy. And we should honor that. We shouldn’t complain about that,” Hogg said.
Maybe not. But it could be something everyone other than Doug McCallum is complaining about in the months to come.
“Internet evangelist. Extreme communicator. Subtly charming alcohol aficionado. Typical tv geek.”