With less than a year to go, the Richmond News canvassed current council members about whether they were planning to run in the October 2022 election.
Most current Richmond councillors as well as the mayor are planning to run again for office in the next municipal election, less than a year away.
The one missing face will be Harold Steves, who has been on city council for about 50 years with just one break when he served as an NDP MLA for a term in the 1970s.
Mayor Malcolm Brodie told the News he plans to run again – he has been on council since 1996, first as a councillor. He was first elected as mayor in 2001 in a by-election and has been re-elected five times as an independent.
Couns. Carol Day and Michael Wolfe also plan to run in next October’s by-election with the RITE municipal party, under which they’ve been elected in the past.
RITE is planning to recruit other candidates also to run with the party, but it’s uncertain whether they’d run a mayoral candidate as it seems Brodie has a “solid hold” on the mayoralty seat, Wolfe said.
Two councillors who were elected with Richmond First, Linda McPhail and Bill McNulty, are both unsure yet if they will run for re-election, with McNulty saying it’s too early to commit as he’s still focused on this term’s mandate.
McPhail said she’s “seriously considering” putting her name forward again, but COVID-19 has made her think about things differently, and she wants to consult family and friends before running for another four-year term.
McNulty said running again is "always a possibility."
Coun. Chak Au was also hesitant about running for another term, but he has decided to run at least for one more term with the Richmond Community Coalition. He has been on council for three terms.
Coun. Alexa Loo, who ran unsuccessfully for the BC Liberals in last fall’s provincial election, told the News she plans to run again for council in a year’s time.
Rookie councillor Andy Hobbs, who won a seat on city council in a by-election in May, said he’s enjoyed his time so far and plans to run again in 2022. Hobbs, who served previously as a Richmond First school trustee, ran independently in the by-election and he plans to run again as an independent.
The next municipal election will take place Oct. 15, 2022. Richmondites will elect a mayor, eight councillors and seven school trustees.
