Vancouver municipal election, 2008

Last updated
Vancouver municipal election, 2008
Flag of Vancouver (Canada).svg
  2005 November 15, 2008 (2008-11-15) 2011  

11 seats in Vancouver City Council

  First party Second party Third party
  Gregor Robertson Burrard.jpg David Cadman.jpg Vancouver politician Peter Ladner (2008).jpg
Leader Gregor Robertson David Cadman
(de facto)
Peter Ladner
Party Vision COPE NPA
Leader since June, 2008 2005 2008
Leader's seat Mayor Councillor Ran for Mayor (lost)
Last election 4 seats, 44.45% 1 seat,
N/A
6 seats, 47.34%
Seats won 8 2 1
Seat change +4 +1 -5
Popular vote 67,598 N/A 48,794
Percentage 54.39% N/A 39.26%
Swing +9.94% N/A -8.08%

Mayor before election

Sam Sullivan
NPA

Elected Mayor

Gregor Robertson
Vision

The 2008 Vancouver municipal election was held on November 15, 2008, filling seats on the Vancouver School Board, the Parks Board, the Vancouver City Council, and the position of Mayor of Vancouver. It was held at the same time as municipal elections throughout the province. Three major civic parties were represented: the Coalition of Progressive Electors, the Non-Partisan Association, and Vision Vancouver. The Green Party of Vancouver fielded one Park Commissioner candidate.

Vancouver City Council

Vancouver City Council is the governing body of the City of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. The council consists of the mayor plus ten councillors elected to serve a four-year term. The current council was determined by the 2018 civic election. Monthly, a deputy mayor is appointed from among the councillors. The current mayor is Kennedy Stewart, who sits as an independent.

The Coalition of Progressive Electors (COPE) is a municipal political party in the Canadian city of Vancouver, British Columbia. It has traditionally been associated with tenants, environmentalists, and the labour movement. COPE is generally guided by social-democratic principles and has a long history of advocating for issues such as improving public transit and investing in affordable housing. It last held a majority government on City Council from 2002 to 2005. COPE describes itself as being committed to environmental sustainability and generally supports measures and legislation to reduce municipal greenhouse emissions and to enact other environmental reforms. COPE cites climate change as a threat to the planet and to future generations, and much of its platform is based upon opposition to development that could contribute to climate change or endanger the city from an environmental perspective.

Contents

Candidates and results

All incumbents are marked with (I) before their names.

Mayor

One mayor was elected out of 15 candidates. Of the candidates, four were affiliated with a political party, and eleven were independent. Gregor Robertson of Vision Vancouver was elected.

Gregor Robertson (politician) Canadian politician

Gregor Angus Bethune Robertson is a Canadian entrepreneur and politician, who served as the 39th Mayor of Vancouver, British Columbia from 2008 to 2018. As mayor, Robertson oversaw the creation and implementation of the Greenest City 2020 Action Plan and spearheaded the creation of the city's first comprehensive Economic Action Strategy.

Vision Vancouver political party

Vision Vancouver is a social democratic and green liberal municipal political party in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Vision was formed in the months leading up to the 2005 municipal election.

Candidate Name Party affiliationVotes% of votesElected
Robertson, Gregor Gregor Robertson Vision Vancouver 67,59854.39%X
Ladner, Peter Peter Ladner Non-Partisan Association 48,79439.26%
Krawczyk, Betty Betty Krawczyk Work Less Party of British Columbia 1,3461.08%
Emery, Marc Marc Emery Independent 1,1190.90%
Yee, ScottScott Yee Independent 9420.31%
Britten, PatrickPatrick Britten Nude Garden Party 6950.76%
Kuah, JeffJeff Kuah Independent 6000.48%
Jimenez, Angel L.Angel L. Jimenez Independent 3200.26%
Kaplan, LeonLeon Kaplan Independent 2990.24%
Ritchie, BillBill Ritchie Independent 2520.20%
Hatoum, JoeJoe Hatoum Independent 2410.19%
Buday, Gölök Z.Gölök Z. Buday Independent 1720.14%
Caissey, Menard D.Menard D. Caissey Independent 1370.11%
Maxwell, N. BurN. Bur Maxwell Independent 1250.10%

City Councillors

Ten councillors were elected out of 32 candidates. Of the candidates, 24 were affiliated with a political party, and eight were independent. Eight incumbent councillors were seeking re-election: four from Vision Vancouver, three from the NPA, and one from COPE. Of the elected councillors, seven were from Vision Vancouver, two from COPE and one from the NPA.

Non-Partisan Association municipal political party in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

The Non-Partisan Association (NPA) is a municipal political party in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. There are, and have also been in the past, Non-Partisan Association political parties in the nearby municipalities of Burnaby, Richmond and Surrey.

Candidate Name Party AffiliationVotes% of VotesElected
(I) Louie, Raymond Raymond Louie Vision Vancouver 66,22653.29%X
(I) Deal, Heather Heather Deal Vision Vancouver 63,11650.78%X
(I) Chow, George George Chow Vision Vancouver 62,26250.10%X
Jang, Kerry Kerry Jang Vision Vancouver 60,59848.76%X
Reimer, Andrea Andrea Reimer Vision Vancouver 59,14847.59%X
(I) Stevenson, Tim Tim Stevenson Vision Vancouver 58,38046.97%X
(I) Cadman, David David Cadman Coalition of Progressive Electors 56,66545.59%X
(I) Anton, Suzanne Suzanne Anton Non-Partisan Association 52,94142.60%X
Meggs, Geoff Geoff Meggs Vision Vancouver 49,53839.86%X
Woodsworth, Ellen Ellen Woodsworth Coalition of Progressive Electors 45,87736.91%X
Dhaliwal, KashmirKashmir Dhaliwal Vision Vancouver 44,85436.09%
Geller, MichaelMichael Geller Non-Partisan Association 44,35335.69%
(I) Capri, Kim Kim Capri Non-Partisan Association 44,27035.62%
(I) Ball, Elizabeth Elizabeth Ball Non-Partisan Association 42,72734.38%
Lee, DavidDavid Lee Non-Partisan Association 42,19533.95%
Wong, KanmanKanman Wong Non-Partisan Association 36,79529.61%
Houghton, KorinaKorina Houghton Non-Partisan Association 34,58827.83%
Copeland, LeanoreLeanore Copeland Non-Partisan Association 34,56627.81%
Bickerton, SeanSean Bickerton Non-Partisan Association 33,51026.96%
Sidhu, Daljit S.Daljit S. Sidhu Non-Partisan Association 28,89423.25%
Shaw, ChrisChris Shaw Work Less Party of British Columbia 11,2379.04%
Johnson, LeaLea Johnson Independent 10,9478.81%
Gregson, Ian Ian Gregson Work Less Party of British Columbia 10,4938.44%
Tramutola, GeriGeri Tramutola Work Less Party of British Columbia 8,6196.93%
Boychuk, John T.John T. Boychuk Independent 8,0936.51%
Wisdom, TimothyTimothy Wisdom Work Less Party of British Columbia 7,4355.98%
Boyer, MarcMarc Boyer Independent 4,3053.46%
Laferriere, Audrey JaneAudrey Jane Laferriere Independent 4,1963.38%
Wendythirteen Independent 3,5082.82%
Wansleeben, SteveSteve Wansleeben Independent 3,2992.65%
Oracle, BudBud Oracle Independent 2,8602.30%
Kadioglu, MattMatt Kadioglu Independent 2,4231.95%

Park Commissioners

Seven commissioners were elected out of twenty candidates. Of the candidates, 15 were affiliated with a political party, and five were independent. Two incumbent commissioners were seeking re-election: one from COPE and one from the NPA. Of the elected commissioners, four were from Vision Vancouver, and one each from the NPA, COPE, and the Green Party of Vancouver.

Green Party of Vancouver

The Green Party of Vancouver, founded in 1984, is a municipal political party in Vancouver. It is affiliated with both the provincial Green Party of British Columbia, and the national Green Party of Canada.

Candidate Name Party AffiliationVotes% of VotesElected
Barnes, ConstanceConstance Barnes Vision Vancouver 62,97350.67%X
Jasper, AaronAaron Jasper Vision Vancouver 58,34346.94%X
Blyth, SarahSarah Blyth Vision Vancouver 56,77545.68%X
(I) Woodcock, LorettaLoretta Woodcock Coalition of Progressive Electors 49,90140.15%X
Hundal, RajRaj Hundal Vision Vancouver 48,87139.32%X
MacKinnon, StuartStuart MacKinnon Green Party of Vancouver 48,41538.95%X
(I) Robertson, IanIan Robertson Non-Partisan Association 44,00535.41%X
Romaniuk, AnitaAnita Romaniuk Coalition of Progressive Electors 43,63635.11%
Zlotnik, MartyMarty Zlotnik Non-Partisan Association 42,63334.30%
De Genova, MelissaMelissa De Genova Non-Partisan Association 42,06233.84%
McDiarmid, LauraLaura McDiarmid Non-Partisan Association 37,84130.45%
Richardson, ChristopherChristopher Richardson Non-Partisan Association 35,84928.84%
Urton, SharonSharon Urton Non-Partisan Association 33,12926.66%
Shukla, NareshNaresh Shukla Non-Partisan Association 27,35022.01%
Hamilton, Jamie Lee Jamie Lee Hamilton Independent 15,40512.39%
Andalis, Juliet VictoriaJuliet Victoria Andalis Independent 11,7309.44%
Mayencourt, RichardRichard Mayencourt Independent 11,1528.97%
Dumenc, IvanIvan Dumenc Work Less Party of British Columbia 10,9198.79%
Lockhart, ThomasThomas Lockhart Independent 6,8325.50%
Haskell, Peter RaymondPeter Raymond Haskell Independent 5,6744.57%

School Trustees

Nine school trustees were elected out of 19 candidates. Of the candidates, 17 were affiliated with a political party, and two were independent. Five incumbent trustees were seeking re-election: three from the NPA, and two from COPE. Of the elected trustees, four were from Vision Vancouver, three from COPE and two from NPA.

Candidate Name Party AffiliationVotes% of VotesElected
Bacchus, PattiPatti Bacchus Vision Vancouver 64,45151.67%X
Lombardi, MikeMike Lombardi Vision Vancouver 62,77250.32%X
Clement, KenKen Clement Vision Vancouver 62,09649.78%X
Gregson, Sharon E.Sharon E. Gregson Vision Vancouver 61,41749.24%X
(I) Wong, AllanAllan Wong Coalition of Progressive Electors 56,02744.92%X
(I) Blakey, AlAl Blakey Coalition of Progressive Electors 49,04539.32%X
Bouey, JaneJane Bouey Coalition of Progressive Electors 48,22738.66%X
(I) Denike, KenKen Denike Non-Partisan Association 46,77737.50%X
(I) Gibson, CarolCarol Gibson Non-Partisan Association 46,04836.92%X
Bargeman, BillBill Bargeman Coalition of Progressive Electors 45,98136.86%
Holden, HeatherHeather Holden Non-Partisan Association 45,92136.81%
Singh, AlvinAlvin Singh Coalition of Progressive Electors 43,75435.08%
Woo, SophiaSophia Woo Non-Partisan Association 43,53834.90%
(I) Hansen, ClarenceClarence Hansen Non-Partisan Association 40,95332.83%
Le Gallais, EileenEileen Le Gallais Non-Partisan Association 37,59830.14%
Nance, MargitMargit Nance Non-Partisan Association 35,01428.07%
Singh, LakhbirLakhbir Singh Non-Partisan Association 33,65926.98%
Stark, Robert AllanRobert Allan Stark Independent 10,9148.75%
Haskell, Peter RaymondPeter Raymond Haskell Independent 10,3708.31%

Capital Plan questions

The following Capital Plan questions were posed to voters: [1]

Public works

1. Are you in favour of Council having the authority, without further assent of the electors, to pass by-laws between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2011, to borrow an aggregate $93,820,000 for the following purposes?

  • Street and Bridge Infrastructure at $66,607,000
  • Traffic and Safety Improvements at $12,553,000
  • Street Lighting, Traffic Signal, and Communications Systems at $14,660,000
OptionVotesPercentage
Yes78,50663.16%
No28,02436.84%
Total Votes124,285100%

Public safety and civic facilities

2. Are you in favour of Council having the authority, without further assent of the electors, to pass by-laws between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2011, to borrow an aggregate $68,605,000 for the following purposes?

  • Public Safety at $31,965,000
  • Civic Facilities at $32,490,000
  • Library at $4,150,000
OptionVotesPercentage
Yes79,42963.91%
No26,67936.09%
Total Votes124,285100%

Parks and recreation facilities

3. Are you in favour of Council having the authority, without further assent of the electors, to pass by-laws between January 1, 2009, and December 31, 2011, to borrow an aggregate $59,575,000 for the following purposes?

  • Recreation Facilities at $52,247,000
  • Parks at $7,328,000
OptionVotesPercentage
Yes77,25962.16%
No29,36637.84%
Total Votes124,285100%

Voter and party statistics

Voter turnout

Of the 403,663 registered voters, there were 124,285 recorded ballots, marking the voter turnout at 30.79%. This is an decrease of 1.66% from the 32.45% turnout during the previous municipal election in 2005. [2]

Elected percentage by party

PartyMayorCouncillorsPark CommissionersSchool TrusteesTotal candidates
# Elected% Elected# Elected% Elected# Elected% Elected# Elected% Elected# Elected% Elected
Green Party of Vancouver NILN/ANILN/A1/1100.0%NILN/A1/1100.0%
Vision Vancouver 1/1100.0%7/887.5%4/4100.0%4/4100.0%16/1794.1%
Coalition of Progressive Electors NILN/A2/2100.0%1/250.0%3/560.0%6/966.7%
Non-Partisan Association 0/10.0%1/1010.0%1/714.3%2/825.0%4/2615.4%
Work Less Party of British Columbia 0/10.0%0/40.0%0/10.0%NILN/A0/60.0%
Nude Garden Party 0/10.0%NILN/ANILN/ANILN/A0/10.0%
Independent candidates 0/110.0%0/80.0%0/50.0%0/20.0%0/260.0%

Seat changes by party

PartyMayor & CouncillorsPark CommissionersSchool TrusteesTotal elected
20052008% Change% Seats20052008% Change% Seats20052008% Change% Seats20052008% Change% Seats
Vision Vancouver 48+100.00%72.73%04N/A57.14%04N/A44.44%416+400.00%59.26%
Coalition of Progressive Electors 12+100.00%18.18%21-50.00%14.29%33±0.00%33.33%66±0.00%22.22%
Non-Partisan Association 71-85.71%9.09%51-80.00%14.29%62-66.67%22.22%174-76.47%14.81%
Green Party of Vancouver 00±0.00%0.0%01N/A0.00%00±0.00%0.00%01N/A3.70%

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