Prominent Metro Vancouver mayors face opponents this election | Daily Hive

Two prominent Metro Vancouver mayors face challengers this election — after winning by default in 2022

Mike Hurley/Facebook | Brad West/Facebook

After running uncontested in the previous municipal election four years ago, two well-known Metro Vancouver mayors now have challengers.

Brad West, who has been the mayor of Port Coquitlam since 2018 and served three terms as City Councillor before that, is now competing against two other mayoral candidates. And Mike Hurley, who has been the mayor of Burnaby since 2018, has five opponents.

In 2022, these Metro Vancouver mayors both won re-election by default, as no one else stepped up to run as mayoral candidates in their respective cities.

Now, in 2026, both mayors are citing their record of accomplishments over the past eight years in office, as they try to earn votes for a third term.

Brad West cites his past record as Port Coquitlam mayor, saying that the city has the lowest average property taxes and utility fees in the region, is one of the safest in B.C., and its community centre is seeing record-breaking usage.

In his time as mayor, he’s also made a name for himself beyond Port Coquitlam, as he has advocated to senior levels of government on various issues. For example, as the chair of the TransLink Mayors’ Council, he called on Ottawa to help create a new funding model for transit to help with both capital and operating needs. At the time, TransLink was facing severe funding cuts that could have resulted in a 50 per cent reduction of bus services, 30 per cent of SkyTrain and SeaBus services, and possibly the discontinuation of the West Coast Express commuter rail.

Now, West is promising to keep taxes and utility fees low, invest in parks and community centres, support local jobs and businesses, and strengthen community safety.

“I won’t be distracted by ideology or political games, and will always stand up for what’s best for Port Coquitlam residents. My focus will remain exactly where it has always been: Getting the basics right. Protecting affordability. Building a community where families can thrive. And delivering results for Port Coquitlam,” he wrote on his website.

Mike Hurley first ran for Burnaby mayor in 2018, saying that it was due to his concern regarding longtime Burnaby residents losing their homes to demovictions in 2018. At the time, he was the only serious challenger among the four candidates running against longtime incumbent Derek Corrigan, whom he defeated.

During his tenure as Burnaby mayor, Hurley said on his website that there’s been a “boom in new home construction,” investment in new community centres, and that he’s expanded RCMP headquarters and kept property taxes low.

Hurley has also served as the board chair of the Metro Vancouver Regional District since 2024, which has been under scrutiny due to rising costs, major capital projects, governance, and the scope of its responsibilities.

His re-election platform includes promises to deliver 1,000 new affordable rental homes, shorten wait times for homebuilding permits, and keep development cost charges down. He is also promising to move the temporary shelter on Buller Avenue to another location and build the planned Buller Beresford Park at the site, as well as finish expanding the Burnaby RCMP detachment.

Who is running against Brad West?

Aside from Brad West, Port Coquitlam has two other mayoral candidates this year: Connor Fesenmaier and Pasquale Zampieri.

According to Connor Fesenmaier’s website, he is a “husband, a father, a business owner, a Christian, an animal lover, and an optimist.”

He said he wants to bring a “higher standard of accountability, transparency, and measurable performance into local government.”

He has an eight-point platform, with promises to fix traffic, bring transparency to City Hall, strengthen community safety, and pursue a 25 per cent reduction in mayoral compensation.

On Pasquale Zampieri’s social media, he said he is running on affordability, accountability, and basic services.

“I’m running because families deserve a city they can afford to live in. Seniors deserve security in the community they helped build. Business owners deserve clear answers. And every resident deserves to be heard at City Hall,” he wrote in a social media post.

He promised to respect taxpayers’ money, focus on everyday services, prioritize safety, pursue housing “that meets people’s needs,” and “make listening part of the job.”

The Burnaby mayor race

Mike Hurley now faces competition from five other mayoral candidates: Sabina Hsu, Bill Petrovas, Hanzhi Wang, Heymann Yip, and Michael Angelo ABCRobinHood (actual name is Yusuf Kaplan).

Sabina Hsu cites some of her accomplishments on her social media, including launching a local Block Watch and proposing a “Clustered Hi-Rise with City Services Hub,” prior to Highgate planning.

Her platform is focused on accountability, economic growth, health, education, and enforcing strict smoking bylaws.

Bill Petrovas has experience as a school principal, business leader, and community volunteer, according to his website.

“My vision is to unleash Burnaby’s potential and make it one of Canada’s safest, most efficient, innovative, and livable cities,” he wrote.

His platform is based on affordability, transportation, street safety, and supporting businesses.

Hanzhi Wang is a software engineer who has lived in Metrotown for five years, according to his website. He said this background means he has managed projects of “all sizes” and has experience “navigating complex systems and coordinating teams.”

His platform promises to shift the housing tax burden, pointing out that while Burnaby has some of the lowest property taxes in Canada, it means that the City charges “astronomical amounts to new developments.”

The platform also includes supporting education, transportation, parks and recreation, and public safety.

Heymann Yip has lived in Burnaby for 35 years, running with the municipal political party Burnaby First. He became involved with municipal issues in 2017, after he started growing concerned with public safety. His accomplishments include protecting blue heron habitat near Deer Lake Park and opposing the City Hall relocation.

His party’s platform includes financial accountability, strengthening public safety, stricter rules for supportive housing, and investing in parks and green spaces.

Michael Angelo ABCRobinHood has been a Burnaby resident for nearly 40 years. On the official City of Burnaby mayor candidate profiles page, he said that he’s owned many businesses and has helped seniors and people with disabilities.

He promised to donate 100 per cent of his mayor salary, along with other things like reducing student tuition by 50 per cent.

With files from Kenneth Chan

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