The City of Victoria has yet to call a byelection to replace former councillor and newly elected MP Laurel Collins, but the organization that helped elect her to council in 2018 is already mobilizing to find a new candidate.
Together Victoria officially opened its nomination process this week in advance of a byelection expected in February.
Ashley McKay, the organization’s co-chair, said about 10 people have expressed interest in seeking the nomination.
“We’ve had a lot of interest,” she said. “We’ve been in conversations with folks for a couple weeks now.”
A nomination meeting will be held Jan. 5 and prospective candidates can put their names forward until Dec. 26.
Together Victoria describes itself as a progressive elector organization “dedicated to creating an affordable, inclusive and thriving Victoria.”
In 2018, the organization endorsed three candidates — Collins, Sarah Potts and Sharmarke Dubow — all of whom won seats on Victoria council.
The left-of-centre slate ran on a platform that included pledges to improve housing affordability, fight climate change, offer free transit to youth and tackle addiction and homelessness.
McKay said Together Victoria plans to consult with its members and update the platform once it selects a candidate for the byelection.
The organization has about 200 members, but expects to grow as the byelection and the nomination meeting approach, she said.
People wishing to help select the organization’s candidate will have to take out a membership at least 30 days prior to the meeting.
“I think any election is important and essential for our democracy and our community,” McKay said.
“I think this election is no different than any other. Of course, it’s important to Together that we run the best candidate that we can and that we show the community our values.”
Collins, who was sworn in as an MP on Tuesday, resigned from city council effective Nov. 4. She won the Victoria riding for the NDP in the Oct. 21 federal election.
The first-term councillor was on unpaid leave from Aug. 9 to Oct. 25 and specified in her resignation letter that she did not wish to be paid for the period of time from the end of her leave until her resignation.
City clerk Chris Coates said Wednesday that staff will be producing a report for council in the coming weeks that explains the decisions that have to be made in order to fill Collins’ seat.
In an earlier report, he stated that a byelection must be called under the provisions of the Local Government Act. The only time council has discretion on whether to call a byelection is in the final year of its four-year term, he said.
The first task will be for council to appoint a chief election officer and notify the minister of municipal affairs.
Once that’s done, a general voting day must be held on a Saturday within 80 days of the appointment.
Mayor Lisa Helps has said the byelection will likely take place in February to avoid the holiday season. The byelection is expected to cost taxpayers about $200,000.
