Several Surrey councillors considering mayoral run
After Surrey Mayor Linda Hepner’s announcement that she will not be running in the fall municipal election, at least half of the city’s councillors are considering making a run for the top job.
Two-term councillor Bruce Hayne was the first to go public, speaking with RedFM radio personality Harjinder Thind on Wednesday morning, just 13 hours after the news broke about Hepner.
“There are a number of people who have asked me if I will,” Hayne said. “I’m seriously considering it.”
Hayne said he will make his decision in the coming weeks, in consultation with his party, Surrey First, of which all eight councillors and the mayor are members.
“I can assure you that I will be running in the next election one way or the other,” Hayne said, either as mayor or councillor.
Longtime council member Tom Gill, who was first elected in 2005, has also said he’s looking at a run for the mayor’s seat.
“Certainly I am interested, there’s no question,” said Gill. “I’m looking at some opportunities to look at being the candidate, but I’m going to be working with my team. We’ve got a lot of great people on our team and we’re going to see what those next steps may look like.”
Gill suggested a Surrey First candidate will be chosen in the next several weeks.
On Tuesday evening, following the Surrey First annual general meeting, Hepner became the ninth mayor in Metro Vancouver to decline to run in the Oct. 20 municipal election.
Hepner said she fully intended to seek re-election, and told Postmedia News as much during an interview in February, but she has had some health issues — which turned out to be “not important at all” — that made her re-evaluate her priorities.
“It really gave me pause. I really just thought what is it that I need for the rest of my life,” Hepner said Wednesday. “I turn 70 in May and I have beautiful grandchildren that I don’t spend enough time with. I want to go to lacrosse games and practices and I don’t have the time to do it, and I just want to dedicate more time to my friends, my family and my husband.”
Sources told Postmedia that there has been a deep divide over Hepner’s leadership within the Surrey First party. Hepner dismissed the idea that there is conflict within Surrey First.
At the annual general meeting, Hepner said she was reaffirmed as president of the party and the councillors as directors, and that will remain the case until the municipal election.
“I love those kind of rumours right around election time. Where do you think those rumours come from?” Hepner said.
“No, there is no discord in the Surrey First team. I’ve got great team players. They’re all strong members in this community. I don’t think you could find a better group of independent thinkers that have all coalesced to do the best that is for the city of Surrey.”
Gill said he was unaware of any divisions within Surrey First.
“We are a very tight knit group — I hadn’t heard that,” he said.
Four members of council were on hand for Wednesday’s news conference with Hepner: Gill, Vera LeFranc, Mike Starchuk and Dave Woods. When asked who she would support as her successor, Hepner said all sitting councillors are good candidates.
“I’ve got a very strong team and there are a lot of good people there. They’ve all performed magnificently. I’m just proud of each and every one of them,” Hepner said. “I will support whoever Surrey First chooses as the nominee because I believe any one of the people on my team will make a good mayor.”
Starchuk, a retired firefighter who was elected in 2014, said he is open to the idea of running for mayor.
“Throughout my entire career, whether it’s been with the fire service or a board of directors on a little league, I’m not about closing doors. I want to make sure every door is open for me and of course at this point in my career I think it would be a consideration that’s worthy.”
LeFranc said she, too, is considering putting forth her name.
Former Surrey mayor Doug McCallum said he’s enjoyed his time away from politics and running was a “very, very low priority” for him, giving it a one-in-10 chance.
“The only thing that keeps me really sort of humming a little bit is there’s a lot of policies that I’d like to see happen in Surrey,” said McCallum, who listed environment, transportation and infrastructure as his top concerns.
Judy Villeneuve said she likes being a councillor and will decide by end of June whether to run again, though she has no intention of seeking the mayorship. Barbara Steel said she will run again for council but not seek the nomination for mayor. Woods and Mary Martin did not return requests for comment before deadline.
Hepner joins a growing list of Lower Mainland mayors who have said they’re not running for re-election in October. Those mayors include: Darrell Mussatto (City of North Vancouver); Richard Walton (District of North Vancouver); Gregor Robertson (Vancouver); Greg Moore (Port Coquitlam); Ted Schaffer (City of Langley); Nicole Read (Maple Ridge); Wayne Baldwin (White Rock); and Lois Jackson (Delta).