Victoria, BC · Civic election · Saturday, October 17, 2026
Victoria deserves a council that listens.
The current council adopted a citywide rezoning most residents never heard about, raised a home's city taxes about 35 percent over four budgets, and bought $15 million of property without meaningful consultation. October 17 is your answer.
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Get the election updates
Sign up free to get important updates and the one-page 2026 Voter Guide with the dates, ID rules, and five questions to ask every candidate.
- Advance votingOct 7, 13, 14 and 15 · confirmed by the City
- Election dayVoting places open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Who we are
We are a grass-roots, community-based network committed to a change at Victoria city hall. We are issues-driven, and we are not endorsed by, supported by or affiliated with any political organization or special interest group.
What we stand for
Over the past four years, in our view, the majority on council has eroded public trust and changed Victoria for the worse on a number of things that matter to the people who live here. They replaced the safeguards that make local democracy work: consultation, transparency and accountability. What came instead was quicker, narrower, and settled earlier. We think that vision has served private interests ahead of the public one, and that Victoria deserves better.
Why this election matters
An election is the one moment when residents can say what concerns them, hold the people in office to account for their record, and weigh new candidates on what they promise. If you think Victoria needs a change, October 17 is where you say so.
Why we need change, issue by issue
Six things came up over and over. Each page sets out what happened, what the next council should do, and what to ask candidates.
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Governance and public trust
From a council that does what it wants, to one that answers for what it decides.
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Development and neighbourhoods
From one plan stretched over every lot, to planning that knows your street.
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Housing and affordability
From build anything and hope, to affordable homes people can actually rent.
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The urban forest
From counting saplings, to keeping the mature trees already standing.
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Transportation and infrastructure
From growth first and pipes later, to infrastructure funded before approval.
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Safety and well-being
From money spent, to results measured and reported.
The record, 2022 to 2026
Why this network exists
We are a network of citizens fed up with a majority of council forcing their vision on the city. Specifically, the group residents call the Gang of 5 (Councillors Dell, Caradonna, Loughton, Kim and Thompson), together with Mayor Alto, have undertaken the following. Judge for yourself.
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A Parks Sequencing Plan with limited consultation
The plan approved the re-design of Centennial Square and pushed the mega Crystal Pool project forward, with limited consultation with the citizens who pay for both.
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$15 million of land bought without asking
The city purchased Romeo's on Blanshard for $11 million, to eventually become a park, and Hermann's for roughly $4 million, again without consulting citizens. Parks, yes. But who would agree that a park right beside Blanshard is a good idea?
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Taxes up every single year, and a raise on top
The residential increase has climbed every budget of this term: 6.0, then 7.93, then 8.18, now 9.34 percent, roughly 35 percent compounded, while the announced headlines stayed conveniently smaller. Council also gave themselves a raise from about $58,000 to about $75,000, plus additional pay for sitting on the CRD, meaning some on council will make well over $100,000 for a part-time job.
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Downtown left to fend for itself until election year
Council all but abandoned downtown business owners to crime and disorder for most of their mandate, and acted only in their last year, before the election, with the Community, Safety and Wellbeing Plan.
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"Social Service Centres" allowed anywhere, without notice
Council approved a policy that allows social service centres, including homeless shelters, to open anywhere in Victoria without the community, or even council, being aware it is occurring.
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Bike lanes built without meaningful consultation
The continual construction of bike lanes has gone ahead corridor after corridor without meaningful consultation with the businesses and residents affected by them.
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The worst of all: an OCP almost nobody knew about
Council approved an Official Community Plan that less than 2 percent of the populace is even aware of. At no time was the public consulted when council asked staff to create a plan that would allow 4-storey condos on every lot in Victoria.
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A governance review, ignored
Clearly this council learned nothing from the MNP governance review prepared for the last council, which found that people want to be consulted and listened to, not consulted and ignored.
We will advocate for and support people running for council who will actually consult and listen. That is the whole program.
One plan now decides what can be built on your street.
The new Official Community Plan is the biggest change to city planning in a generation, and it passed with fewer than 2,500 survey responses. We read the plan so you don't have to, and we wrote down what matters in plain English.
- 4 storeysminimum building height now allowed on residential lots citywide
- 1.5 metreshow close a new building can sit to your property line
What we do between now and October 17
- Watch
- We attend or stream every council meeting and read every agenda, so decisions never again slip past unnoticed.
- Translate
- We turn hundred-page staff reports into short plain-English updates, with sources linked so you can check our work.
- Back
- We highlight candidates who commit to consult-first governance, and we put the hard questions to every candidate in public.
- Turn out
- We help neighbours register, make a voting plan, and get to a voting place during advance voting or on election day.
Twenty-two people are running
Eight council seats and the mayor's chair are on the ballot. See everyone who has announced, linked to their own websites, along with the groups working to influence the outcome.
Answers before you ask
Who is behind the Sustainable Victoria Network?
Volunteer residents from neighbourhoods across Victoria who watch council meetings, read the agendas, and publish what they find in plain language. The network is independent: no party, and no affiliation with the City of Victoria.
Who are the"Gang of 5"?
The nickname residents use for the five councillors who vote as a bloc: Matt Dell, Jeremy Caradonna, Krista Loughton, Susan Kim and Dave Thompson, usually joined by Mayor Marianne Alto. The full story is in our glossary, and the decisions are on this page above.
Why does the city say 7.28 percent when my tax notice says 9.34?
Because the announced number blends property classes. For 2026, council assigned homes 9.34 percent and business 4.78, then announced the blended 7.28. The year-by-year numbers, the fees billed outside the headline, and the sources are on the real tax bill page.
When is the 2026 Victoria election?
Saturday, October 17, 2026, with voting places open 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. BC law also requires advance voting. The City has confirmed four advance voting days: October 7, 13, 14 and 15.
Who can vote?
Canadian citizens who are 18 or older on election day, BC residents for at least six months, and Victoria residents for at least 30 days. Property owners who live elsewhere in BC may qualify as non-resident property electors. You can register right at the voting place with two pieces of ID, at least one bearing your signature. Details on our how to vote page.
I rent. Does city hall really affect me?
More than almost anyone. The new Official Community Plan shapes whether your building gets redeveloped and what compensation you get when it happens. Most Victoria households rent, and every renter ballot counts the same as every homeowner ballot.
What is this Official Community Plan everyone mentions?
Victoria 2050, adopted October 2, 2025. It replaced every neighbourhood plan in the city and allows buildings of at least four storeys on residential lots citywide. Our plain-language walkthrough covers what it means for owners, renters, trees and heritage.
What will you send me if I sign up?
Short election updates by email: what council decided, what it costs, who is running, and the key voting dates. Unsubscribe anytime with one click. We never sell or share your information.
Are you endorsing candidates?
Yes. We're doing it in a way where we share with you what our research and thinking process got us to, and give it to you to think over and decide for yourself. We have the reasoning and a link to every candidate's own website too, so you can check it all for yourself.
Where the deep detail lives
- The OCP guide walks through the 2025 Official Community Plan clause by clause.
- The real tax bill traces where the money went, with every figure sourced.
- The media tracker collects what local reporters have written, sorted by issue.
- The glossary explains the terms council uses in plain language.
Change city hall with one email and one ballot.
Sign up, make a plan to vote, and bring two neighbours. The last council seat is often decided by a few hundred ballots.