June 9, 2025, Vancouver, British Columbia
Ken Sim’s former chief of staff considers Vancouver mayoral run in 2026
Excerpt from Business in Vancouver. Read the full article here:
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim’s former chief of staff says he is strongly considering a run for mayor in the October 2026 civic election—a run that would pit him against the very person and party he helped win a landslide victory in the 2022 race. Kareem Allam said Monday that a committee that includes former elected officials and ex-political staffers has been gauging the level of support he has in the community and found that people would support him in a run. “I want to run for mayor because I think I can do a better job,” Allam told BIV. “And I want to run for mayor because I love this city and I’m not happy with its direction.” Allam said he didn’t think it would come as a shock to municipal politics watchers that people want him to be on the ballot in 2026, given his public criticisms of the polices of Sim and his ABC Vancouver colleagues. He pointed to Sim’s desire to abolish the elected park board, the efforts to pause investigations by the integrity commissioner, big increases in property taxes and not allowing any net new supportive housing. Allam was also critical of the city-led action in April 2023 to escalate efforts to dismantle the encampment on East Hastings Street sidewalks, which led him to apologize to a group of non-profit representatives in the Downtown Eastside.
