Tomorrow, voters will elect a mayor, eight councillors, nine school board trustees and three CRD directors for a four-year term.

City of Victoria

Here’s our guide to everything you need to know ahead of casting your ballot:

You can vote at any of the following locations tomorrow from 8 am to 8 pm. (An accessible voting machine will be available at Central Middle School).

• Central Baptist Church – 833 Pandora Avenue
• Central Middle School – 1280 Fort Street
• Cook Street Village Activity Centre – 380 Cook Street
• George Jay Elementary School – 1118 Princess Avenue
• Glenlyon Norfolk School – 781 Richmond Avenue
• James Bay Community School -140 Oswego Street
• James Bay New Horizons Centre -234 Menzies Street
• Margaret Jenkins Elementary School – 1824 Fairfield Road
• Oaklands Elementary School – 2827 Belmont Avenue
• Quadra Elementary School – 3031 Quadra Street
• Sir James Douglas Elementary School – 401 Moss Street
• SJ Burnside Education Centre – 498 Cecelia Road
• Victoria West Elementary School – 750 Front Street

There are eight people in the running for the Mayor’s seat:

Marianne Alto

Contributed

Alto was first elected in 2010, returning to council in 2011, 2014 and 2018.

She currently sits on nine council and CRD committees, and has served as council liaison to seven neighbourhoods.

“Proud of progress made on infrastructure, active transportation, housing supply from policies prioritizing rentals and affordability, climate action, Reconciliation, all-ages recreation and pandemic recovery, Marianne knows Council can do more to make Victoria a vibrant, welcoming city for everyone,” says her voting profile. “She has the experience to make tough, balanced decisions with solutions to help Victorians thrive in the present and future.

Stephen Andrew

Contributed
Stephen was elected to council in the 2020 by-election. 

“Stephen’s platform, A Victoria for Everyone, highlights six key themes: public safety and community wellness, building homes, good governance, livability, business investment, in addition to environment and climate change,” says his candidate profile.

“Stephen believes the job of council is to represent its citizens and to put the needs and priorities of residents at the center of council’s governance work. As Mayor, Stephen will focus on local priorities, to make Victoria the most accessible city in Canada, invest and improve decaying infrastructure, and ensuring everyone who comes downtown and visits our local parks  feel safe.”

Lyall Atkinson

Contributed

Born at VGH in 1963, Atkinson works in both the private and Union sector health and food industry. Atkinson also founded his moving and hauling company, “Your Friend with a Truck”, in 2003.

“Politically, Lyall believes the City government should return to its core functions. While drug addiction and homeless are a blight on the city, it is not the sole responsibility of local government to solve these societal
Issues,” continues his profile. 

“There are two senior levels of government with that specific responsibility. Victoria council needs to focus its attention and limited resources to local issues. If this community is to grow, prosper and become a welcoming place to live, we must change the focus of our local government.”

Rafael Fuentes

Twitter @ChiefManak

Rafael Fuentes is a single father who is currently in the courier business. He previously worked at the Youth Custody Centre for 16 years and owned his own preschool business.

He says that as a single father and a renter, he is dealing with the reality of affordable housing, which he plans to heavily advocate for if elected.

“I have gained a lot of experience in positive and negative situations,” says his candidate profile. “My daughter Madrona died of cancer in 2013 at just 2-years-old. The unconditional support from this community helped us get through the darkest of days. Therefore, our family supports many organizations like Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock and Island Kids Cancer Association.”

Rod Graham

Contributed

Rod Graham says he is homeless, and will be running for mayor with the slogan “stop the persecution, stop the sweeps.”

“I’ve been an activist in one capacity or another for more than 45 years. I’m 64 now,” says his candidate profile. “I was a homeless child at one time in Vancouver, BC, was a ward of the state since the age of 12 or 13. I think I know some of what should be done to not only really help the homeless, but also to get them off the street and into housing.”

He adds that he used to run a street paper in the prairies called Street Sheet, and was a correspondent for the International Network of Street Papers (INSP).

Brendan Marshall

Contributed

Brendan Marshall is a lifelong resident of the Capital Region and owner of the Sunnyside Cafe in Esquimalt.

“As a small business owner in the food and beverage industry, Brendan has heard the concerns of thousands of residents, and understands deeply the importance of a vibrant and prosperous Victoria,” his candidate profile reads.

His campaign focus will be on issues such as housing affordability, homelessness and crime, traffic flow, and government spending.

David Arthur Johnston

David Arthur Johnston says that, given support, he has a plan to “adopt a persona of a loving hippy tyrant and take the actual steps necessary to end the addiction epidemic,” and that “his best effect as mayor will be simply to act contrary to the direction we’ve been going.”

He also says in his candidate profile that he wants to initiate a volunteer gardening program to “work under the precept that economic recovery is not assured.”

Michelle Wiboltt

Michelle Wiboltt’s campaign focuses on “evolving democracy” and “freedom from Bill 21.”

Some highlights from Wiboltt’s plans, if elected, include building pod villages, and “democratizing city hall.”

Another 37 candidates are vying for one of eight seats on city council, and amongst them, 18 have expressed interest in one of three CRD directors positions:

• Julia Alvarez
• Gary C. Beyer
• Tom Braybrook
• Michael Cameron
• Jeremy Caradonna
• Christopher Mark Coleman
• Matt Dell
• Rob Duncan
• Jalal Elarid
• Marg Gardiner
• Riga Godron
• Stephen Hammond
• Christopher Hanna
• James Harasymow
• Ben Isitt
• Sandy Janzen
• Jason Jones
• Muller Kalala
• Susan Kim
• Anna King
• Brian Klassen
• Krista Loughton
• Jeremy Maddock
• Janice Nightingale
• Steve Orcherton
• Emmanuel Parenteau
• Derek Pinto
• Khadoni Pitt Chambers
• Jordan Quitzau
• William Scott
• Brad Sifert
• Susan Simmons
• Tom Sinclair
• Shea C. Smith
• Dave Thompson
• Janice Williams
• Tony Yacowar

For in-depth profiles for school district candidates, click here.

For information on voter eligibility, how to register, parking and more, click here.