The newest member of Vancouver city council has announced his plan to run for mayor. Hector Bremner is seeking the nomination of his party, the Non-Partisan Association (NPA), as the standard bearer in the October 2018 municipal election.
In a Facebook post February 19, Bremner wrote: “I’m excited today—with the support of my wife Virginia and two kids Carlo and Gianluca—to confirm that I am seeking the NPA nomination for mayor of our great city Vancouver.”
Bremner, 37, was elected last October in a by-election that was held to fill a seat left vacant in council.
Since 2015, Brember has worked in public relations with the Vancouver-based Pace Group.
Bremner has indicated that he intends to focus on the housing issue.
“Our city is facing major challenges, and we will be talking a lot about them over the coming months,” he wrote there on Facebook. “The biggest challenge, by far, is our housing crisis. I am both proud and humbled to be part of the #LetsFixHousing movement. Our movement is full of people who love Vancouver. We have all committed to identify and implement the changes needed to make it possible for middle class working people to live in and enjoy our city again.”
On January 30 this year, the NPA issued an open call for potential mayoral candidates.
The NPA currently holds four council seats. In addition to Bremner, those are held by George Affleck, Elizabeth Ball, and Melissa De Genova.
On his website for his nomination campaign, Bremner wrote: For most people, our city has become a tough place to live. Everyone is on edge. It’s near impossible to find and afford rent or mortgages here. We see development and growth is not benefiting us. Taxes are going up and services declining.”
“As I look around I see our city no longer makes sense. People cannot afford to live here. No one is realizing the benefits of their hard work, or development. Our taxes go up, but services decline. We’ve heard plans, promises, resets and apologies by our leaders, but our challenges just get worse.
“I have hope though that we can come together to solve our city’s problems. The solutions are there for us. The truth is that often solutions are easy, it’s the politics that are hard. So, I am hoping we can put division aside and work together to make this city work again.
“My life and career have been marked by recognizing good ideas, getting things done and bringing people together. That’s why I am thrilled to be running as your Mayoral candidate for the NPA – The party who has moved our city forward over its many decades in city hall. We need to get back there to fix our city.
“My promise to you is that I will get the job done,” Bremner stated.
(Photos by Christian Cunanan)
