Here’s why these WA incumbents lost The Times’ election endorsement - The Seattle Times

British ColumbiaWhile the reasons behind each vote are different, the winners in many B. C. mayoral races have promised to be consensus builders after a tumultuous four years that sometimes saw conflict boil over. Many winning candidates promised consensus and change as key to leadership bidListen to this articleEstimated 4 minutesThe audio version of this article is generated by AI-based technology. Mispronunciations can occur. We are working with our partners to continually review and improve the results. The next mayors of Prince George (Garth Frizzell), Vernon (Kari Gares) and Kamloops (Mike O'Reilly) are among multiple former city councillors to defeat incumbents in the 2026 municipal election. (Andrew Kurjata/CBC; Kari Gares/Facebook; Jenifer Norwell/CBC)The winds of change swept through council races in some of the biggest cities in B. C.'s Interior and north, with experienced city councillors pushing out incumbents in multiple city halls, including Kamloops, Prince George, Fort St. John, Vernon, Penticton and Quesnel.

Well beyond Vancouver — from Surrey and Langley to Prince George and Kamloops  — voters have ousted mayors in many of the province’s largest cities. The rejected mayors range from the pragmatic to the controversial, as voters in many B. C. cities chose new leaders Many races were relatively close. Kamloops Mayor Reid Hamer-Jackson’s contest was not one of them.

Multiple British Columbia First Nations have taken the rare step of wading into a local municipal election. In Williams Lake, Mayor Surinderpal Rathor is facing a challenge from the city’s former mayor, Walt Cobb, marking the fourth consecutive election the two men have faced each other in the Cariboo city. Cobb beat Rathor in 2014 and 2018, before losing the mayor’s chair to Rathor in 2022.