Three of Ken Sim’s former party mates have officially filed nomination papers with the Vancouver election office in their bids to win enough votes in the Oct. 17 municipal election to become the city’s next mayor.

Coun. Rebecca Bligh of Vote Vancouver ran with Sim in the 2018 election under the Non-Partisan Association (NPA) banner and again in 2022 with ABC Vancouver. Colleen Hardwick of TEAM for a Livable Vancouver was elected as a councillor in the 2018 race as a member of the NPA.

Kareem Allam of the Vancouver Liberals ran ABC’s campaign in 2022 and later became Sim’s chief of staff. Allam is currently embroiled in a legal fight with the mayor that is before the courts.

The trio is seen as representing the centre-right vote, with Sim also aligned on that side of the political spectrum. Sim filed his nomination papers this week, looking to secure a second four-year term.

Leading up to the Sept. 11 deadline to file nomination papers, there was speculation that one or more of Sim’s challengers might not follow through with their bid, including Bligh, who held a news conference Wednesday on the grounds of city hall.

“So before we get started, I just really want to clear something up,” she told reporters at the beginning of her speech at the Helena Gutteridge Plaza. “And that is that this is a launch. This is not a farewell tour. I’m proud to be standing here today to launch the Vote Vancouver platform.”

Expelled from ABC Vancouver

In her first term as a councillor, Bligh was elected as a member of the NPA. Sim was the party’s mayoral candidate in the 2018 election but failed to get elected, with Kennedy Stewart winning by a slim margin.

Bligh left the NPA in 2019, citing concerns over anti-sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) beliefs and misogynistic comments connected to some of the new board of directors. Bligh and Sim then helped form ABC Vancouver for the 2022 election.

Bligh was expelled from ABC Vancouver in February.

At the time, ABC president Stephen Molnar said in a statement that “time and again, councillor Bligh has shown that she is not a core value fit with ABC Vancouver. Rather than working with caucus to find common ground and advance solutions, she has chosen to put her own views ahead of the collective work of the team.”

Bligh disputed the claims, telling Business in Vancouver in an interview a few days after Molnar’s announcement that Sim said during the 2022 election campaign that he valued diverse opinions and lived experience.

“And what I’ve experienced over the last two years is a shift away from that as a value that I believe ABC was about when we ran in 2022 to more of a top-down approach to policy, and being updated and informed, as opposed to collaborative, generative discussion around policy,” she said.

‘On my record’

Bligh announced in September 2025 that she was running for mayor, but her campaign had been largely silent until Wednesday’s platform launch. She dismissed recent public opinion polls showing her popularity at less than 10 per cent.

Bligh said she would point to the NPA and ABC Vancouver’s records when explaining to voters about her political history with Sim, saying the parties were at one time “fiscally responsible and socially progressive.”

“I would say, based on my record, not just my words, that I stayed true to those values,” she said. “Both of those parties abandoned those values shortly after each election.”

‘More sophisticated’

Having four candidates now officially on the centre-right raises the possibility of vote splitting, but Bligh—and Allam and Hardwick, who showed up at the plaza after Bligh’s launch—outlined how they all represented different voters.

“We’ve been on the doors and we know that there is a desire for change across the city,” Bligh said.

“We are ready to make the case that not only are we able to take care of people, but we’re able to build the economy. Not only are we able to deliver city services, but we’re also ensuring that we can continue to deliver housing in a really difficult market.”

Allam said he wasn’t concerned about vote splitting.

“I believe the electorate is much more sophisticated than people take it [to be],” he said. “I believe the electorate is much more significant than politicians typically give them credit for.”

‘Buyer’s remorse’

Hardwick, who finished third in the 2022 mayoral race and third in the 2025 byelection for a council seat, said she has heard the concern of vote splitting in every election.

“But I have heard countless people say to me after the last election, ‘We voted for Ken Sim, and we regret it. We have buyer’s remorse,’” she said. “And so I do believe that the winning strategy in this election is to take votes away from Ken Sim. That should be self-evident.”

Hardwick also pointed out ABC Vancouver spent the maximum amount of money in the April 2025 byelection— which was called to fill two vacant council seats—and their candidates finished sixth and seventh.

“So the challenge for me and for TEAM is to persuade a broad base,” she said. “That’s the reason, again, that we’re a big tent. That’s why we have members from all parties involved with us.”

Meanwhile, Green Party Coun. Pete Fry is no longer facing challengers from the political left after William Azaroff of OneCity and Stephanie Allen of COPE both folded their mayoral campaigns.

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