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SCC unveils its election team

Party is not running a mayoral candidate, but has until Oct. 14 to change its mind
74869surreyw-Bose
Coun. Bob Bose

The slate opposing the status quo on city council will not be running a mayoral candidate, but its councillor candidates are expected to attack the mayor and her Surrey First team on the issue of accountability.

The Surrey Civic Coalition (SCC) nominated the remainder of its slate on Sunday, adding three people contending for council.

New to the left-leaning team are Steve Wood, a former two-term councillor from Campbell River; Kuldip Ardawa, a member of the City of Surrey's Social Planning Committee; and Doug Elford, an environmental protection officer with the City of Vancouver. Elford ran for council in 1999 as an independent, garnering 9,982 votes, placing five spots out of a council seat.

They join previously nominated SCC candidates Rina Gill, Stephanie Ryan, Gary Robinson, and Grant Rice, as well as incumbent Coun. Bob Bose.

Sukhy Dhillon, a Delta teacher, and Ram Sidhu, a program manager with South Fraser Women's Services, were acclaimed as school trustee candidates and join incumbent Ijaz Chatha and previously nominated SCC candidates Laurence Greeff, Charlene Dobie and Moh Chilali.

The party did not nominate a candidate for mayor on Sunday.

”We intend to run a very competitive team that will challenge Mayor (Dianne) Watts to make good on her commitments," SCC president Gord Savard said in a release. "Likewise, we will work with her on projects that benefit everyone in Surrey. SCC will be running on the issue of accountability. We do not believe that the current council or the Board of Education have, in any way, ever held the mayor accountable.”

Bose said there's still time to run a mayor if the party chooses, noting the nomination deadline is Oct. 14.

He also notes that it helps the party strategically to run full slates, adding that the notion it waters down opposing votes is fallacy.

"It's an advantage to us strategically to run full slates," Bose said Monday. "What happens (with a partial slate) is people who want to support your campaign, end up voting for somebody in opposition to your campaign."

@diakiw