Vancouver Mayor 2026: What All 8 Candidates Say About Multiplex Homes

On Saturday, October 17, 2026, Vancouver elects a mayor and ten councillors. If you are shopping for a brand new duplex, triplex or fourplex in the city, that vote touches your search more directly than most people expect. City Hall decides how many homes may sit on one lot, how long it takes to approve them, and which streets are open to them. The next mayor and council inherit a set of decisions made in the past three years, and every campaign has said something, or nothing, about what to do with them.

This guide is written by the editors of voche.me, a guide to the Vancouver election that describes itself as independent of the City, every party and every candidate, as a guest piece for MultiLiving. It takes no side. Each of the eight candidates gets the same four questions, in ballot order, and the answers come from the campaigns' own published platforms and from the public record. Where a campaign has said nothing on a question, we say so. There are no scores and no recommendation, because how you weigh these answers is your decision, and MultiLiving does not endorse candidates.

A note on words. Politicians and planners call homes like these the "missing middle": the sizes between a condo tower and a detached house. On this site they are simply multiplex homes. We use the plain name below and quote the campaign term only where a candidate uses it.

What the City has already decided

Five dated decisions from the current term set the starting point for whoever wins. Each one carries its date, because the next council can keep, change or undo any of them.

• September 14, 2023. City Council voted, with every member in favour, to allow multiplex homes on lots that had been reserved for one house or a duplex: up to four strata homes on a standard lot, five on a mid-size lot and six on a larger lot, or up to eight rental homes (Daily Hive reported the vote the next day). Later that year the Province passed Bill 44, a law requiring every larger BC municipality to allow several homes on a house lot. That law is the single biggest reason brand new multiplex homes are for sale across Metro Vancouver today.
• March 31, 2026. Council adopted Vancouver's first Official Development Plan, the map that says where the city expects homes, jobs, parks and schools to go over the next 30 years. The Province required every city to adopt one by June 30, 2026 (City of Vancouver).
• May 2026. Council passed a motion, brought by ABC councillors Peter Meiszner and Lenny Zhou, directing staff to review the multiplex rules: the size of the buildings, how they sit next to neighbouring homes, trees and views. CityHallWatch reported that the motion was on the May 20 agenda and passed the next day, with every ABC councillor and the mayor in favour, OneCity's Lucy Maloney opposed, and Pete Fry and Sean Orr absent. Staff have not published their findings, so nobody can say yet what the review will change.
• June 9, 2026. The City announced that its dedicated multiplex application stream had cut approval time for those projects by 50 percent, and that approving a single detached house now takes 160 days on average, down from 250 days in 2022 (City of Vancouver release, carried by the Indo-Canadian Voice). Those are the City's own figures.
• July 28, 2026. Council rejected the Villages Plan, which would have allowed buildings of up to eight storeys around 17 neighbourhood shopping streets, by a vote of 10 to 1. Mayor Ken Sim, the six ABC councillors, Rebecca Bligh, Pete Fry and Sean Orr voted no. Lucy Maloney voted yes (Daily Hive).

Keep those five dates in mind. Three of the eight candidates, Fry, Bligh and Sim, were on Council for all of them. The other five have no council vote on record.

The four questions we put to every platform

To keep this fair, every candidate is measured against the same four questions. We looked for answers in the campaign's published platform first, then in the public record, then in interviews. A quotation is the campaign's own words. Anything else is our summary, and the full profile with every source is linked under each name.

1. Would the 2023 multiplex rules stay, change or go under review?
2. How fast would the City approve a new home?
3. Where does the candidate want new homes to go?
4. What has the campaign not published yet?

The order below is the order on the ballot, set by a random draw by the City's election officials in September (Daily Hive). It is the only order that favours nobody.

Colleen Hardwick, TEAM for a Livable Vancouver

Colleen Hardwick | TEAM for a Livable Vancouver, ballot number 50 | Photo via voche.me

Who she is. A Vancouver councillor from 2018 to 2022, first elected with the NPA, and TEAM's candidate for mayor in 2022, when she placed third. She grew up in Kitsilano. Full profile and sources on voche.me.

The multiplex rules. TEAM's planning platform says it would "demand the provincial government amend its one-size-fits-all approach to Bills 44, 46, and 47, supporting other municipalities who are calling for judicial review." Those are the 2023 provincial laws behind the multiplex rules. TEAM also publicly asked Council to support the May 2026 motion to review the multiplex policies, and its platform would "reinstate minimum parking requirements for new buildings." In a May 29, 2026 interview with Vancity Lookout, Hardwick rejected the label "anti-housing" and said her objection is to the way allowing more on each lot pushes up land prices.

Approval speed. The platform promises to "speed up smaller projects with more flexible on-site review for renovation building permits."

Where new homes go. TEAM would replace the Official Development Plan with what it calls a Respect for Neighbourhoods Plan, with growth "planned in consultation with local residents and businesses, within the scale and context of each neighbourhood." It names the Broadway, Jericho, Rupert and Renfrew, and Villages plans as ones it opposes, and it favours co-ops, "especially larger ground-oriented units for families," and protecting older rental buildings.

Not yet published. How many homes the neighbourhood plans would allow, and a target approval time for a new multiplex home. voche.me notes that nobody has calculated the housing capacity of the replacement plans.

Pete Fry, Green Party of Vancouver

Pete Fry | Green Party of Vancouver, ballot number 51 | Photo via voche.me

Who he is. A Vancouver councillor since 2018, re-elected in 2022. Since September 8 he has been the only mayoral candidate left from the three parties that describe themselves as progressive: COPE's Stephanie Allen withdrew on September 2 and OneCity's William Azaroff withdrew on September 8 and backed Fry. Full profile and sources on voche.me.

The multiplex rules. The Greens' housing plan, released September 16, 2026, commits to "launch pre-approved housing designs (including prefabricated)" and to simplify approvals for "low-rise apartments, row homes, townhomes, infill" and wood-frame buildings across the city (Daily Hive). The plan is silent on the 2023 multiplex rules themselves. Fry voted no on the Villages Plan on July 28, 2026, and was absent for the May 2026 vote on the multiplex review.

Approval speed. Pre-approved designs are the core of the promise: a home built from a design the City has already checked could skip part of the review. Fry put it this way at the launch: "Housing is too expensive, and part of the reason is that we still make it too difficult, too slow, and too costly to build the homes people need."

Where new homes go. Citywide, in more forms. "Vancouver doesn't need one kind of housing everywhere. We need more ways for people to find a home that fits their life and their budget."

Not yet published. Which designs would be pre-approved, what they would cost, how much time they would save, and a target approval time. voche.me lists each of these as an open question on the profile.

Rebecca Bligh, Vote Vancouver

Rebecca Bligh | Vote Vancouver, ballot number 52 | Photo via voche.me

Who she is. A Vancouver councillor since 2018, first with the NPA and then with ABC, which removed her from its caucus on February 14, 2025. She founded Vote Vancouver in September 2025. Full profile and sources on voche.me.

The multiplex rules. Bligh was a member of the Council that passed the multiplex rules unanimously in September 2023, and she voted no on the Villages Plan in July 2026. Her housing platform is built around public land and non-profit homes rather than the rules for private house lots. It does use the phrase "missing middle," and there it means people rather than buildings: those who "earn too much to qualify for deeply subsidized housing and nowhere near enough to comfortably afford the market."

Approval speed. "Unnecessary delay makes housing more expensive. Rebecca will simplify and speed up the development process so good housing can get built sooner."

Where new homes go. On public land that stays in community ownership, through co-ops and community land trusts, and on land owned by faith groups: "Faith-based communities own land across Vancouver, and many want to help address the housing shortage." The platform also promises to help seniors stay in their own neighbourhoods.

Not yet published. Which sites, how many homes, and a target approval time. voche.me notes that a vote-by-vote record of her two terms has not yet been compiled.

Muhammad Ahmad, Bright Future Vancouver

Muhammad Ahmad | Bright Future Vancouver, ballot number 53 | Photo via voche.me

Who he is. A first-time candidate who describes himself as a communications professional and community advocate. voche.me has not been able to confirm the professional roles in his campaign biography with the organizations named, so we repeat none of them here. Full profile and sources on voche.me.

The multiplex rules. His blueprint says nothing about the 2023 multiplex rules.

Approval speed. The only campaign to put a number of days on it. The blueprint says approvals would be "automatically granted" if the City has not decided within "21 days." It does not say how safety checks would fit inside that window, a gap voche.me flags.

Where new homes go. Into a rent-to-own program called the Roots Project, in which "20% of monthly rent is diverted into a protected Roots Equity Trust that belongs to the renter," with "a first-term target of 2,000 Roots Project homes approved or in the pipeline." The blueprint also promises "family-sized, pet-inclusive housing where public value helps create the project" and a Local Buyers First rule for starter homes with "a 0% corporate bulk-buying cap and a 60-day priority window."

Not yet published. A costed platform, and the legal power to impose a 21-day rule or a levy on homes valued above $5 million. voche.me notes the City does not hold that taxing power today.

Ken Sim, ABC Vancouver

Ken Sim | ABC Vancouver, ballot number 54 | Photo: David Fitzgerald / Collision via Sportsfile, CC BY 2.0, via voche.me

Who he is. Mayor since October 15, 2022, when he won with 50.96 percent of the vote, and the only candidate who was mayor for every decision listed above. Full profile and sources on voche.me.

The multiplex rules. He was mayor for the unanimous September 2023 vote and told Daily Hive at the time: "It's a great step towards addressing the missing middle." He voted for the May 2026 review motion, brought by two of his own councillors, and against the Villages Plan in July. ABC's 2026 platform promises to "make City Hall permitting faster and easier" and a "0% property tax increase in 2027."

Approval speed. His record is the City's June 9, 2026 figures: multiplex approvals 50 percent faster through the dedicated stream, detached homes down from 250 days to 160, laneway homes from 200 days to 100. His words in that release: "Every day saved in the approval process helps deliver homes, jobs and community benefits sooner."

Where new homes go. Where the Official Development Plan adopted in March says, and on City-owned land. In a September 4, 2026 interview with Vancity Lookout he defended the current ten-year housing targets, set in 2024 at 81 percent market and 19 percent non-market homes: "You need balance. I don't think you can solve a housing crisis by only focusing on one group."

Not yet published. What the multiplex review will recommend, since the staff report is not public, and where multiplex homes sit in the 2026 platform. The word multiplex does not appear on the platform page as of September 23, 2026.

Amauri Caliman, Independent

Amauri Caliman | Independent, ballot number 55 | Photo via voche.me

Who he is. A first-time candidate who describes himself as an ICBC employee and entrepreneur. That is his own account; voche.me has not verified his employment or businesses. Full profile and sources on voche.me.

The multiplex rules. His published positions would update the rules on what can be built to "allow more housing choices in appropriate locations while making rules clearer, more predictable and easier to navigate."

Approval speed. "Clear City permitting service standards, publish processing times and bottlenecks, simplify repetitive approvals," plus a public Housing Delivery Dashboard "tracking homes from application to approval, construction and completion."

Where new homes go. "Appropriate locations," which the platform describes as near transit and services and does not map.

Not yet published. Which locations would qualify, any numeric target, and any record in public office, since this is his first campaign.

Kareem Allam, Vancouver Liberals

Kareem Allam | Vancouver Liberals, ballot number 56 | Photo via voche.me

Who he is. A political strategist who ran ABC's 2022 campaign and served as Mayor Sim's chief of staff from November 2022 to February 2023. The Vancouver Liberals formed in 2025. Full profile and sources on voche.me.

The multiplex rules. Nothing published on the 2023 rules.

Approval speed. His housing plan of September 23, 2026 would scrap Vancouver's own building by-law and use the B.C. Building Code that Burnaby, Richmond and Surrey already use, and would merge the 12 City departments that review housing projects into one. "It took JFK eight years to get a man on the moon, and right now it takes Vancouver eight years to build a high-rise apartment building."

Where new homes go. Nothing published on location.

Not yet published. Targets and timelines, and how the plan would apply to small buildings, since the examples in the announcement are high-rises.

Scott Gilbert, Independent

Scott Gilbert | Independent, ballot number 57 | Photo via voche.me

Who he is. A first-time candidate whom voche.me describes as a Downtown Eastside activist, running with the slogan "end the nonsense." Full profile and sources on voche.me.

The multiplex rules, approval speed, and where new homes go. His campaign is about homelessness: "low-cost RV housing for people without homes," detox beds ahead of involuntary-care beds, public toilets, and a "New Deal" for the Downtown Eastside. Multiplex homes appear nowhere in it.

Not yet published. voche.me could not verify his stated education and work history, and found no dated public campaign appearances.

What the polls say, and what they cannot

Three public polls have been released since July. They used different methods and different samples, two were taken before Allen and Azaroff withdrew, and each carries a margin of error wider than several of the gaps between candidates. Read each one as a record of one moment.

• Justason Market Intelligence, August 31 to September 11, 2026, released September 17: 607 Vancouver adults online, 336 of them with a mayoral choice, margin of error 4.35 points. Among decided voters: Fry 45 percent, Sim 30, Hardwick 11, Allam 10, Bligh 5.
• Research Co., July 30 to August 1, released August 4: 401 likely voters online, margin of error 4.9 points, 26 percent undecided. Among decided voters: Sim 30 percent, Allam 19, Fry 19, Hardwick 14, Bligh 7, Azaroff 5, Allen 4.
• Pallas Data, July 20 to 24, released July 30: 312 adults by automated telephone, margin of error 5.5 points, counted across everyone asked: Fry 18 percent, Sim 14, Allam 12, Hardwick 11, Allen 6, Azaroff 4, Bligh 3, undecided 34.

Ahmad, Caliman and Gilbert were not named in any of the three. voche.me keeps every published survey, including three older ones that tested names who never ran, at voche.me/polls.

What this means if you are shopping right now

Here is our reading, and it is opinion. A home listed for sale today already exists or already holds its approval, so the election does not change that home. What the election changes is the supply of the next ones: how many multiplex homes get approved in 2027 and 2028, how fast, and on which streets. That matters most to a buyer who is watching one neighbourhood and waiting for the right home to appear in it.

The item to watch is the multiplex review. Staff have not reported, so no candidate can say today what the rules will look like next year. A council that keeps the 2023 rules, a council that trims building size, and a council that asks the Province to loosen its law would each produce a different number of new homes.

Approval speed is the second item. A faster approval shortens the wait between a pre-sale contract and a move-in date, and every campaign says it wants approvals to be faster. The promises differ in how: pre-approved designs, a 21-day clock, one approvals office, published service standards, or continuing the current stream. The completion date for a home you buy this fall is set by your contract, and no campaign promise changes it.

Our advice is to keep shopping on the things that do not move with an election: the floor plan, the street, the school, the strata, and the completion date written in the contract. Ask the listing agent two questions: when was this home approved, and when is completion. Then vote however you like.

Key dates for voters

• Advance voting: October 3, 7, 10 and 13, 8 am to 8 pm.
• Election day: Saturday, October 17, 8 am to 8 pm.
• You can vote at any voting place in the city. voche.me lists every one with its entrance and nearest transit at voche.me/where-to-vote, and the City's own voters' guide has the rules on who may vote and what to bring.

What this comes down to

• Five council decisions since 2023 set the starting point: the multiplex rules, the Official Development Plan, the multiplex review, faster approvals, and the rejected Villages Plan.
• Only one candidate, Hardwick, proposes asking the Province to change the law behind multiplex homes. The other seven either support the current rules by their record or have not addressed them.
• Every campaign promises faster approvals. Only Ahmad's puts a number of days on it, and only Sim's has a measured result to point to.
• Fry, Bligh and Sim have votes on record. Hardwick's record is from 2018 to 2022. Ahmad, Caliman, Allam and Gilbert have never sat on Council.
• The three polls disagree with each other on order and were taken weeks apart, with margins of error between 4.35 and 5.5 points.
• The result changes the pipeline of future homes. A home for sale today keeps its approval and its contract terms.

Questions buyers are asking

Does the mayor decide the multiplex rules alone?

No. The mayor holds one of eleven votes on Council and sets the agenda, but any change to the multiplex rules needs a majority of councillors. That is why the ten council races on the same ballot matter as much as the mayoral race for anyone following this issue.

I have signed a pre-sale contract. Does the election change my home?

Your contract sets the price, the home and the completion terms, and the home already holds its approval. None of the eight published platforms proposes cancelling approvals the City has already granted. The election affects how many future homes get approved, and how fast.

What is the multiplex review, and when will the result be public?

In May 2026 Council directed staff to review how the 2023 rules are working, including building size, the fit with neighbouring homes, trees and views. Staff have not published findings and no date has been announced, so the result will land with the next council.

What does a candidate mean by "missing middle"?

It depends on who is speaking. Planners usually mean the building sizes between a condo tower and a detached house, such as a fourplex. Vote Vancouver's platform uses it for households whose income sits between subsidized housing and the open market. Read the sentence around the phrase before assuming.

Which candidates were on Council for the 2023 multiplex vote?

Pete Fry and Rebecca Bligh were councillors and Ken Sim was mayor when Council passed the rules unanimously on September 14, 2023. Colleen Hardwick's council term ended in 2022. Ahmad, Caliman, Allam and Gilbert have never held a council seat.

Which candidates voted on the Villages Plan?

Sim, Fry and Bligh all voted no on July 28, 2026, when Council rejected the plan 10 to 1. The plan would have allowed buildings of up to eight storeys around 17 shopping streets. It was a separate proposal from the multiplex rules, which stay in force.

Does any candidate want to change the provincial law behind multiplex homes?

TEAM's platform, under Colleen Hardwick, would ask the Province to amend Bills 44, 46 and 47 and supports other municipalities seeking a court review. No other campaign has published a position on those laws as of September 23, 2026.

Which campaign puts a number of days on approvals?

Bright Future Vancouver's blueprint, under Muhammad Ahmad, says an approval would be granted automatically after 21 days without a decision. The other campaigns promise faster approvals in words, and the current administration cites the City's June 2026 figure of multiplex approvals 50 percent faster.

How much should I trust the polls?

Treat each as a record of one moment. The three polls used different methods, asked between 312 and 607 people, carry margins of error from 4.35 to 5.5 points, and two were taken before two candidates withdrew. Their order differs, which is the clearest sign that nothing is settled.

Would a 0 percent property tax increase change what I pay on a new multiplex home?

ABC's promise covers the City's overall tax levy. Your own bill also depends on your home's assessed value, which moves independently. Our property tax guide explains how the two parts combine, and why a City-wide freeze can still mean a change on one bill.

Where can I read each platform with its sources?

Every candidate has a profile at voche.me/candidates with the campaign's own pages, the City's nomination records and news reports linked. The parties page shows each slate, and the site notes where a position is missing rather than filling the gap.

Does MultiLiving or voche.me endorse a candidate?

No. MultiLiving sells homes to buyers of every political view, and voche.me describes itself as independent of the City, every party and every candidate. This piece reports what each campaign has published and leaves the weighing to you.

What should I ask about a brand new multiplex home before October 17?

Ask when the home's approval was granted, when completion is written in the contract, whether the strata plan is registered, and how many homes share the lot. Those answers hold whoever wins, and they tell you more about your daily life in the home than any platform can.

Will new multiplex homes keep coming to market whoever wins?

Homes already approved will keep completing through 2027, because no platform proposes reversing approvals already granted. The number approved after that depends on the multiplex review and on the council elected on October 17. Watch the review report first.

Whoever wins on October 17, the homes for sale today are real and can be viewed this week. Browse every brand new duplex, triplex and fourplex in Vancouver at MultiLiving properties, or talk to MultiLiving about the neighbourhood you are watching.

Sources

All sources checked September 23, 2026. Campaign pages are the campaigns' own statements and are attributed as such above.

• voche.me candidate profiles, research dates September 22 and 23, 2026, and the editorial approach page.
• Daily Hive, September 15, 2023: Council approves multiplex homes on house lots.
• City of Vancouver, March 2026: Council approves the first Official Development Plan.
• CityHallWatch, June 8, 2026: the multiplex review motion and vote.
• Indo-Canadian Voice, June 2026: the City's June 9 release on approval times.
• Daily Hive, July 28, 2026: Council rejects the Villages Plan 10 to 1.
• Daily Hive, September 22, 2026: the final candidate list in ballot order.
• TEAM planning platform and TEAM statement on the multiplex review, 2026.
• Vancity Lookout, May 29, 2026: Colleen Hardwick interview.
• Daily Hive, September 16, 2026: Green Party of Vancouver housing plan.
• CBC News, September 2, 2026 and CBC News, September 8, 2026: Allen and Azaroff withdraw.
• Daily Hive, February 14, 2025: ABC removes Rebecca Bligh from caucus.
• Vote Vancouver housing platform, 2026.
• Bright Future Vancouver blueprint, 2026.
• ABC Vancouver 2026 platform and Vancity Lookout, September 4, 2026: Ken Sim interview.
• VoteMate, Amauri Caliman policies, 2026.
• Daily Hive, September 23, 2026: Vancouver Liberals housing plan.
• Justason Market Intelligence, September 17, 2026; Research Co., August 4, 2026; Pallas Data, July 30, 2026.
• City of Vancouver voters' guide and 2026 election page: voting dates and hours.