Candidate who almost beat Vancouver mayor last time will run again in upcoming municipal election

Ken Sim running for mayor again It's still a year away, but a former Vancouver mayoral candidate is throwing his hat into the municipal election ring again.

VANCOUVER — The municipal election is still more than a year away, but a candidate who came close to winning last time around says he'll be in the race again.

Ken Sim, who was close to defeating current mayor Kennedy Stewart in 2018, officially threw his hat into the ring on Wednesday.

"I'm running for mayor because I have four boys and they don't see a future for themselves in Vancouver," he said, after it was announced he'd been nominated.

He'll be running under the banner of a new party, called A Better City.

Sim said he wants to tackle the issues of housing affordability and street disorder. He's also pledging to abolish the elected park board and replace it with appointees, similar to the city's police board.

In 2018, Sim ran for mayor under the Non-Partisan Association, and lost to Stewart by around 1,000 votes.