Vancouver’s ruling party ejects councillor who questioned mayor’s plans

A shakeup at Vancouver City Hall—the reigning ABC Party has kicked out one of its councillors.

There is drama unfolding at Vancouver city hall, after the ruling ABC party ejected a councillor who has challenged some of the mayor’s plans – including his controversial moratorium on supportive housing.

Coun. Rebecca Bligh is no longer a member of the ABC caucus, the party’s president announced in a statement Friday.

“It has become clear that she is not aligned with the shared priorities and team-oriented approach that defines ABC Vancouver,” wrote Stephan Molnar.

“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.”

The statement does not highlight any particular differences between Bligh and the party, and a spokesperson declined to provide examples when contacted by CTV News.

Addressing reporters outside city hall on Friday, Bligh said she was not provided any specifics either when Mayor Ken Sim informed her of her expulsion minutes before ABC’s announcement.

Bligh also expressed disappointment in Sim’s leadership.

“Some people say politics changes people,” she said. “I don’t know if that’s the case in this instance, but what I do know is the values we ran on with ABC are no longer the values I see ABC reflecting in their policies.”

Bligh was previously elected under the Non-Partisan Association, but left the party in 2019 to sit as an independent, citing concerns that the board was taking a “far-right” turn.

She was among several former NPA councillors who decided to run with Sim’s ABC party during the last civic election in 2022.

Asked if she feels slighted after helping Sim’s party win that election, Bligh said, “The answer is yes.”

“I’m a human being,” she added. “I extended a vote of confidence in Ken by running with him at ABC, that he would be the leader he said he was going to be, and that’s proven not to happen.”

The two have found themselves on different sides of a number of issues since ABC took power in the city.

Most recently, after Sim announced plans to pause “net new” supportive housing in the city last month, Bligh was among the councillors who raised concerns about the consequences such a move would have on some of Vancouver’s most vulnerable residents.

She introduced a motion to invite B.C.’s housing minister to city hall to discuss the implications of the policy.

“While we may be elected within a party, we are expected to think and use critical thinking,” Bligh said of their disagreements.

“That is what I have done at every single decision, even if it meant ruffling feathers or breaking rank or whatever you would like to call it.”

The councillor will continue sitting on council as an independent, and retain her elected role as president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities.