Canada Pulse poll finds 62% of Vancouver residents want a new mayor, but challengers split the change vote
A Canada Pulse Insights poll conducted for CityNews and OMNI TV finds most Vancouver residents want a new mayor, but with support divided among the challengers, Ken Sim could win a second term.
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A Canada Pulse Insights poll commissioned by CityNews and OMNI TV finds that 62 per cent of Vancouver residents want a new mayor, but with the alternative vote divided among three challengers, incumbent Ken Sim could win a second term. CityNews published the results Friday morning, the day before voting day.
Among decided voters, Green Party candidate Pete Fry leads with 28 per cent support and Sim holds 27 per cent, according to the poll. That gap falls within the margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.
Ken Sim sits at 38 per cent on the direct question of whether he deserves re-election, while 62 per cent say it is time for a change.
The change vote is divided
Among the 62 per cent who want a new mayor, Fry leads with 34 per cent of that group. Kareem Allam of the Vancouver Liberals and Colleen Hardwick of TEAM for a Livable Vancouver each hold 16 per cent of the change-voter pool. Twelve per cent of those who want a new mayor remain undecided.
Rebecca Bligh of Vote Vancouver holds 7 per cent among all decided voters, and Muhammad Ahmad of Bright Future Vancouver holds 3 per cent.
Canada Pulse Insights CEO John Wright told CityNews that a divided field works against voters who want change. "Whenever you deal with a fractured field, you're not going to get a call for change executed by one or two people. You're going to get it distributed amongst a group of others," Wright said.
What residents think of the city's direction
The poll found that 53 per cent of Vancouver residents say the city is headed in the wrong direction, compared with 47 per cent who say it is on the right track. Residents were split equally on Sim's job performance, with half rating it positively and half rating it negatively.
Wright told CityNews that dissatisfaction with Sim extends to some of his own supporters. "Most people believe that the mayor is out of touch with city council or out of touch with Vancouver citizens, and that's even for a good number of his own supporters," Wright said.
Ten per cent of voters say they are still undecided heading into election day.
The poll
Canada Pulse Insights conducted the survey for CityNews and OMNI TV. The poll covered 500 Vancouver adults from September 28 to October 6, 2026. The margin of error is plus or minus 4.4 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
You can compare the major polls in this race at /polls. Voting day is Saturday, October 17. Polling stations are open across Vancouver.
Questions this story answers
What did the Canada Pulse Insights poll find about the Vancouver mayor race on October 16?
CityNews Vancouver published the results on October 16, 2026. The poll found that 62 per cent of Vancouver residents believe it is time for a new mayor, while 38 per cent say incumbent Ken Sim deserves re-election. Among decided voters, Green Party candidate Pete Fry leads with 28 per cent and Sim sits at 27 per cent, a gap within the margin of error of plus or minus 4.4 percentage points.
Who conducted the poll and when was the fieldwork done?
Canada Pulse Insights conducted the poll for CityNews and OMNI TV. The survey covered 500 Vancouver adults from September 28 to October 6, 2026. The margin of error is plus or minus 4.4 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. CityNews Vancouver published the results on October 16, 2026, the day before voting day.
How is the change vote divided among the challengers?
According to the poll reported by CityNews on October 16, 2026, among the 62 per cent of residents who want a new mayor, Pete Fry leads with 34 per cent support in that group. Kareem Allam of the Vancouver Liberals and Colleen Hardwick of TEAM for a Livable Vancouver each hold 16 per cent among change-voters. Twelve per cent of change-voters remain undecided, the poll found.
What are the full mayoral standings among decided voters?
Among decided voters, according to the Canada Pulse Insights poll published by CityNews on October 16, 2026, Pete Fry of the Green Party of Vancouver holds 28 per cent and Ken Sim of ABC Vancouver holds 27 per cent. Kareem Allam of the Vancouver Liberals is at 19 per cent, Colleen Hardwick of TEAM for a Livable Vancouver at 13 per cent, Rebecca Bligh of Vote Vancouver at 7 per cent, and Muhammad Ahmad of Bright Future Vancouver at 3 per cent.
What do residents think about Vancouver's direction?
The poll, reported by CityNews on October 16, 2026, found that 53 per cent of residents say Vancouver is headed in the wrong direction. The remaining 47 per cent say the city is on the right track. Half of respondents said Sim is doing a good job as mayor, while the other half viewed his performance negatively, according to the Canada Pulse Insights poll of 500 Vancouver adults.
What does a split change vote mean for the election outcome?
Canada Pulse Insights CEO John Wright told CityNews on October 16, 2026, that when support for change is distributed among several candidates rather than one, the incumbent benefits. With 10 per cent of voters still undecided and the change vote divided among Fry, Allam, and Hardwick, Sim could win a second term even though most residents say they want a different mayor, the poll suggests.
How many undecided voters remain before election day?
The Canada Pulse Insights poll, published by CityNews on October 16, 2026, found that 10 per cent of Vancouver voters remain undecided, the day before voting day on Saturday, October 17, 2026. Among those who want a new mayor, 12 per cent of that group have not yet decided which challenger they would support.
When and where can Vancouver residents vote on October 17?
Voting day for the Vancouver municipal election is Saturday, October 17, 2026. The City of Vancouver's official voting information, including the location of your polling station, is at the City of Vancouver website. You can also find voting place information at voche.me/where-to-vote.
Sources
The pages this story draws on. Open one to check a claim yourself.
- CityNews Vancouver: Most Vancouver voters want a new mayor but challengers split change votevancouver.citynews.ca
- voche.me polls pagevoche.me
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