---
title: "Pete Fry names Sean Orr deputy mayor and sets transition team for November 2 swearing-in"
description: "Mayor-elect Pete Fry has appointed COPE councillor-elect Sean Orr as first deputy mayor and Rebecca Bligh to lead his transition team, with the new council sworn in on November 2."
canonical_url: "https://voche.me/news/pete-fry-deputy-mayor-transition-team-october-29"
last_updated: "2026-10-29T15:04:06.690Z"
---

Mayor-elect [Pete Fry](/candidates/pete-fry) has named COPE councillor-elect [Sean Orr](/candidates/sean-orr) as Vancouver's first deputy mayor, appointed [Rebecca Bligh](/candidates/rebecca-bligh) to lead his transition team, and reappointed ABC councillor [Mike Klassen](/candidates/mike-klassen) to the Metro Vancouver Board, CityNews Vancouver reported on October 29.

Fry told CityNews Vancouver he is giving every member of the incoming 10-person council a specific area to work on. "I want the entire council to feel validated and worthy and have an opportunity to lean in on things important to them," he said.

**Orr gets a seat at the table he did not have before**

Orr, who ran as a COPE councillor against the ABC majority for four years, said the change in atmosphere is clear. "I was on the outside, I felt," he said. "I never had a one-on-one with the mayor, I was never in the mayor's office." He said Fry is working directly with him, sharing plans and wanting to divide the work of governing.

As first deputy mayor, Orr steps in when Fry is unavailable, giving COPE a formal role in city leadership for the first time since the 2022 election.

**Bligh crosses the party line**

Bligh ran for mayor on the ABC Vancouver ticket and lost to Fry. Despite that, Fry said she is the right person to manage the transition. "I trust her judgment and her various expertise, and she's also a friend," he said. "She has a better understanding of how the mayor's office was operating and what we can do differently."

Bligh said the appointment reflects what voters asked for. She told CityNews Vancouver that Vancouverites want leaders who work together and set aside party lines, and that she and Fry can give the new administration its best start.

Bligh will not hold a seat on the new council.

**What comes next**

The new mayor and council will be sworn in on November 2, 2026. That is when Fry formally takes over from outgoing Mayor [Ken Sim](/candidates/ken-sim), who presided over the 106th Council's final meeting on October 27. At that meeting Sim told Fry: "You're going to face a lot of challenges and you'll face tough roles." Outgoing councillor [Lenny Zhou](/candidates/lenny-zhou) also made his farewell remarks.

Vancouver residents can see the swearing-in ceremony and follow the new council's work through the City of Vancouver's own meeting schedule and the candidate pages on this site, starting with [Pete Fry's page](/candidates/pete-fry).

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