Who’s running for mayor in the North Vancouvers and West Vancouver?

The three North Shore mayors are back on the ballot for the 2026 municipal election, but each is facing contenders trying to unseat them.

In North Vancouver District, Mike Little is competing for his third term as mayor against four candidates. In 2022, he had just one competitor.

In North Vancouver City, two-term mayor Linda Buchanan is facing off against three rivals. Last election, she faced only one.

In West Vancouver, political fixture Mark Sager is fending off three people vying his job, the same number he faced four years ago.

This time, Sager may be in for a tougher battle against former council colleague Sharon Thompson, longtime journalist Kirk LaPointe, and lawyer Joe Spears.

On election day, Oct. 17, West Vancouver may be the race to watch on the North Shore, where problems include congested roads and lack of affordable housing in the middle- and upper-middle-class communities.

This term, West Vancouver council defied the province‘s housing targets of 220 new homes, approving only 58 in a district largely dominated by singe-family homes. But in April, the province overrode the council, paving the way for taller buildings along main corridors.

LaPointe, a former managing editor of the Vancouver Sun, promises to balance safeguarding the community’s character with approving “missing-middle housing” for seniors, young families and first responders. His detailed proposals also include cutting a projected 2027 municipal tax increase of seven per cent down to three, repairing streets and sidewalks, and ensuring every child can walk to a playground.

Thompson, a two-term councillor, promotes “gentle densification” that respects existing neighbourhoods while exploring alternatives such as duplexes, townhouses, and small multi-family buildings. The priorities on her website are less detailed, but encompass transportation, climate, amenities, parks, seniors, and arts and culture.

Sager, who was mayor in the 1990s and re-elected in 2022, pledges “carefully managed” growth in the Ambleside neighbourhood and expanding housing for seniors and families. But his website doesn’t say how his plan differs from the province’s mandates. Other promises involve improving transportation, parks, shorelines, and arts and recreation.

The campaign website for Spears, a marine lawyer, is more sparse, and doesn’t specifically mention housing. His main focus is to create an “ocean economy” that grows revenue through proximity to the ports, in order to ease the municipal tax burden.

In North Vancouver City, where the waterfront has been transformed with new developments, the municipality reports that as of June, it had far exceeded the number of new homes requested by the province.