Another progressive candidate has dropped out of the Vancouver mayoral race hoping to boost the chances of removing Ken Sim from the city’s top job. OneCity’s William Azaroff announced his decision Tuesday—nearly one week after COPE’s Stephanie Allen ended her own candidacy—while throwing his support behind the Green Party’s Pete Fry. “We must be clear-eyed about the realities of this election and how much is at stake,” Azaroff said, flanked by OneCity council candidates who are remaining on the ballot. “In order to get Ken Sim out, we have to unite behind a single progressive mayoral candidate. This is what the people have asked for, and this is what the progressive parties have committed to.” OnceCity, COPE and the Green Party made a joint commitment earlier this year to rally behind one challenger as part of a “Progressive Primary.” Fry emerged as the leading mayoral hopeful among the three parties in recent polling. In endorsing his former opponent, Azaroff said he’s spoken multiple times with Fry and sees in him “a commitment and personal desire to bring competence and ethics back to the mayor’s office.” Speaking to reporters after the announcement, Fry thanked Azaroff for his “difficult and courageous decision,” while highlighting some of the shared values between the parties. “I’m glad that I can now stand with my friends at OneCity, my friends at COPE,” he said. “We need to reverse the disastrous last four years of this sort of neo-conservative government at city hall, and we will fight our hardest to do that.” OneCity council candidate and former journalist Frances Bula, who has said she was inspired to enter politics in part by Azaroff’s candidacy, stressed that her party still has plans to shape Vancouver policy on council. “Over the next 39 days, Vancouverites will start paying attention, I hope,” Bula told reporters. “And I hope that they’ll be paying attention to a plan from OneCity that hopes to deliver them a voice and a place and a future. We still have an election to win.” With files from CTV News Vancouver’s Isabella Zavarise
