VICTORIA -- A voters' guide for all 11 candidates running for Victoria’s vacant city council seat in the upcoming byelection has been released by the City of Victoria.

The guide is a collection of brief profiles written by each candidate to give voters a sense of their background and platforms.

"The views and opinions expressed in the profile statements are those of the candidates and do not reflect the position of the City of Victoria," reads the city’s introduction to the guide. "The profiles have not been edited in any way."

The 11 candidates running in the byelection – scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 12 – are:

  • Stephen Andrew
  • Rob Duncan
  • Riga Godron
  • Stefanie Hardman
  • Bill Heflin
  • Jason Heit
  • Sean Leitenberg
  • Hailey McLeod
  • Keith Rosenberg
  • Alexander Schmidt
  • Roshan Vickery

The open city councillor seat was left vacant after former councillor Laurel Collins was elected the federal Member of Parliament for Victoria last year.

On general voting day, there will be six open voting stations across the city, each equipped with two voting machines.

Advanced voting will also be available starting Dec. 1 at Crystal Garden in downtown Victoria.

A full breakdown of where and when each voting station is open can be found here.

Mail-in ballots will also be accepted for the byelection, but must be received by the city by Dec. 12. Completed mail-in ballot should be placed in the mail by Dec. 4 at the latest, or be dropped off at City Hall after that date.

Victoria residents are not the only ones allowed to vote in the upcoming byelection. People who own property in the municipality are allowed to vote, including business owners and residential property owners.

Gordy Dodd, of Dodd’s Furniture Warehouse, told CTV News earlier this week that he is eager to vote in the byelection, despite living in Saanich, because his Victoria business has been the target of increased levels of crime since the pandemic began.

"We need someone over there who can speak on our behalf," he said Monday.

He said he’d also like to see a different approach from those in city hall to dealing with the city’s growing homeless crisis.

The city's byelection voter guide can be found online here.