William Azaroff Ends Vancouver Mayoral Bid, Clearing Progressive Lane for Green Candidate Pete Fry

Emma MacLeod

9/9/20263 min read

William Azaroff has ended his campaign for mayor of Vancouver, bringing a week of negotiations among the city’s three self-described progressive parties to a close and clearing the way for Green Party councillor Pete Fry.

Speaking Tuesday, the OneCity Vancouver candidate said he had heard concerns from voters about the possibility of another majority for Mayor Ken Sim and ABC Vancouver.

Azaroff said avoiding a split among progressive voters would require consolidating support behind one mayoral candidate.

“In order to get Ken Sim out, we have to unite behind a single progressive mayoral candidate,” he said.

Azaroff endorsed Fry, describing him as someone committed to bringing what he called competence and ethics back to the mayor’s office.

Following the announcement, Azaroff and Fry embraced and posed for photographs alongside Stephanie Allen, the former COPE Vancouver mayoral candidate who withdrew from the race last week.

Progressive Parties Had Agreed to Avoid Vote-Splitting

In April, COPE, OneCity and the Vancouver Greens agreed to limit the number of council candidates they would nominate and work toward identifying which progressive mayoral candidate was best positioned to compete in the election.

The goal was to reduce the risk of splitting votes among parties with overlapping political priorities.

Polling conducted by two organizations in July and August suggested Fry, who has served on Vancouver city council for eight years, was running ahead of both Allen and Azaroff.

Allen and Azaroff had no previous elected political experience and were primarily known for their work as non-profit housing executives.

Azaroff Initially Planned to Stay in Race

After Allen withdrew last Wednesday, Azaroff initially said he intended to continue campaigning.

At the time, he argued OneCity had built the organizational infrastructure needed to mount a strong challenge against Sim and ABC Vancouver.

“I don't see another party with a kind of infrastructure we've built around money raised, doors knocked, volunteers gotten,” Azaroff said.

He also said he planned to speak with Fry in the days that followed.

Azaroff said he began reconsidering his position by Thursday as the Sept. 11 deadline for candidates to remain on the ballot approached.

“It started becoming really obvious to me what the dynamics were ... and really, my heart kind of knew Thursday afternoon, but my brain decided yesterday,” he said Tuesday.

Four Experienced Candidates Remain

Azaroff’s withdrawal leaves several candidates with substantial municipal political experience competing against Sim.

They include Fry, Vote Vancouver councillor Rebecca Bligh, former Vancouver councillor Colleen Hardwick of TEAM Vancouver and former Sim campaign manager and chief of staff Kareem Allam, who is running with the Vancouver Liberals.

Both Allam and Hardwick issued statements following Azaroff’s announcement.

“William and I don't agree on everything. But there is a lot we do agree on,” Allam said.

He said his campaign is focused on building a broader coalition that crosses traditional political divisions.

Hardwick said she remains in the race because she believes Vancouver residents require an alternative to the other candidates.

“No other party is offering the change that Vancouver desperately needs,” she said.

Fry Welcomes End of Progressive Contest

Fry said Azaroff’s departure allows the Greens, OneCity and COPE to move beyond their internal competition and focus on the general election.

“I'm glad that I can now stand with my friends at OneCity, my friends at COPE, and affirm that we share those values,” Fry said.

He said the parties could work together within the limits imposed by municipal campaign finance rules.

“There's absolutely nothing stopping us from working together to achieve — within the limits of the Local Elections Campaign Financing Act, of course — a better city hall.”

ABC Vancouver Targets Fry

ABC Vancouver responded to Azaroff’s withdrawal by criticizing Fry’s policy approach.

In a statement attributed to Sim and his party, ABC argued Fry would take the city in the wrong direction economically and criticized his positions on taxation, development, public safety and health policy.

With Azaroff and Allen now out of the race, Fry enters the final stretch of the campaign with the backing of Vancouver’s three-party progressive agreement, while several other challengers continue their efforts to unseat Sim in October’s municipal election.

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