Who wants your vote, and who is backing them

Dogwood BC

A climate advocacy group that was a registered third-party sponsor in the 2022 civic election and endorsed the Gang of 5 plus Mayor Alto. It has hired staff for the 2026 civic election and is running paid ads inviting people to fill in a survey. The responses feed follow-up emails telling people who to vote for. It is registered again for 2026.

Homes for Living

A housing advocacy group that pushes for maximum housing supply. It was a registered sponsor in 2022 and is not on the 2026 register as of August 26. Several people in this election have ties to it: council candidate Jack Sandor is a former vice-president, and councillors Dell, Loughton and Thompson were each involved with the group before or during their time in office. Critics have documented developer involvement in its earlier days. Background reading: CRD Watch's article index.

Victoria Labour Council

Has endorsed candidates in Greater Victoria for many years and was a registered third-party sponsor in 2022, endorsing the Gang of 5 plus Mayor Alto. At a council meeting, Councillor Susan Kim said labour-council-endorsed candidates had committed to opposing public-private partnerships.

For 2026 its own website says the endorsement interviews are complete and that successful candidates will be contacted, but it does not publish the list. Councillor Matt Dell published it himself on August 18, announcing his own endorsement and then naming the rest: "Also endorsed by the Victoria Labour Council were incumbents Krista Loughton, Jeremy Caradonna, Dave Thompson and Susan Kim, and new candidates Bella Lee, Peter Gibbs and Jack Sandor."

That is eight names for the eight council seats on the ballot, chosen in private and announced before nominations have even opened. In the same post Councillor Dell commits to "completion of the new Crystal Pool and building a new main library branch downtown", which is worth reading next to our page on what the city is already spending.

Livable CRD

A coalition of advocacy groups grading municipal candidates across the Capital Region on a letter scale from A to F, with results to be published before election day. It is a registered local elections advertising sponsor with Elections BC. It lists fourteen member organizations: Walk On Victoria, Better Island Transit, Climate Justice Victoria, Family Doctors for Saanich, Victori'us Arts, Better Transit YYJ, Homes for Living, Better Columbia, Greater Victoria Acting Together, Strong Towns Victoria, Common Horizon Victoria, Resilient Urban Systems and Habitat, Grumpy Taxpayer$ of Greater Victoria, and Defund VicPD. Two of those are groups this page profiles in their own right, Homes for Living and GVAT, so the scorecard is not being written at arm's length from the campaigns it grades. It also points visitors to Dogwood's voting pledge. Elections BC records its authorized principal official as Michael Bassili, with a Better Transit YYJ contact address, though the site itself does not say who assigns the grades. Candidates had until September 18 to answer and be graded on the site. Our view: a scorecard is only as neutral as the questions behind it, and these questions are written by groups that campaign for particular outcomes. Read the questions before you read the grades.

Greater Victoria Acting Together

GVAT is one of the fourteen organizations in the Livable CRD coalition. Its own site describes it as an alliance that grew out of a faith group called Faith In Action, and says it is an affiliate of the Industrial Areas Foundation Pacific, a community organizing network registered in Washington State with affiliates in several countries. It says that in 2022 it held a Homes For All assembly during the municipal election and "gained the commitment of the candidates to meet with us annually" on its housing targets. gvat.ca

Sasha Izard has written two detailed pieces on GVAT for CRD Watch: one on its single listed staff member and her links to Homes for Living, and one on how it was formed and how it relates to the Industrial Areas Foundation. CRD Watch argues a case rather than reporting neutrally, and we link it as such. Our view: a local campaign that asks candidates for annual accountability meetings on its own targets is doing organized political work, and voters should know it exists.

Victoria For All

A new municipal slate launched in August 2026, running Councillor Susan Kim and Peter Rose Gibbs for council and one candidate for school board. Its sign-up form identifies the organization behind it as Victoria Progressive Electors. The shared platform is doubling city investment in affordable housing, stronger protections against renoviction and demoviction, and expanded mental health and addictions crisis response. victoriaforall.ca

Capital Bike

A cycling advocacy group and 2022 third-party sponsor, not on the 2026 register as of August 26. The city has been a generous partner: close to $250,000 went to a single season of the downtown bike valet, alongside continued spending on lane expansion. When a group advocates for spending and also campaigns in the election, voters deserve to see both halves.

Third-party sponsors must register with Elections BC and disclose what they spend. The 2026 register is published and updated as groups sign up. The version we read is dated August 26, 2026, and registration stays open until voting day, so a group missing from it today may appear tomorrow.

For deeper background on the interconnections at city hall, see BC Politics Watch.