Richmond city councillor and Olympian Alexa Loo to run for mayor | Daily Hive

Richmond city councillor and Olympian Alexa Loo to run for mayor in the civic election

Alexa Loo. (Alexa Loo)

A new political banner is entering Richmond’s mayoral contest, with longtime Richmond city councillor Alexa Loo announcing her bid today for the city’s top job under the newly formed Richmond Strong civic political party.

Loo is seeking to become the City of Richmond’s next mayor after three terms as city councillor, spanning 12 years at the end of the current term.

The new Richmond Strong party will not be limited to the mayoral race. Loo said she plans to introduce four City Council candidates in the coming weeks.

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She is framing her candidacy for the October 2026 civic election around community priorities and long-term planning for the city.

“Like my neighbours all across Richmond, I want a city that is safe, prosperous and welcoming,” said Loo in a statement. “My priorities include public safety, private property rights, traffic congestion, and ensuring Richmond has the essential infrastructure it needs in the years ahead.”

Loo pointed to her personal background and long service on City Council as key motivations for seeking the mayor’s chair. She said growing up in a mixed-race family in Richmond gave her a firsthand understanding of the city’s diversity.

“All of us who live in Richmond know how special our city is, which is why I have been so proud to serve on council, and why I want to continue that service to our community as our mayor,” she said.

Loo is an Olympian, having competed in parallel giant slalom at the Winter Olympics in Torino 2006 and Vancouver 2010. She is also an Honourary Lieutenant Colonel of the 39th Service Battalion.

She was first elected into office in 2014. In the last civic election held in 2022, Loo secured the fourth most votes among the city councillor candidates, winning 13,485 votes. She also ran in the 2020 provincial general election for the riding of Richmond South Centre under the BC Liberals, losing narrowly by a margin of only 179 seats.

In addition to her political career, Loo highlighted her financial background as an accountant as a guiding influence on how she would approach City Hall.

“As an accountant, I will bring a tremendous respect for taxpayers to the mayor’s office, and I’m committed to keeping taxes low by prioritizing essential services and projects that truly benefit our community,” she said, adding that her approach would be “based on common sense, with practical solutions that work to solve our city’s biggest issues.”

Flood protection and property rights featured prominently in her remarks.

Loo says she wants to continue advancing the municipal government’s efforts with raising dykes and investing in flood protection.

Over the past six months, Loo has been one of the most outspoken municipally elected officials in pushing to support Richmond private property owners affected by the immense uncertainty and precarious nature of the Supreme Court of British Columbia’s August 2025 ruling, which granted Aboriginal title to a large area of southeast Richmond to the Cowichan Tribes.

Richmond’s municipal government is also playing an active legal role, as it is in the process of appealing that decision. If appeal efforts fail, the Cowichan Tribes decision in Richmond could set a concerning precedent for private property ownership across British Columbia and elsewhere in Canada.

“As mayor I will also be a strong defender of private property rights, ensuring Richmond residents are not sidelined by reconciliation decisions,” said Loo.

“The recent Cowichan decision has made Richmond the test case for the rest of the province and our residents need a strong voice. They need to know their mayor and council are on their side.”

She also reiterated her opposition to the provincial government’s drug injection sites, arguing that policy should focus on treatment rather than continued drug supply.

“The solution to drug addiction is not more drugs, that model has been tried and has failed,” she continued. “Individuals with addiction and mental health issues need treatment and care, and the broader community needs to feel safe in their neighbourhoods, and that means taking a strong stand against any type of crime or public disorder.”

In September 2025, Mayor Malcolm Brodie announced he would not seek re-election after 25 years in office, triggering a recalibration of Richmond’s political landscape and opening the door wide for new, serious mayoral contenders. Brodie had previously won nearly all of his elections by landslide margins.

One-term Richmond city councillor Kash Heed, a former police officer and previously the MLA for Vancouver-Fraserview, is also running for Richmond mayor.

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