I wanted to share the news with you, as one of my personal contacts, that I am running for Mayor of the City of Vancouver. 

Earlier today, Frances Bula of the Globe and Mail wrote a story about my candidacy. Mike Howell of Vancouver is Awesome also shared the news

At the same time, we launched our campaign website – www.markformayor.ca – including a video introducing me to the people of Vancouver as candidate for mayor.

This is a huge deal for me. I have been working incredibly hard over the last number of months getting ready to make this decision – and the work has only just started!

I love Vancouver, but, right now, there is no leadership at City Hall. Our city is sliding backwards on pretty much everything, especially the things that matter most.

We need leadership, for a change.

Many of us are losing our sense of community. Young people can no longer start a family in Vancouver — bringing life and vitality to our community — without rich parents. Small businesses are also getting squeezed out.

This means lost opportunity for all of us. Finding a way to solve this dilemma isn’t going to be easy, but I can’t sit by and watch us lose even more. 

It means that we need to take the best ideas wherever they come from, and to actively listen to each other, and then lead.

My campaign is going to be focused on bringing leadership to City Hall. We’ll do that by building the broadest possible coalition of people across the city who want to get things done – things like:

  • Breaking the logjam on housing
  • Working more productively with senior governments on mental health & addiction services for our citizens
  • More green transportation and sustainable transit options

Now I need your help. 

We’ve launched our website so that we can start assembling our organization, and the formal launch of the campaign will happen once the COVID restrictions are lifted. 

In the meantime, I need all of you to do what you can: volunteerdonate, work and, eventually, vote!

I have never done anything more important to me than this. 

Over the coming months I will work hard to demonstrate to you – and all of Vancouver – just how seriously I take this challenge.

And I will need help from every one of you to make this campaign for change a reality. 

I look forward to hearing from you!

Sincerely, 




Mark Marissen