ABC Vancouver boots Rebecca Bligh from council caucus

Vancouver’s governing municipal political party has booted one of its city councillors from caucus.

In a statement issued Friday, ABC Vancouver said it had expelled Coun. Rebecca Bligh.

“While she remains a Vancouver City Councillor, it has become clear that she is not aligned with the shared priorities and team-oriented approach that defines ABC Vancouver,” party president Stephen Molnar wrote.

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“Time and again, Councillor Bligh has shown that she is not a core value fit with ABC Vancouver. Rather than working with caucus to find common ground and advance solutions, she has chosen to put her own views ahead of the collective work of the team.”

Bligh fired back at a press conference at city hall on Friday afternoon.

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“When I joined ABC, I thought Mayor Ken Sim would help renew our politics and be a true partner in welcoming all voices into the conversation. By his actions today, Mayor Sim has shown this is not true,” he said.

“Mayor Ken Sim has abandoned the core principles that brought me to ABC in the first place. While this was not my decision, I think it’s the right direction for me and for our city.”

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Bligh, along with ABV Coun. Lisa Dominato, recently raised concerns about Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim’s plan to freeze new supportive housing in the city.

In November, Bligh reversed her position on an ABC proposal to scrap the city’s ban on the installation of natural gas for heating and hot water in new homes. Her flipped vote resulted in a 5-5 vote at council, defeating the initiative.

Bligh was first elected to council in 2018 with the Non-Partisan Association (NPA), but quit that party along with caucus colleagues Lisa Dominato and Sarah Kirby-Yung to join Mayor Ken Sim’s upstart ABC Vancouver.

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Sim’s party swept into power with a commanding majority in the 2022 municipal election but has seen significant internal division since then.

In late 2023, it expelled three ABC Vancouver Park Board commissioners over opposition to the mayor’s plan to abolish the elected body, despite campaigning on retaining and improving it.

Last summer, ABC Vancouver School Board Chair Victoria Jung quit the party, citing concerns about transparency as the ABC majority pushed for a review of the city integrity commissioner’s scope of authority.

More to come…