Longtime Vision Vancouver city councillor Raymond Louie is not seeking re-election in the Oct. 20 municipal election.
Louie confirmed his decision Wednesday in a text message to the Courier. He was unable to make himself available for an interview because he was chairing a Metro Vancouver finance and intergovernmental affairs meeting.
"Yes, it's true," he joked in a brief text. "So if you know of a job for a hardworking people person that is good with facts, numbers and complicated projects, please send them my way!"
Louie, who is in his early 50s, has served as a city councillor since first elected with COPE in 2002. He fled the party before his first term ended to help form Vision Vancouver with then-mayor Larry Campbell, the late Jim Green and current Vision councillor, Tim Stevenson.
Louie's decision not to seek re-election leaves Coun. Heather Deal as Vision's only council incumbent seeking re-election. Councillors Andrea Reimer, Stevenson, Kerry Jang and Mayor Gregor Robertson are all calling it quits after this term. Former Vision councillor Geoff Meggs resigned last year to take a job as chief of staff with Premier John Horgan.
Louie has long been known as Vision's point person on finances and has served as president of the Federation of Canadian Municipalities and is current vice-chairperson of Metro Vancouver. Most recently, he was the key person on council to initiate council's apology to the Chinese community for the legislated discrimination enacted decades ago by previous councils.
For years, he has been thought to be one of Robertson's successors and was once touted by Campbell and Green as a future mayor. Louie unsuccessfully challenged Robertson in Vision's 2008 leadership race. Ian Campbell, a hereditary chief with the Squamish Nation, is Vision's mayoral candidate in this election.
In the last provincial election, Louie was approached by the NDP to run in Vancouver but declined. He has also been approached by the federal Liberals in previous campaigns to run.
mhowell@vancourier.com
@Howellings
