Linda Annis says vote-splitting gave Doug McCallum Surrey’s mayoral seat

After two terms as a Surrey city councillor, Linda Annis ran for mayor and lost. “I’m quite shocked by the results, to be honest with you,” she said Saturday night, Oct. 17, at Surrey First’s election-night gathering at South Surrey Convention Centre. At the latest count, Annis was fourth in the mayoral vote. Surrey First appeared at risk of returning only Mike Bose to council, and even his seat was uncertain as results came in. At 11:16 p.m., Bose was ninth in the council vote, with eight seats to be filled. Results were posted at https://electionresults.surrey.ca/#at/1/ar/1/ct/000.

Annis told the Now-Leader she wished Doug McCallum “all the very, very best.” She said she believed there had been some vote-splitting that night, which was “very unfortunate,” but the city had to get on with its business. She hoped McCallum would do everything he could to take the city to the next level, adding that Surrey had considerable potential. “Surrey First isn’t going anywhere,” she said. “We’ll be back in the next election, so stay tuned.”

Annis was first elected to council in 2018 and re-elected in 2022. She was executive director of Metro Vancouver Crime Stoppers until earlier that year. She announced her mayoral bid in September 2025, more than a year before the election, and had been a vocal critic of outgoing mayor Brenda Locke’s plans, including a proposed 10,000-seat arena in City Centre.

By 10 p.m., the Surrey First group was feeling defeated as it became clear that Safe Surrey was on its way to victory. Bose said there were still votes to count and that voters had the final say. He described the city’s desire for change as obvious, but said he felt the change had gone backwards. He added that this was what voters wanted and he could not change it.

Bose, first elected to council in 2022, said he felt he had accomplished some things on council and would not rule out running for office again. He said he would keep advocating for agriculture and working to increase its standing in the province and in Surrey, adding that this work would never change.

Janet Brown was a Surrey First candidate in her first election, after covering many elections as a broadcast journalist. Earlier in the evening, Brown, a Fraser Heights resident, said the team had campaigned for a year and had been door-knocking since May. Collectively, its candidates had made more than 60,000 door-knocks; Brown said she had made close to 10,000 herself, almost a full-time job. She said door-knocking mattered because it gave the team a chance to listen to what people wanted for Surrey. Residents told them they were concerned about public safety, wanted more police officers and did not want to pay higher property taxes.