A largely new council is set to take shape as the Vancouver Island village faces financial pressures, governance challenges and a debate over its future
The 2026 municipal election is shaping up to be a major turning point for the Village of Sayward, where voters will choose a mayor and four councillors on October 17.
The election follows a turbulent municipal term that included councillor resignations, a by-election, disputes over council procedure and conduct, legal proceedings, financial pressures and a resident-led effort calling for the village to be dissolved and incorporated into the Strathcona Regional District.
CHEK News reports that only one member of the current council is seeking elected office in 2026, meaning the next council will contain at least four new faces.
The Village’s official election page confirms that voters will elect one mayor and four councillors for four-year terms. The nomination period closed September 11, and the campaign period officially begins September 19.
Three mayoral candidates
The current Elections BC registered-candidate financing list, dated September 15, shows Jessica Bennett and Jason Johnson as candidates for mayor of Sayward.
Johnson is the only current member of Sayward council appearing in the mayoral race. He joined council following the 2024 by-election that followed the resignations of Kohen Gilkin and Tom Tinsley.
Bennett is also associated with the Sayward Taxpayers Alliance, a resident organization that has advocated for a provincial study into dissolving the Village of Sayward and transferring municipal governance to the regional district.
The Elections BC list also currently identifies Jackie Lyons as a candidate for councillor.
The candidate list remains subject to changes through the September 18 deadline for withdrawals and nomination challenges.
A council in transition
The current Sayward council consists of Mayor Mark Baker and councillors Scott Burchett, Debbie Coates, Jason Johnson and Sue Poulsen.
That council has undergone considerable change since the 2022 election.
Baker was acclaimed mayor in 2022, while Burchett, Poulsen, Gilkin and Tinsley were elected to council. Gilkin and Tinsley subsequently resigned in 2024, leading to a by-election in which Coates and Johnson joined council.
With Johnson now seeking the mayor’s position and the other current council members not seeking election according to CHEK’s election report, voters are effectively being asked to choose a substantially different governing team for the next four-year term.
The change comes after several years of highly public disagreements inside and outside council chambers.
Governance disputes became a major issue
Sayward’s municipal politics have included disputes over council procedure, confidentiality, conduct complaints and the handling of legal matters.
In October 2025, the Village filed a petition in B.C. Supreme Court seeking permission to temporarily reduce the number of councillors required for quorum from three to two.
The Village said the application was intended to allow council to continue functioning despite conflicts involving councillors and to address matters including possible disciplinary proceedings. The petition contained allegations concerning councillors Scott Burchett and Sue Poulsen; those allegations were disputed and formed part of ongoing legal proceedings.
The Village ultimately withdrew the petition in May 2026.
In its explanation, the Village said it decided not to proceed because of the cost of continuing the case, the proximity of the general election and the likelihood that a court decision could arrive after the election.
The dispute was also connected to a separate defamation lawsuit involving Mayor Mark Baker and former Village CAO John France. The B.C. Supreme Court dismissed Baker’s lawsuit in May 2026 after considering issues involving public-interest expression and allegations concerning municipal governance.
The legal disputes have contributed to an unusually complicated political backdrop for a village of only a few hundred residents.
Financial pressures add another dimension
The next council will also inherit a difficult financial environment.
Sayward’s population is estimated at approximately 326 people, making it one of British Columbia’s smallest incorporated municipalities.
The Village adopted its 2026-2030 financial plan through Bylaw No. 522, while Tax Rates Bylaw No. 523 established the 2026 tax rates.
Earlier drafts of the financial plan generated considerable attention because of the size of the proposed property-tax increase.
A February report on the draft budget described a proposed increase of approximately 42 per cent, following earlier projections that were even higher. The discussion also included rising water and sewer charges and reductions in municipal services.
The financial pressure is not simply a question of the annual tax rate.
Sayward has a very small population over which to spread the fixed costs of municipal administration, infrastructure, water, sewer, roads, emergency services and other local responsibilities.
The village’s 2026 financial plan identifies taxation, user fees and government grants as major funding sources. A draft version of the plan showed more than half of projected 2026 revenue coming from federal and provincial grants, illustrating the importance of outside funding to the municipality’s finances.
Dissolution has become part of the election conversation
Perhaps the most consequential issue surrounding the election is not simply who will sit on council, but whether Sayward should continue operating as an incorporated municipality at all.
In 2026, residents organized around the question of municipal dissolution and integration into the Strathcona Regional District.
A preliminary financial analysis commissioned as part of the dissolution discussion estimated that municipal taxation could potentially decline under a regional-district governance model, based on a series of assumptions about which services and costs would transfer or change.
The analysis estimated post-dissolution taxation of approximately $537,794, compared with current municipal taxation of approximately $853,593, representing an estimated 37 per cent reduction under the assumptions used in the report.
Those figures are projections rather than guarantees.
A change in governance would alter how services are funded and delivered, and the report makes assumptions about regional-district administration, service costs, grants, utilities and other revenue sources.
The question therefore involves more than simply comparing two tax numbers.
Residents would also be deciding how local services are governed, how much authority would remain at the community level and how Sayward’s infrastructure and priorities would fit within a larger regional government.
The Taxpayers Alliance petition
The Sayward Taxpayers Alliance has argued that the village’s financial and governance difficulties warrant provincial intervention.
The organization says its petition surpassed the threshold required to request a provincial restructuring study, reporting support from 54.3 per cent of eligible electors.
Among the issues cited by the organization are municipal finances, legal expenditures, service reductions and governance disputes.
Those are the organization’s stated arguments; the provincial process would ultimately determine whether a formal restructuring study proceeds and what conclusions it reaches.
The dissolution question therefore remains separate from the municipal election itself.
The election will determine who governs Sayward. Any eventual restructuring or dissolution would require additional provincial processes.
Services and infrastructure remain important
While political disputes have attracted much of the attention, the next council will also face ordinary municipal responsibilities that directly affect residents.
The Village has been dealing with infrastructure projects including stormwater improvements. Construction on stormwater management improvements was scheduled to begin in July 2026.
Sayward has also benefited from outside infrastructure funding.
The federal government announced approximately $697,230 for stormwater and drainage improvements in the village through the Investing in Canada Infrastructure Program. The funding was described as an important investment in protecting homes, water quality and community resilience.
At the same time, community services have been under pressure.
The Kelsey Recreation Centre was among the facilities affected by the municipality’s financial constraints, according to reporting on the draft financial plan.
The next council will therefore have to balance infrastructure requirements with the cost of maintaining local services.
A small community facing unusually large questions
Sayward’s circumstances are unusual partly because of its size.
With a population of only a few hundred people, relatively small changes in revenue, staffing, legal costs or infrastructure expenses can have a significant effect on municipal finances.
At the same time, the village provides services that cannot simply disappear because the population is small.
Water and sewer systems must be maintained. Roads require work. Emergency services must continue. Buildings and public infrastructure need upkeep. Grants must be pursued and administered.
That creates a difficult operating environment for any council.
The election is therefore taking place against a backdrop in which governance, taxation, service delivery and the municipality’s long-term structure are closely connected.
What voters need to know
The Village of Sayward’s general voting day is Saturday, October 17, 2026, with polls open from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Advance voting is scheduled for October 7. The Village also permits qualified electors to vote by mail.
Sayward uses same-day voter registration. Resident electors must be at least 18, Canadian citizens, B.C. residents for at least six months and residents of Sayward. Non-resident property electors may also qualify under the Local Government Act if they meet the applicable ownership and residency requirements.
The campaign period begins September 19, meaning candidates will have several weeks to present their plans to residents before voting day.
A new chapter for Sayward
Regardless of the final composition of the ballot, the 2026 election represents a significant transition for Sayward.
The community will emerge from the election with a substantially changed council, while major questions about municipal finances and governance remain unresolved.
The next council will inherit the existing financial plan, ongoing infrastructure requirements and the consequences of the disputes that have dominated municipal politics in recent years.
It will also face the larger question of what Sayward should look like as a local government over the next decade.
For residents, the October vote will determine the people responsible for making those decisions.
For the village itself, the election could mark the beginning of a new period of municipal governance — or the start of an even broader discussion about whether Sayward should continue to exist as an independent municipality.
