Surrey council sworn in: five women and four men take seats in 40-minute ceremony
Doug McCallum's Safe Surrey council takes office with nine members, five of them women, and a list of campaign promises on the table.
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A 40-minute ceremony ushered in a new Surrey city council on Monday evening, Nov. 2, as the 2026-2030 term began.
Mayor-elect Doug McCallum led the inaugural meeting of a Safe Surrey Coalition-dominated council of eight plus the mayor. Five of the nine members are women and four are men. McCallum took his oath first, followed by Mandeep Singh Nagra, who was appointed deputy mayor, and then the others as a group. The Surrey Connect councillor, Harry Bains, was sworn in with seven Safe Surrey councillors: Doug Elford, Meera Gill, Mandeep Singh Nagra, Suhana Gill, Allison Patton, Laurie Guerra and Cheney Cloke.
In a speech streamed on the city's website, McCallum repeated many campaign promises. Safe Surrey vowed a new hospital and a SkyTrain extension to Newton, action on illegal dumping, no property tax increases for four years, a ward electoral system, a Surrey Police helicopter and drone fleet within 90 days, new swimming pools for Clayton Heights and City Centre, heritage designations for Crescent Beach and Ocean Park, and withdrawal from the Metro Vancouver Regional District.
McCallum served as mayor from 2018 to 2022, when Brenda Locke defeated him, and earlier held three consecutive terms from 1996 to 2005. Returning councillors are Harry Bains, Doug Elford and Mandeep Singh Nagra, along with Allison Patton and Laurie Guerra, back after four-year absences. Newcomers are Meera Gill, Suhana Gill and Cheney Cloke.
