Surrey mayoral race roiled by alleged Indian election interference on Facebook
Doug McCallum's campaign claims a network of six Facebook pages operating from India and funded in rupees is promoting Mayor Brenda Locke to Surrey voters.
Sources · local media reports
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Surrey mayoral candidate Doug McCallum has triggered a political firestorm by alleging foreign election interference, claiming a coordinated network of at least six Facebook pages operated and funded from India is running pro-Locke content in Surrey, Delta, and Vancouver ahead of the October 17 municipal election.
McCallum's Safe Surrey Coalition says the pages — including "I Love Surrey," "I Love Vancouver," "I Love Delta," and "Delta Speaks" — are being run from India, funded in Indian rupees, and billed to an entity at the Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), a research body under India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. "This is not a Canadian operation," McCallum said. "The people running it are in India. The money paying for it is in rupees. The payer named on the advertising is an entity at a research facility of the Government of India."
McCallum is calling on CSIS, the RCMP, Elections BC, and the Surrey Police Service to investigate. He's also urging Meta and TikTok to remove the pages immediately and disclose their ownership, operators, and funding sources.
McCallum says the content on Surrey pages "amplifies Mayor Brenda Locke," including posts presenting her record on policing, gang violence, and extortion "entirely in her own framing, pushed to Surrey audiences with no disclosure of who paid to put it there."
When asked about the allegations, Locke said she was puzzled by them. "I'm not sure what the deal is," she told the Surrey Now-Leader. "Maybe Mr. McCallum and members of his team should come up with a better strategy, maybe they have to have a better platform, and maybe they should go knock on some doors."
She acknowledged that the quoted posts about her concern over gang violence and extortion in Surrey were statements she would have made, but said she had no knowledge of the broader allegations. "I have no idea what he's talking about," Locke said.
Under British Columbia's Local Elections Campaign Financing Act, third-party sponsors must register with Elections BC before spending $500 or more on advertising and must file full disclosure statements.
The facts
When is Surrey's municipal election?
Surrey's municipal election is on October 17, 2026.
How many Facebook pages does McCallum claim are part of the interference network?
Doug McCallum's campaign claims at least six Facebook pages operated from India are promoting Mayor Brenda Locke, including 'I Love Surrey,' 'I Love Vancouver,' 'I Love Delta,' and 'Delta Speaks.'
What government entity is allegedly funding the pages?
The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), a research body under India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology, is allegedly named as the payer for the advertising.
What does BC law require third-party election advertisers to do?
Under British Columbia's Local Elections Campaign Financing Act, third-party sponsors must register with Elections BC before spending $500 or more on advertising and must file full disclosure statements.
