iN NUMBERS: Putting years of service into perspective for incumbents in Okanagan, Kamloops elections

Local elections are coming up and there are some candidates in Kamloops and the Okanagan who have been in office for a long time, but sometimes it’s hard to put their tenures into perspective.

Here are some numbers to put years of service into context:

• 15: Years. That’s how long Kelowna councillors Mohini Singh and Maxine DeHart have each been member of city council. Both are seeking reelection.
• 71,000: That’s how much Kelowna’s population has grown since 2011 when DeHart and Singh were elected.
• 8: Olympic games have been held since DeHart and Singh were elected to city council in 2011.
• 469.7: Million dollars. That’s how much tax money has been collected by the City of Vernon during Mayor Victor Cumming’s eight years leading the city.
• 6: That’s how many Prime Ministers the United Kingdom has had since Cumming was elected as Vernon’s mayor in 2018.
• 2008: That was the first year incumbent Nancy Bepple was elected to Kamloops city council. She took a break from office between 2014 and 2022, but she has a total of 10 years a city councillor.
• 27,735: That’s how much Kamloops’ population has grown since the first time Nancy Bepple ran for office in 2008.
• 1: Year was added to city council terms between Bepple’s second and third term. Terms were extended from three to four years in 2014.
• 2: Is the number of years Penticton city councillors Jason Reynen and Shannon Stewart have been on council because they were elected in byelections in 2025.