Kelowna mayor spent big on 2018 re-election campaign

KELOWNA – Mayor Colin Basran didn’t scrimp on his 2018 re-election campaign, breaking the spending record he likely set when first getting elected as mayor in 2014.

In financial disclosure statements released by Elections B.C. today, Feb. 5, Basran reported spending $76,585 in the four-way race that he won with almost 60 per cent of the vote. That was about $200 less than the maximum allowed by Elections B.C. of $76,781.50.

In 2014, he spent just under $76,000 to defeat Sharon Shepherd, who only spent $22,000. That was likely a record for election spending for a Kelowna mayoralty candidate.

Basran’s closest competitor in 2018 was Tom Dyas who spent $38,316 to pull in 30 per cent of the vote.

Third was Bobby Kennedy, spending $14,502 for eight per cent of the vote, followed by Bob Schewe who spent $3,485 and pulled in less than five per cent of the vote.

This was the first election where campaign contributions were capped at $1,200 so Basran listed more than 100 people who donated $100 or more and noted 385 people — whose names did not have to be listed — who donated less than $100.

In terms of where the money was spent, there were three main categories accounting for more than $55,000 of his expenses. These included $19,110 on the internet, $18,962 for signs and billboards and $17,015 for professional services.

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