Doug Kobayashi routed incumbent Rob Martin in the race to be Colwood’s mayor.
Kobayashi, a councillor who challenged Martin, won 67.4 per cent of the vote, surprising himself.
“I’m so honoured, almost embarrassed by the numbers … I had to look at them twice,” Kobayashi said after earning 2,559 votes, more than double the 1,216 that Martin received.
Kobayashi credited door-knocking for the convincing win, claiming he visited more than 4,000 homes over the past month. He said face-to-face meetings trumped Martin’s heavy election presence on social media because he was able to reach “all ages in Colwood.”
“I heard from a lot of people and heard they wanted more amenities in Colwood and I listened to their concerns about traffic and development.”
Kobayashi, a former air force engineer who grew up in Colwood and runs a consulting business, campaigned on transparent governance and fostering economic, social and environmental well-being. He also said Colwood has to get the most amenities it can from developers.
Martin was a two-time councillor before being elected mayor in 2018. He had hoped to continue his term to shepherd the surging growth and development in the Royal Bay and Colwood corners areas of the city.
Incumbent councillors Cynthia Day and Dean Jantzen were re-elected, but Stewart Parkinson didn’t make the grade this time.
Newcomer Ian Ward, founding director of the Royal Bay Homeowners Association, captured 2,476 votes to lead all other councillors at the polls. He joined new faces David Grove, Misty Olsen and Kim Jordison on Colwood’s new council.
