WKLC Endorsed Candidates for The 2026 Municipal Election

Janice Morrison – Mayor, Nelson
Janice brings extensive municipal and community experience, having served on Nelson City Council and as Mayor since 2022, along with 37 years in health care. Her priorities include infrastructure renewal, housing, public safety, living-wage employment and sustainable development that aligns with Nelson’s OCP. She supports working with local unions to attract green jobs with fair wages and safe working conditions, and does not support privatizing public services. She also supports non-market housing, unionized public transit, and continued work with local First Nations on Truth and Reconciliation.

Frank Marino – Mayor, Warfield
Frank Marino brings municipal and community experience, including involvement in bargaining with CUPE and extensive work with local community and health organizations. His priorities are completing key Warfield projects, addressing aging infrastructure and water supply, and securing government funding. He does not support privatizing public services and has concerns about provincial downloading and rising municipal costs. On housing, he supports long-term rentals, affordable housing partnerships and infrastructure upgrades to enable additional housing. He supports economic development through the broader East End community and LCCDTS, while emphasizing fair taxation and local economic growth. He also supports reviewing public transit, which he believes currently does not adequately serve rural communities.

Colleen Jones – Mayor, Trail
Colleen Jones brings a strong labour background, including six years as a BCGEU Provincial Vice-President and experience negotiating for fair wages, benefits and safe working conditions. Her priorities include housing, health care access, economic stability, good local jobs and affordability. She supports keeping public services public, strong labour-management relationships, and unionized jobs with fair wages and benefits. She supports expanding housing, improving regional transit—particularly frequency, connections and evening/weekend service—and ensuring transit supports seniors, students, people with disabilities, medical appointments and workers. She also supports green job development, stronger regional approaches to homelessness and addictions, and continued collaboration with governments, unions and community partners.

Paul Butler – City Council, Trail
Paul Butler is seeking a third term on Trail Council, bringing eight years of municipal experience and a strong focus on housing, public safety, economic development and infrastructure. He supports maintaining core public services, respectful collective bargaining and treating municipal workers as partners, while generally opposing privatization except where specialized contracting provides clear value. He supports attainable and supportive housing, improved transit and accessible transportation, green infrastructure and good unionized jobs with fair wages and safe working conditions. He also emphasizes regional collaboration, practical approaches to community safety, inclusion, Truth and Reconciliation, and long-term financial planning.

Birkley Valks – School Board Trustee, District 20
Birkley Valks brings community and school-board experience, having run for SD20 Trustee in 2024 and volunteered with several local organizations and political campaigns. Their key concerns include affordability, public education and ensuring families, students and educators have adequate support and resources. Birkley supports publicly funded, accessible education and believes the current per-pupil funding model may not adequately account for students requiring additional supports, particularly students with special needs. They strongly oppose privatization and contracting out public services, support living-wage employment and pay equity, and emphasize communication and listening in working with staff and unions. Their community engagement approach includes door knocking, attending community events and speaking directly with residents. They also emphasize inclusion, respect and diversity, drawing on their experience as an openly trans candidate and community advocate, and approach Truth and Reconciliation through listening, learning, leading by example and supporting local Indigenous communities.