Cloverdale Chamber to hold 2 all-candidates meetings and ‘open-house series’ ahead of municipal election
Published 11:00 pm Wednesday, July 22, 2026
Civic-minded voters in East Surrey can look forward to a number of events this fall.
The Cloverdale District Chamber of Commerce has announced they will hold two all-candidate meetings and a new “open-house series” for slates ahead of the 2026 Surrey municipal election.
Scott Wheatley, the executive director of the Cloverdale Chamber, called the forums and open-houses “nonpartisan engagement opportunities” for voters. He said the two different forums—the all-candidates’ meetings (ACM) and the open houses—were picked to give voters in Cloverdale, Clayton, and Campbell Heights a chance to hear from candidates and civic slates on issues relevant to East Surrey.
“The Cloverdale Chamber is committed to supporting informed civic engagement and ensuring the voices of our local business community and residents are part of the conversation during this election,” Wheatley said in a press release. “Our goal is to create accessible, respectful, and meaningful opportunities for candidates and community members to connect.”
The Q&A sessions for candidates will be held Sept. 22 and 23 at a yet-to-be-named location. Sept. 22 will be a forum for city council candidates and Sept. 23 will feature mayoral candidates.
The Chamber noted that because of the large number of council candidates, each slate will be asked to send only two council-seat hopefuls to the Sept. 22 meeting. Wheatley said he expects every mayoral candidate to attend the Sept. 23 forum and is in the process now of booking each candidate.
Wheatley said registration for the ACMs will open at 5:30 p.m. and the meetings will run from 6 – 7:30 p.m.
In addition to the ACMs, the Chamber will host a series of open-house chit chats in the run up to the election. The informal chinwags are a chance for each slate to “connect” with voters.
To be hosted at the Cloverdale Chamber Office, each slate has been given a chance to engage with voters in their own open house.
According to information in the release, the open-house sessions “will include one-minute introductions from each candidate, a short discussion featuring Chamber-selected questions, and informal conversation and networking.”
Confirmed civic slate open houses include: Sept. 9 – Imagine Surrey, Sept. 14 – Surrey Now, Sept. 15 – Surrey Connect, Sept. 17 – Surrey First, and Sept. 18 – Conservative Party of Surrey. The Chamber is still trying to schedule a date for the Safe Surrey Coalition. All open-house meetings will run from 5 – 7 p.m.
“The Chamber’s 2026 Surrey municipal election engagement opportunities are non-partisan and are intended to support open dialogue between candidates and the East Surrey community.”
The Chamber is asking people to pre-register for both the open houses and the ACMs. This can be done by visiting cloverdalechamber.ca or by emailing info@cloverdalechamber.ca.
He also said all questions for the MP hopefuls must be submitted in advance. Questions must be emailed to sam@cloverdalechamber.ca.
For more info, visit cloverdalechamber.ca.
For info on how and where to vote, visit surrey.ca.