Former financial planner seeking Nanaimo Mayor’s chair

“I love the idea of serving the citizens of Nanaimo, and I love the idea of doing something meaningful to help turn the situation around and put government back in the hands of voters and to improve the situation for Nanaimo taxpayers because there’s a lot wrong in Nanaimo right now, and I feel that with my team we can solve these problems.”

Living in the Nanaimo area since 1983, Dryden also previously worked for the Canadian Coast Guard and Air Canada.

She said she’s seen more problems surfacing in the world, and locally, and wanted to address “forces that were working against people.”

“Voters are very upset with the amount of taxes that are being charged. They’re upset with the look of Nanaimo that it’s looking dirty, and that there are homeless people everywhere and people on drugs, flat out on the sidewalk, bent over. These are problems we can fix, and we have got a plan. I’m hearing from voters that they don’t feel safe walking in Nanaimo at night anymore, where we used to be able to quite easily.”

Dryden is running under the REAL Nanaimo electoral organization, or slate, in the 2026 election, alongside seven candidates for City Councillor positions.

She said the group is very well organized and has a mixture of different people with different backgrounds and ideas.

The concept of a party-style slate has little precedent in Nanaimo politics, rather an idea more common in larger cities such as Vancouver and Toronto.

“A voter does not have to vote for all of us. A voter can vote for one or three or all, it doesn’t matter. It’s their choice, not ours. Some of us may get in, some of us may not…I think most of us will. What I’m really hoping is that we don’t end up with some ideological, radical councillors who will hold back all the things that will help Nanaimo get better.”

Fiscal responsibility, changes to housing regulations, and addressing crime are all top of the list for Dryden, if she were elected.

She added the group also has plans to more directly address healthcare issues in Nanaimo through a municipal facility to offset a sector more typically handled by senior levels of government.

Dryden is running against Brunie Brunie, incumbent Leonard Krog and Sarah Lovegrove to be the next Mayor of Nanaimo.

Subscribe to our daily news wrap. Local news delivered to your email inbox every evening. Stay up-to-date on everything Nanaimo and Oceanside.

info@nanaimonewsnow.com

Follow us on: Twitter (X) | Bluesky | Facebook

by Alex Rawnsley

Former financial planner seeking Nanaimo Mayor’s chair

More Local News