Cleland to take second shot at Kamloops council

Sep 18, 2026 | 4:22 PM

KAMLOOPS — Back in 2022, Bonnie Cleland secured approximately 2,500 votes, falling short in her first bid for a seat on Kamloops city council.

Cleland was unsure if she would run again this year, pointing to the current discourse around Kamloops city hall as a prime example of giving her pause.

“One of the things that I see in some of the ‘mom’ Facebook groups I’m in is people reaching out and saying, ‘Hey, I’d like to relocate to Kamloops,’ and the comments are, ‘Don’t come. It’s hard to live here. We don’t have enough day care.’ I won’t say verbatim what some of them are. I would like to see that change,” said Cleland.

Cleland said one of her greatest strengths is as a communicator, saying her priorities include wanting to see the city grow and prosper, while balancing fiscal challenges.

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“These are multi-faceted – they are complex issues. They are very worth discussing. My philosophy is I want to know where costs are coming, why costs are increasing and I want to explore innovative ways to secure funding and improve the lives of citizens here, by limiting the increases if we can,” said Cleland. “I would love there to be a really quick and snappy one-liner – ‘We will just cut taxes, cut spending and keep all our services’ – but unfortunately, the math of that doesn’t work out.”

by Michael Reeve

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Cleland to take second shot at Kamloops council

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