Tung Chan has become a hot political commodity in recent months.
For a man who the majority of Vancouverites have never heard of, Success CEO Tung Chan’s political appeal is at an all-time high.
On one end of the political spectrum, the federal Conservatives continue to make overtures to Chan about the possibility of running in Vancouver South against Liberal MP Ujjal Dosanjh, who as many readers are well aware, only won his seat last time around by 20 votes. That riding has close to a population that is close to 50 per cent Chinese, making Chan an ideal candidate with profile within the community that makes the difference on deciding a winner and a loser.
On the other is the moribund NPA, which from what I have been able to piece together, is getting desperate with regards to finding a sacrificial lamb to go against Mayor Gregor Robertson and his 70 per cent approval rating.
If indeed Chan is at all interested in politics, taking the Vancouver South offer seems like a no-brainer. Until of course you factor in the hectic and unforgiving travel schedule of a BC MP, and realize that the amount of individuals willing to make such a personal sacrifice are few and far between. Rumour is that Chan is not naturally inclined to be able to handle the Ottawa/Vancouver commute week in, week out.
This then leaves the option of running to become Mayor.
Do I think that Chan has a hope in hell of giving Robertson any kind of challenge? Absolutely not.
But here are the calculations that some the NPA brain-trust are making in their pursuit of Chan.
The most interesting aspect of the polling that came out months ago from Stratcom communications was not Vision Vancouver’s success so much as it was the NPA’s ability to maintain 30 per cent popularity.
This is quite astounding when you consider that the electeds like Suzanne Anton and Ian Robertson have been such disappointments when it comes to carrying the party banner rather than their own personal agendas forward.
Meaning that, while Chan would most likely be headed for defeat, he might have enough name recognition and appeal to Chinese and mainstream voters to carry three to four Council candidates across the finish line successfully.
For the NPA, the key leadership who have any understanding of potential political outcomes are contemplating this scenario as the best possible outcome (and no, that does not refer to the merry band of 6 who showed up the other night to the NPA special meeting advocating for a name change).
Regardless of whether it is Tung Chan or some other individual, my sources tell me that the Mayor’s race is a non-starter for the association, and that at this point, they are simply looking for an anchor that will give them back a foothold on Council. The desire to create hell for Robertson between 2011-2015 with a non-majority on Council (4 Vision, 4 NPA, 2 COPE, and Gregor) is a very attractive scenario to some.
The NPA, however, is a far way off of putting together the pieces to make this viable. First, they need a group of Council candidates that are a lot more dynamic, engaging and known than the group they ended up with the last time around.
Secondly, they absolutely need to get away from the non-partisan BS and begin to craft policies that all candidates can not only adhere to, but actually sell to the public.
And lastly, they must find an individual with enough name recognition to give them a shot at beating some of Robertson’s group of incumbents, all the while knowing that that individual’s aspirations for Mayor must always be kept in check by reality. In essence, they need to have someone of profile lend the party their name, while at the same time being prepared to lose from the moment they declare their candidacy.
There are going to be some very tough days ahead for the eternal optimists that are tasked with turning around this political Titanic.
Meanwhile, Tung Chan can sit back and revel in being Vancouver’s hottest political free agent.
