Four Filipino-Canadians win council and school board seats in B.C. local elections

Four Filipino-Canadian candidates won seats in British Columbia's 17 October 2026 local elections, according to preliminary results reported by the Philippine Canadian Inquirer: Maita Santiago on Burnaby City Council, and Dr. Michelle Ceniza, Stephen Andrada and Rod Belleza on the Surrey, Burnaby and Richmond school boards.

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Four Filipino-Canadian candidates won seats in British Columbia's 17 October 2026 municipal elections, the Philippine Canadian Inquirer reported on 20 October, based on preliminary results. Three will serve as school trustees in Surrey, Burnaby and Richmond, and Maita Santiago returns to Burnaby City Council for a second term.

In Burnaby, Santiago, who represents the Burnaby Citizens Association and was first elected to council in 2022, received 16,292 votes in the City of Burnaby's preliminary results. The Inquirer reported that she finished fourth among eight winning council candidates. Stephen Andrada, also with the Burnaby Citizens Association, won a seat on the Burnaby Board of Education with 19,624 votes, placing sixth among seven successful trustee candidates, according to the Inquirer. The Inquirer describes Andrada as a Burnaby resident of 14 years who has worked in newcomer settlement, employment services and community development.

In Surrey, family physician Dr. Michelle Ceniza won a seat on the Surrey Board of Education with 34,203 votes, running with SURREY NOW. The Surrey Now-Leader reported that Ceniza was the only SURREY NOW candidate elected and took the final Surrey trustee seat by 1,532 votes over Gary Tymoschuk.

In Richmond, Rod Belleza of Advance Richmond won a seat on the Richmond Board of Education with 17,762 votes, third among the seven trustees elected, according to the City of Richmond's unofficial results. The Inquirer says Belleza was a lawyer in the Philippines before immigrating to Canada in 1980 and has previously served multiple terms on the school board.

The vote totals are preliminary. The City of Burnaby said the declaration of official results would be available by 4 pm on 21 October 2026. Once confirmed, the elected officials will serve the 2026-2030 term, the Inquirer reported.