Evidence before
opinions.

What has been updated

Initial regional nomination review: September 13, 2026. Later race-specific checks appear below. Kelowna’s current City directory includes 3 mayoral, 37 council and 6 school-trustee candidates, including Val Johnson. Previously announced candidates now listed by the City have been updated.

Community pages now separate municipal, ward, electoral-area director, water councillor and school trustee races. West Kelowna, Penticton and Vernon now also have council and trustee choices, swipe shortlists, issue browsing, comparisons, Candidate Match and reader endorsements. Detailed biographies, disclosures and individual voting records are still being researched outside the Kelowna guide. Match percentages require at least three reviewed comparable positions; unknown evidence remains unscored.

254 newly reviewed public statements have been added. Each statement shows its original publication date or an explicit undated label, its review date and the original source. Earlier Kelowna platform and record research remains dated September 8, 2026; the September 28, 2026 nomination refresh does not re-date it.

Daily research and dated updates

The September 15 deeper review searched all 306 distinct candidate names across 315 listed profiles. It added 22 sourced statements, links to 29 externally published questionnaires and 22 Osoyoos candidate statements in the Town’s voter guide. Researchers visited 41 known Facebook accounts and reviewed the public feeds that loaded.

This was a discovery and source-review pass, not a complete history of every social account. Some services blocked reads, and older posts and video transcripts remain incomplete. Only statements checked in context are summarized here; finding an account or a search result does not establish a policy position.

Research checks are scheduled daily at 7 a.m. Pacific. The task checks official nominations, withdrawals, ballot and acclamation declarations, voting information and each candidate’s verified public campaign sources. Verified changes can then be published to this guide.

This is scheduled research with source review. It is not a live feed or a promise that every page has been re-read at the same moment. Inaccessible sources and unresolved claims remain gaps. A run with no verified changes does not invent an update.

Who is included

Nomination declarations and election officer lists establish a candidate’s listed race. They do not guarantee a final ballot or election by acclamation. Kelowna officially declared its candidates on September 18, 2026; other communities publish final declarations on their own schedules. Always consult your election office.

Candidate order is randomized for each visit. Comparisons stay within one local race. School district electoral areas can combine several communities; water councillor voting has separate eligibility. The guide does not decide your eligibility.

School trustee lists have been refreshed from the current district sources; final declarations can still change them. The September 21 final RDOS declaration lists Cheryl Halla and Henry Sielmann for Area I director. Chris Burrows appeared in the earlier September 14 nomination declaration but is absent from the final list; no reason is inferred. Final declaration checked September 28, 2026. See official district sources and pending coverage.

Evidence coverage by race

Counts show candidates with at least one source-linked record in each field of this guide. They are not completeness scores or candidate ratings. A nomination listing does not establish a background, policy position or individual vote.

“Not mapped” means this guide has no structured evidence in that field. It does not mean the candidate has no experience or views, declined a questionnaire, or has never held office. Regional biographies, individual records and questionnaire links still need field-level mapping; externally hosted questionnaires may already be linked on profiles.

Background counts use sourced experience entries. Policy counts use sourced policy entries or reviewed regional statements. Questionnaire counts cover published OK, Let’s Vote responses. Individual records include sourced recorded actions, with attendance, recusal and inference qualifications retained on the profile. These counts do not establish current candidacy or re-date historical evidence. Shared trustee races appear in each covered community; do not add these counts to estimate unique people.

What each source can establish

Official minutes and recorded divisions establish an individual voting record, with the exact motion, date and supported, opposed, absent or recused distinction. Holding office, a council press release or a photograph does not establish an individual vote.

Campaign websites, consented candidate questionnaires and verified public social statements establish attributed positions. Campaign claims about outcomes are not independently audited achievements. News reporting adds labelled context. Employment and public disclosures can establish business interests; they do not establish net worth, a conflict in every decision or a hidden motive.

Public social statements

We first verify that the account belongs to the candidate using an official election directory, campaign website or another reliable identity source. We read the complete statement or thread and relevant context, link to the original and distinguish current campaign material from older positions.

Likes, follows, reposts, silence and associations do not establish endorsement or opposition. We do not infer a political label from them. A social statement is not automatically added to Candidate Match scoring. If a position changes, dated earlier and later statements remain distinguishable.

Private accounts, access barriers, deleted posts without reliable context and unresolved identity matches remain research gaps. We do not publish speculation or claim a complete social history.

Corrections and candidate submissions

Include the candidate’s name, community, exact claim and original dated source. Information is privately reviewed before publication. Candidate-submitted questionnaire answers are attributed and published only with appropriate consent and identity verification. Questionnaire invitations have begun; an unanswered questionnaire is not a negative finding.

Reproduce a Candidate Match calculation

Calculation version 1.1 · September 19, 2026. This dates the specification, not a fresh review of every candidate’s evidence. Candidate Match compares specific answers; it is not a recommendation, prediction or measure of candidate quality.

How corrections and concerns are reviewed

Reports go to private review, not directly onto the website. A form confirmation means the report was submitted; it is not an editorial decision. We do not promise an automatic email acknowledgement or a fixed response time. Include a reply address if you want us to be able to contact you.

Incorrect voting dates, locations or eligibility guidance, mistaken candidate identity, and exposed private information receive priority. Identify the affected page and the problem clearly. For an immediate voting question, contact the relevant election office rather than waiting for this guide.

Factual corrections are checked against original sources. Conflicting evidence stays labelled or pending; a candidate’s claim is not automatically treated as an established fact. Privacy, removal and accessibility concerns do not require a public source link.

If you disagree with a review outcome, email Tom Macauley at tom@gainstreetstrategy.com with the page, the earlier decision if available, and what should be reconsidered. New evidence can reopen a review. This is publisher reconsideration, not an independent appeals body.

Material correction record

This record began September 18, 2026. It lists selected verified corrections, not every content update or a complete earlier history. Private reports, contact details and reviewer correspondence are excluded.

• September 18, 2026 — Osoyoos voting context. Removed Oliver-specific school trustee wording from the Osoyoos guide. The guide identifies SD53 Osoyoos / Area A. Corrected guide.
• September 18, 2026 — Rural trustee coverage. Added the shared SD22 trustee races for RDNO Areas B/C and D/E and SD83 Area 2 for Area F, so the director race is not presented as the only applicable race. Area B guide, Area D guide, Area F guide.
• September 18, 2026 — Event timing display. Fixed initial page output that could show a past event as upcoming until the browser updated it. Past events remain available through the calendar filter. Event calendar.