The Surrey Community Alliance was launched earlier this year with a great deal of fanfare.

It nominated five candidates for council, including high-profile Newton Community Association spokesperson Doug Elford.

But on Friday (August 10), SCA candidates were told at an emergency meeting that Elford has quit as a candidate and as the party president.

Moreover, candidates learned that the campaign was being dissolved due to funding shortfalls.

"We will be supporting/endorsing individuals or other campaigns for council and school board this time around," said former SCA campaign managers Gord Savard and Sharon Goldberg in a news release.

However, one of the SCA council candidates, Imtiaz Popat, has insisted that he and the other SCA candidates are not giving up.

"We are looking at other options to continue our campaign and we are confident we can raise the funds in the coming few weeks to run an effective campaign for city council and school board," he said in a news release today.

The other declared council candidates with his party are former White Rock Muslim Association president Asad Syed, arts and tech advocate Bernie Sheppard, and real-estate agent Saira Ajula.

According to Popat, Elford revealed earlier that former mayor Doug McCallum had invited him to join a slate.

Popat indicated that other SCA candidates have also been approached.

He claimed that they've refused "to jump ship because we understand that some of the issues were we are raising such [as] gang violence and homelessness were ignored by Doug McCallum when he was mayor".

McCallum, a former three-term mayor, is challenging Surrey First councillor Tom Gill and former Surrey First councillor Bruce Hayne in the mayoral race.

Former Surrey First councillor Barbara Steele is running as an independent for council in support of Hayne.

Proudly Surrey is running three candidates for council: Felix Konguy, Stuart Parker, and Adam MacGillivray.

Environmentalist Roslyn Cassells, People First Surrey's Kuldip Pelia and Thampy Rajan, and Surrey First incumbents Mike Starchuk, Dave Woods, and Vera LeFranc are also seeking council seats.