The Green Party of Vancouver isn’t fielding a candidate for mayor.

It’s not going to endorse anyone for mayor either.

The reason for not supporting a mayoral candidate is simple, according to Pete Fry of the Greens.

“That’s mostly in the spirit of working with whoever does get elected for mayor,” Fry told the Georgia Straight in a phone interview Tuesday (August 21).

Fry is one of four Green candidates for city council in this year’s October 20 civic election.

Fry noted that his party is amenable to talking with anyone who is running for mayor.

So far, according to Fry, the Greens have met with independent mayoral candidates Kennedy Stewart and Shauna Sylvester.

Fry said that both Stewart and Sylvester have sought a meeting with the Greens.

Another mayoral candidate, Ken Sim, of the Non-Partisan Association also wants to sit down with Fry’s party.

“We’ll have to be working with whoever does get elected mayor, so we’re open to having conversations with them,” Fry said.

As far as Fry knows, Vision Vancouver mayoral candidate Ian Campbell has not touched base with the Greens.

As far as Stewart is concerned about getting endorsed for mayor by any or all of the so-called progressive parties, it doesn’t look like that's a top priority.

“At this point, I’m just seeking to work with parties any way I can,” Stewart told the Straight by phone.

Stewart said that parties such as the Greens, OneCity, and the Coalition of Progressive Electors (COPE) have their own internal processes, and he’ll leave it up to them.

“I guess they’ll decide what they want to do,” Stewart said.

COPE members met on August 19, and they made no endorsement for mayor.

Asked about Stewart, COPE co-chair Rider Cooey noted that the candidate didn’t ask for any endorsement.

Besides, according to Cooey, no one was eager at the meeting to endorse Stewart, whose resignation as Burnaby South MP takes effect on September 14.

“There was virtually no enthusiasm or even statement, enthusiastic or not, for an endorsement of Kennedy Stewart in the meeting. Nobody said anything about that,” Cooey told the Straight in a phone interview.

Cooey noted that it is possible that COPE may endorse some of the policies that may be laid out by Stewart.

However, “at this point, endorsing himself is not at all a possibility”, Cooey said.

Last July, Stewart secured the support of the influential Vancouver and District Labour Council.

But that VDLC backing isn’t enough to win Stewart a COPE endorsement.

“I need a better reason than that,” Cooey said laughing. “I think the rest of the members do as well.”