The Green Party of Vancouver wants to know if the city is ready to elect its first Green mayor. Although the ballot is the only poll that matters, Greens are interested in getting a feel of the public pulse ahead of the 2018 municipal election.

Green councillor Adriane Carr confirms that her party is “definitely open to the possibility of running a mayor”.

“But we would not proceed with that until we actually do some surveying of some sort, some kind of polling that determines the degree to which the public is willing to support a mayoralty candidate,” Carr told the Straight in a phone interview.

What’s clear to Carr is that the Vision Vancouver party of Mayor Gregor Robertson is no longer a viable brand after ruling the city since 2008.

“The mood of the people is for change,” she said. “I think they’re disappointed, and that’s an understatement. But they’re disappointed in the fact that Vision hasn’t come through on their big promises, specifically to end homelessness and to do something about affordable housing.”

In another interview, pollster Barb Justason was asked about the odds of the Greens successfully running a mayoral candidate. According to the principal of Justason Market Intelligence Inc., it depends on whether or not they can field a “good name”.

“They have to consider carefully whether their most high-profile candidate, which would be Adriane Carr, you know, is she willing to risk her seat to pursue that job or does she want to remain as councillor?” Justason said by phone.

In the 2014 election, Carr got the highest number of votes cast for councillor. Three of the six other Green candidates that year won seats on the park board and school board.

Although the Greens didn’t capture the one council seat that came up for grabs in the October 14 by-election this year, their three candidates for school board took the top three spots.

As for Vision mayor Robertson, Justason said: “Certainly, for a lot of the electorate at this stage, he’s overstayed his welcome.”