A left-wing icon who served on park board, city council, and for 18 years in Parliament, her greatest legacy may have been in convincing the public and other politicians to look upon illicit-drug addiction as a health issue and to take the housing crisis seriously. This set the stage for a legal supervised-injection facility and a host of other measures. Davies also amplified the voices of marginalized people in her riding, be they sex workers, homeless people, or family members of missing and murdered women.

Kerry Jang becomes fifth Vision Vancouver politician to announce he won't seek re-election in 2018 Gregor Robertson won't seek fourth term as mayor of Vancouver NPA issues open call for mayoral candidates in advance of October election Outgoing Vancouver East MP Libby Davies cautions social justice victories cannot be taken for granted NDP leader Jagmeet Singh stops short of support for drug legalization despite more overdose deaths Libby Davies, a former Member of Parliament who represented Vancouver East from 1997 to 2015, and Don Davies (no relation), the current MP for Vancouver Kingsway, both recently told the Globe and Mail’s Frances Bula that a move to civic politics is something they are thinking about. “People are hurting from struggling to live in the city,” Libby told the Globe for an article published yesterday (February 12). “Whoever runs, there's something big out there, and that person has to connect to people who are feeling lost." The civic election is scheduled for October 2018. Libby served as deputy leader of the NDP from 2007 to 2015 and held a seat on Vancouver city council from 1982 to 1993. She’s well respected for her record on issues that affect low-income earners and marginalized groups such as sex workers and people who struggle with addiction issues.