Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts has not committed to running for another term, fuelling speculation that she could be recruited by Prime Minister Stephen Harper as a star federal candidate in the 2015 federal election.

And a local seat has conveniently opened up for Watts due to the recent announcement by low-profile MP Russ Hiebert that he will vacate the South Surrey-White Rock-Cloverdale riding.

Watts would not confirm nor deny she would seek the federal nomination, insisting she is “committed to Surrey and that is my focus now.”

But several signs suggest she is considering a move to Ottawa, with at least one of her councillors jockeying for the mayor’s seat and Steve Casson, former campaign chairman for Surrey First Electors Society, joining the Conservatives’ federal riding executive in South Surrey-White Rock.

Watts, first elected mayor in 2005, has also stated that she would only serve three terms — or nine years — as mayor. She confirmed that this week, but was coy on her future intentions.

“If I decide to do something differently you will be the first to know,” she said.

Watts can afford to wait on a final decision because the Surrey First party is entirely under her control, according to the party rules. And she is so wildly popular that nobody would likely beat her even if she waited until the last minute — she has until 36 days before the Nov. 14 civic elections — to announce she is running for mayor again.

A recent poll, for instance, suggests Watts has a 73-per-cent approval rating in her city, while in 2010 she was named one of the world’s best mayors for her aggressive steps to modernize Surrey. She was also once tipped as a potential candidate to replace former Liberal premier Gordon Campbell.

“I would presume she’s being courted by more than one party making inroads to get high-profile interest like that,” said Patrick Smith, a political-science professor at Simon Fraser University. “The fact she’s not ruling it out though means she is in.

“She could wait and still be courted but the question that will be asked is, ‘If you are elected mayor, will you serve your term?’ It’d be hard to imagine her not getting elected wherever she ran in Surrey but there’s a bunch of things that would kind of hang in the balance.”

Hiebert’s departure after 10 years opens the door for Surrey to have a heavier hitter in federal Parliament, though only if Harper reverses polling trends for most of the past 12 months, which have vaulted Liberal leader Justin Trudeau into the lead.

If Watts were to win a seat federally, it could potentially give her even more influence in her fight for scarce federal funding dollars for Surrey’s light rail project. But Smith notes she could be hindered in her efforts if she was relegated to the backbenches rather than given a cabinet seat.

Watts, a champion of light rail for Surrey, has appealed directly to the federal government for $1.8 billion in funding to build three light rail lines, prompting Vancouver to make a similar plea for a subway line along the Broadway corridor.