Alison Karim-McSwiney announced today that she is seeking the Alberta NDP nomination in Calgary-East.
Karim-McSwiney has worked as the Executive Director of the International Avenue Business Revitalization Zone since 1998 and is a well-known community advocate in east Calgary.
“It is such an honour to serve the businesses and people in this community and east Calgary,” Karim-McSwiney said in a press release. “My goal is to continue to apply the same passion and energy to advocating and fighting for east Calgary that I’ve shown throughout my career.”
She was a founding member of Global Fest and the International Avenue Mural Society.
Back in 2016, Karim-McSwiney spoke in support of the previous NDP government’s Act to End Predatory Lending.
“This is ground-breaking legislation. It ensures vulnerable borrowers are protected, particularly now when budgets are tight,” Karim-McSwiney said in a 2016 government press release. “These changes will positively impact our community’s revitalization efforts, and help attract new businesses to our neighbourhood.”
Calgary-East has been represented by United Conservative Party MLA Peter Singh since 2019. Singh was elected with 49.7 per cent of the vote over New Democrat Cesar Cala, who finished second with 32.1 per cent.
Singh is the past president of the Fiji Canada Association of Calgary and also ran for the Progressive Conservative nomination in Calgary-Fort ahead of the 2015 election.
Singh faced allegations of bribery and fraud from the four other candidates he defeated in the UCP nomination contest and, days before the 2019 election, his auto-repair shop was searched by the RCMP in connection with the investigation into allegations of voter fraud during the UCP’s 2017 leadership campaign.
Robyn Luff represented the riding as a New Democrat from 2015 until she was removed from the caucus in 2018 after speaking out about “culture of fear and intimidation.” She sat as an Independent MLA for the remainder of her term and did not run for re-election.
In 2015, Luff unseated six-term PC MLA Moe Amery, who had run in every election in the riding since 1986 (his son, Mickey Amery, was elected as the UCP MLA in the neighbouring Calgary-Cross riding in 2019).
A date for the nomination meeting in Calgary-East has not been set.
The NDP are also holding nomination meetings in:
- Calgary-Currie on Nov. 13: former MLA Brian Malkinson will face past candidate Janet Eremenko.
- Calgary-Buffalo on Nov. 15: two-term MLA Joe Ceci is expected to be acclaimed.
- Lethbridge-East on Nov. 21: four candidates will run for the nomination – former MLA Maria Fitzpatrick, local non-profit executive director Amanda Jensen, teacher Kevin McBeath, and former City Councillor Rob Miyashiro.
The UCP have opened nominations in the Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche by-election, with Joshua Gogo and former Wildrose Party leader Brian Jean entering the contest.