MLA Tany Yao loses UCP nomination to Zulkifl Mujahid in Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo

Zulkifl Mujahid defeated MLA Tany Yao and Fort McMurray Construction Association CEO Keith Plowman in the United Conservative Party nomination vote in Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo. Mujahid works at City Auto Repair in Fort McMurray.

Tany Yao, UCP MLA for Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo, has lost his nomination. Zulkifl Mujahid will represent the UCP in the riding in 2023 general election.

— Vincent McDermott (@vincemcdermott) December 5, 2022

Yao was first elected to represent the riding in 2015 as a Wildrose Party candidate and was re-elected in 2019 under the UCP banner. A former paramedic, he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Rural Health on October 24, 2022.

Yao has the dubious distinction of being one of six UCP MLAs caught in December 2020 and January 2021 travelling on a hot holidays (he was in in Mexico), while the Alberta government was advising Albertans to stay home to avoid the spread of COVID-19.

In 2020, Yao introduced a private members bill to allow private-f0r-profit plasma clinics to operate in Alberta. He accused critics of his bill of wanting to harvest organs from people without consent.

Yao is the second MLA and first UCP MLA to lose a nomination vote in this election cycle. NDP MLA Chris Nielsen lost his nomination to Sharif Haji in Edmonton-Decore in June 2022.

With six months left until the next election, the Alberta NDP have nominated candidates in 67 of Alberta’s 87 ridings. The UCP have candidates named in 46 ridings and the Green Party has 23 candidates. The Alberta Party has nominated 3 candidates and the Liberal Party has one.

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