Mr. Chandler has pushed his internet campaign machine into high-gear by adding hundreds of his Facebook friends to a new group of supposed former Wildrose Party members. The attacks are centred around the disqualification of federal Libertarian Party leader Dennis Young as a candidate for the Wildrose nomination in Calgary-Hays. The following media release was posted on the wall of the Facebook group:
Dennis Young To File Injunction & Suing For Damages
Removed Calgary Hays Soldier Starts Group
Many Frustrated Members & X-Members Involved
(Calgary) After submitting his signatures, memberships, nomination fee, signing up hundreds of memberships, demon dialing the constituency, dropping two separate pieces of literature to every residence, door knocking 25% of the entire area and with a six month delay, retired soldier and successful business owner, Dennis Young has been terminated as a candidate by the Wildrose Party.
“I am devestated by this and I feel really taken advantage of. On October 3rd, I discovered via a letter by the Executive Director of the party, Shane Saskiw, I was disqualified from the nomination race in Calgary-Hays. In that letter there was no reason for the disqualification mentioned. Also, I was not advised that my candidacy for the nomination was in question, nor was I given an opportunity to defend myself personally against whatever accusations may have been brought against me. Further, I had my interview with the Local Candidate Nominating Committee roughly six months ago, submitted my paperwork and my nomination fee. If I was going to be disqualified, I would have expected to be informed of it at that time.” stated Dennis Young. Read the rest of this extraordinary long media release.
If you are not familiar with Mr. Chandler, please refer to the comments he made in this media interview, which contributed to him being disqualified as the Progressive Conservative candidate in Calgary-Egmont in 2007. Mr. Chandler later managed Mark Dyrholm‘s unsuccessful leadership campaign against Ms. Smith in 2009. Near the end of that campaign, Mr. Chandler accused the media of holding a bias in favour of Ms. Smith.
Here are some of the recent additions to the list:
Chestermere-Rockyview – Global Television host Bruce McAllisteris the new Wildrose candidate in this Calgary area constituency. Disappearing from the Wildrose candidate roster is Chestermere Town Councillor Heather Davies, who was nominated as the Wildrose candidate in May 2011.
Drumheller-Stettler: Rick Strankman was nominated as the Wildrose candidate after defeating jeweller Doug Wade in a contested race. A third candidate, past-candidate Dave Francecalled foul against his party after he was disqualified from the nomination at the last minute.
Calgary-Currie: Calgary businessman Norval Horner, a cousin of Deputy Premier Doug Horner, was nominated as the Liberal Party candidate in this constituency, which elected Liberal-turned-Alberta Party MLA Dave Taylor in 2004 and 2008. It is also expected that 2008 Progressive Conservative candidate Arthur Kent may run in this constituency as an Independent candidate.
Calgary-Klein: The Liberal Party nomination scheduled for October 15 was postponed. Candidates seeking the nomination included Vincent St. Pierre and Matthew Moody. Mr. Moody unexpectedly withdrew from the contest at the last minute.
Grande Prairie-Wapiti: Ethane Jarvis is the nominated Wildrose candidate.
Edmonton-Glenora – Former MLA Bruce Miller was nominated as the Liberal Party candidate in this constituency. Liberal insiders say that local restauranteur and artist Sheri Somerville was heavily courted to run, but declined to seek the Liberal nomination. Reverend Miller was first elected in 2004 with 35% of the vote in a close three way contest between himself, high-profile NDP candidate Larry Booi, and PC MLA Drew Hutton, and he was defeated by now-Culture Minister Heather Klimchuk in 2008 by 104 votes.
Edmonton-Strathcona: NDP MLA Rachel Notley was nominated as her party’s candidate at a meeting attended by Vancouver-Kingsway MP Don Davies. Ms. Notley was first elected as the MLA for this constituency in 2008, earning 49% of the vote.
Red Deer-South: On October 25, the NDP are expected to nominate former five-term City Councillor Lorna Watkinson-Zimmer as their candidate.
The summer months are here and while the Progressive Conservatives and Liberals are preoccupied with choosing new leaders, the Wildrose Alliance are focusing on nominating a swath of candidates across the province. Here are some updates to the list of candidate nominations happening across Alberta:
Travis Olson, Wildrose Alliance candidate in Athabasca-Sturgeon-Redwater
Athabasca-Sturgeon-Redwater: Travis Olsonwas nominated as the Wildrose candidate on June 3, defeating Smoky Lake County Councillor Lori Danyluk, Thorhild social worker Lauri Genert and Sturgeon County Mayor Don Rigney in a mail-in ballot nomination contest. Athabasca-Redwater PC MLA Jeff Johnson has been nominated as his party’s candidate.
Calgary-Bow: Tim Dyck and John Hilton-O’Brien are vying for the Wildrose Alliance nomination. Mr. Hilton-O’Brien was the Alberta Alliance candidate in Grande Prairie-Wapiti in the 2004 election. PC MLA Alana DeLong has been nominated as her party’s candidate.
Calgary-Currie: Carrie Adolph was nominated as the Wildrose Alliance candidate defeating Sonja Chycoski. Ms. Adolph will face Alberta Party MLA Dave Taylor, who has represented this constituency since 2004.
Calgary Fort: The Wildrose Alliance is now without a candidate after Bob McInniswithdrew his candidacy for personal and professional reasons.
Calgary-Hays: Former Wildrose Alliance nomination candidate Wendi Moore appears to have withdrawn from the contest and is now supporting real estate agent Gene Sarmaga, who is facing Libertarian Party of Canada leader Dennis Young.
Former separatist leader Cory Morgan is a Wildrose Alliance nomination candidate in Calgary-Klein.
Calgary-Klein: Recent Aldermanic candidate Jeremy Nixon and former Alberta separatist leader Cory Morgan are seeking the Wildrose Alliance nomination scheduled for June 29. This will be Mr. Morgan’s fourth attempt at provincial elected office, having run as a candidate for the Alberta Independence Party in Banff-Cochrane in 2001, the Separation Party of Alberta in Highwood in 2004, and the Wildrose Alliance in Calgary-Mountain View in 2008.
Calgary-Mackay-Nose Hill: The host of the popular CHQR radio show Calgary TodayMike Blanchard and Roy Alexander are seeking the Wildrose Alliance nomination in this constituency at a June 13 meeting.
Calgary-Northern Hills: Prasad Panda was nominated as the Wildrose Alliance candidate on May 27, 2011. Mr. Panda replaces previously nominated candidate Harpreet Nijjar, who withdrew from the nomination earlier this year. Calgary-Mackay PC MLA Teresa Woo-Paw has been nominated as her party’s candidate.
Cardston-Taber-Warner: This constituency was represented by now-Calgary-Glenmore Wildrose MLA Paul Hinman from 2004 until 2008. Dave Wright and Stirling businessman Doug Cooper are seeking that party’s nomination.
Mike Blanchard, Wildrose Alliance nomination candidate in Calgary-Mackay-Nose Hill
Chestermere-Rockyview: It would appear that Chestermere Town Councillor Heather Davies defeated Said Abdulbaki to become the Wildrose Alliance candidate in that constituency.
Edmonton-Decore: The Wildrose Alliance has nominated lawyer Chris Bataluk as their candidate.
Edmonton-Glenora: Former Alberta Party acting-leader Sue Huff is expected to be acclaimed as her party’s candidate in this constituency. PC MLA Heather Klimchuk has been nominated as her party’s candidate.
Catholic School Trustee Cindy Olsen is considering a run for NDP in Edmonton-Manning, according to unnamed source.
Edmonton-Manning: According to an unnamed source, Edmonton Catholic School District Trustee Cindy Olsen is strongly considering seeking the NDP nomination in this constituency, which is one of five in the province where the NDP candidate placed second in 2008. (UPDATE: Ms. Olsen announced this morning that she will seek the NDP nomination in Edmonton-Manning. See media release and confirmation from Edmonton-Strathcona NDP MLA Rachel Notley in the comments below) Already seeking the nomination is Mike Scott, who was the Edmonton-Sherwood Park NDP candidate in the recent federal election (and is also formerly known as Mike Koala on 100.3 FM The Bear). The NDP has scheduled their nomination meeting for June 27.
Edmonton-Whitemud: Rick Newcombe and Ian Crawford are seeking the Wildrose Alliance nomination. Although this will be Mr. Crawford’s first time seeking a Wildrose nomination, he has run unsuccessfully for City Council numerous times since 1992, for the Reform Party nomination in Edmonton-Strathcona in 1993, for the PC nominations in Edmonton-Rutherford and Edmonton-Ellerslie in 1993, for the Canadian Alliance in Edmonton-Southeast nomination in 2000, and for the PC nomination in Edmonton-Meadowlark in 2007 against Raj Sherman and Debbie Cavaliere. PC MLA Dave Hancock has been nominated as his party’s candidate.
Innisfail-Sylvan Lake: Developer Rod English and real estate broker Kerry Towle are seeking the Wildrose Alliance nomination, which is scheduled to happen on June 16.
The Rimbey Review reports that Joe Anglin is seeking the Wildrose Alliance nomination in Rocky Mountain House-Sundre
Rocky Mountain House-Sundre: The Rimbey Review is reporting that Rocky Mountain House Town Councillor Sheila Mizera and Rimbey Town Councillor Joe Anglinare seeking the Wildrose Alliance nomination. Mr. Anglin is well-known as a vocal advocate for landowners rights and earned 23% of the vote as the 2008 Green Party candidate in Lacombe-Ponoka. He served briefly as the Leader of the Alberta Green Party until it was dissolved in 2009.
UPDATE: I have received an email from Mr. Anglin in in regards to the news he is seeking the Wildrose Alliance nomination: “I have been fishing in the Yukon for the last two weeks. Just returned today. This is news to me. I have not made any such announcement.”
Whitecourt-Ste. Anne: Whitecourt Town Councillor Maryann Chichakwas announced as her party’s candidate on May 20. PC MLA George VanderBurg has been nominated as his party’s candidate.
Am I missing anyone? Post a comment below or send me an email at david.cournoyer@gmail.com.
A reality check from the Cosh. Colby Cosh has delivered a cynical and un-sensationalist reality check for Albertans getting starry eyed or swept up in a whirlwind of political change. While Alberta’s political landscape may be more unstable than it has been in years, and it is exciting to be part of new emerging parties and movements, it is important to step back and keeping some perspective is key.
Cabinet resignations.
With cabinet ministers expected to resign in order to seek the PC Party leadership, Albertans could witness a series of cabinet shuffles over the coming months. The resignation of Finance Minister Ted Morton and potential resignations of Deputy Premier Doug Horner, Justice Minister Allison Redford, and Housing Minister Jonathan Deniscould put a number of Parliamentary Assistants and backbench MLAs in cabinet positions. I would not be surprised if Greg Weadick, Janice Sarich, Diana McQueen, or Manmeet Bhullar had cabinet experience by the end of 2011.
American scientist resigns from Alberta Water panel. Only days after the new panel to create a new provincial environmental monitoring system was appointed, prominent University of California-Irvine professor Helen Ingram has quit the panel.
According to the Edmonton Journal, Dr. Ingram resigned ‘citing concerns about a lack of scientific and First Nations representation on the panel, and what she saw as an overzealous draft confidentially agreement.’ The panel includes a number of credible scientists and is co-chaired by former TransCanada CEO Hal Kvisle, who has leveled strong criticism against environmental groups.
Budget on February 24.
Premier Ed Stelmach told an audience during speech to the Calgary Chamber of Commerce yesterday that the 2011 provincial budget will be tabled on February 24. The Assembly is scheduled to begin spring session on January 22 with the Speech from the Throne.
PC campaign manager exits.
Not surprisingly, the departure of Premier Ed Stelmach has also led to the departure of PC campaign manager Randy Dawson, who managed the party’s 2008 campaign and had been reappointed to manage their next election campaign.
Hinton Mayor Glenn Taylor expected to run for the Alberta Party leadership.
Taylor versus Taylor? Hinton Mayor Glenn Taylor is expected to launch his campaign for the Alberta Party leadership on February 8 in Edmonton. Mr. Taylor was elected to his third-term as Mayor of Hinton in October 2010. It will be a battle of the Taylor’s if Alberta Party MLA Dave Taylor enters the leadership contest, as some political watchers expect him to.
An awkward place.
What an awkward place the Official Opposition caucus must be this week. Laurie Blakeman is reportedly weighing her options to seeking the leadership of the Alberta Party or the Liberal Party. This news comes the same week as leader David Swann announced his resignation. Ms. Blakeman’s colleague Edmonton-Gold Bar MLA Hugh MacDonald is said to have ambitions for his party’s leadership.
Paramedic Rick Fraser wants to inject himself into the next election as the PC candidate in Calgary-Hays.
Ms. Sigurdson is the Professional Affairs Coordinator for the Alberta College of Social Workers and previously worked for former NDP leader Ray Martin when he was the MLA for Edmonton-Norwood. That constituency has been represented by Liberal MLA Kevin Taft since 2001, who was re-elected in 2008 with 50% of the vote. Dr. Taft is not be seeking re-election. The Wildrose Alliance has nominated John Corie as their candidate.
Calgary Paramedic Rick Fraser is seeking the PC nomination in Calgary-Hays. The constituency is currently represented by PC MLA Art Johnston, who was first elected in 2004 and re-elected in 2008 with 54% of the vote. Former Libertarian Party of Canada leader Dennis Young is seeking the Wildrose Alliance nomination in that constituency.
After a week-long break, MLAs returned to the Assembly for a week that started with three-sided tailing ponds and ended with an emergency debate on health care.
Edmonton-Meadowlark MLA Raj Sherman at 2010 Premier's Pancake Breakfast.
Emergency Debate on Health Care Edmonton-Meadowlark PC MLA and parliamentary assistant for Health & WellnessRaj Sherman got the attention he was looking for when he wrote a blunt email to the Premier, and several MLAs, cabinet ministers, and medical colleagues. The letter continued a month long media firestorm on the state of emergency room wait times in Alberta.
As Question Period ended yesterday, Edmonton-Centre MLA Laurie Blakeman succeeded in her bid to hold an emergency debate, which lasted for just over an hour and showcased some of the most passionate debate I have seen in the Assembly this year. This was the second attempt by the opposition during this session to initiate an emergency debate on this topic. A motion to extend the debate during the afternoon was defeated when a number of PC MLAs who did not want to extend their four day week on the Assembly floor (Ron Liepert, Jeff Johnson, and Barry McFarlandas tweeted by Liberal caucus Chief of Staff Rick Miller). UPDATE: Mr. Miller has commented below that his tweet was naming the three PC MLAs for not standing in support of the initial vote to have an emergency debate, not to vote against extending the debate past 4:30pm.
MLA Laurie Blakeman initiated the emergency debate.
For Dr. Sherman, the big question is what does his political future hold? After embarrassing the Premier and his caucus on this sensitive file, it is questionable how much longer his colleagues will tolerate an independence streak. With three former PC MLAs having crossed to the Wildrose Alliance in the past year, the Tories need to balance maintaining caucus unity without being too disciplinary with their more independent-minded MLAs. This is a balancing act that has proved difficult in the 68 MLA PC caucus.
Liberal Party AGM
The Liberal Party is holding its annual general meeting on November 27 and will elect three of its executive committee members, President, Vice-President (Policy), and Secretary. Edmonton Regional Director Erick Ambtman has declared his intentions to run for President. Current President, Debbie Cavaliere, was appointed on an interim basis after former President Tony Sansottaresigned in July. Ms. Cavaliere will be seeking election as VP (Policy) and current Secretary Nancy Cavanaugh will be seeking re-election for her position.
New NDP Communications Guy Richard Liebrecht started his new job as the Communications Director for the NDP Caucus this week. Mr. Liebrecht is a former reporter for the Edmonton Sun and editor at the Hinton Parklander. Mr. Liebrecht replaces another former Sun reporter Brookes Merritt, who recently left the NDP Caucus for a job at the Public Affairs Bureau.
The former Libertarian leader wants to carry the Wildrose flag in Calgary-Hays.
Distracted drivers
Alberta has a new distracted driving law that will prohibit the use of hand-held cell phones while driving.
Alberta Party (new) media coverage
If you missed the coverage of last weekend’s Alberta Party policy conference, there is no shortage of online news stories and blog posts. Here is a run-down from media and participants of the policy convention and recent Big Listens.
