Premier Danielle Smith at the United Conservative Party's leader's dinner in Edmonton (source: Danielle Smith / Facebook)
A special weekend episode of the Daveberta Podcast
It’s rare that I send out a newsletter on the weekend but I thought subscribers would enjoy listening to a new episode of the Daveberta Podcast we recorded this week.
We cover a lot of ground in this episode of the Daveberta Podcast, including:
Premier Danielle Smith’s recent packed leader’s dinner fundraisers in Calgary, Edmonton, Red Deer and Bonnyville.
how the Alberta NDP leadership candidates are leaning into digital advertising on the Meta platform and what this might say about their campaigns.
how federal boundary changes are impacting the electoral map in south east Edmonton (I’m calling it the Mill Woods Shuffle) and former Progressive Conservative MLA Naresh Bhardwaj’s campaign for the Conservative nomination in the new Edmonton-Southeast riding (I’ve updated the list).
how electoral boundary commissions work in Alberta (one of my favourite topics).
Edmonton City Councillor Ben Henderson is running for the Liberal Party in Edmonton-Mill Woods
City Councillor Ben Henderson has been acclaimed as the Liberal Party candidate in Edmonton-Mill Woods.
This nomination notice was posted on the Liberal Party of Canada website this evening.
Henderson currently serves as Councillor for Ward 8 and was first elected to City Council in 2007.
“Edmonton Mill Woods deserves strong and effective representation in government, that is why I’m thrilled and honoured to run for the job of serving the community of Mill Woods and the Meadows in Parliament, “ Henderson said in a press statement released on August 10.
“The results of this upcoming coming election are critical to ensuring we recover successfully from COVID-19 and make progress in building a truly prosperous community for ourselves and future generations,” Henderson said.
Before his election to council, Henderson was a Mediator and Negotiator, and before that was a theatre director, working as founding Artistic Director of Nexus Theatre and the Artistic Director of Theatre Network.
Henderson’s municipal ward does not overlap with the south east Edmonton federal riding, which is likely a recognition by the Liberals that their chances of unseating New Democratic Party MP Heather McPherson in Edmonton-Strathcona, which includes all of Henderson’s Ward 8, are slim to none.
Recruiting a four-term city councillor to run in the federal election is a coup for the federal Liberals in Edmonton. Henderson will bring many years of campaign experience and, likely, a dedicated team and resources to his campaign.
Nathalie Batres, who works as Mayor Don Iveson‘s Senior Media and Communications Advisor, is listed as the media contact in Henderson’s press release.
Tim Uppal
Henderson’s candidacy will also likely mean that Conservative Party MP Tim Uppal will be forced to spend more time campaigning inside his riding than if he faced a lesser known Liberal candidate.
Edmonton-Mill Woods was represented by Liberal MP and former city Councillor Amarjeet Sohi from 2015 until his defeat to Uppal in 2019. Sohi is now running for Mayor of Edmonton.
The area was previously represented by Conservative MP Mike Lake from 2006 to 2015 (Lake now represents the neighbouring Edmonton-Wetaskiwin) and Progressive Conservative-turned-Liberal MP David Kilgour from 1979 to 2006.
Also nominated by the Liberal Party today is Shahnaz Jabeen in Calgary-Rocky Ridge.
The non-Conservative parties are slowly starting the process of nominating candidates in Alberta ahead of the next federal election.
Blake Desjarlais is seeking the New Democratic Party nomination in Edmonton-Griesbach. Desjarlais is the Director of Public Affairs & National Operations for the Métis Settlements General Council and was the co-chairperson of the Alberta government’s Indigenous Climate Leadership Summits in 2017 and 2018. The nomination meeting is scheduled for March 18.
David Gamble is seeking the Liberal Party nomination in Calgary-Confederation. Gamble was the provincial Liberal candidate in Calgary-Klein in the 2015 election and previously served as Executive Vice-President of the Alberta Liberal Party.
Government audit manager Tunde Obasan is challenging former federal Conservative leadership candidate Rick Petersen for the Conservative nomination in Edmonton-Strathcona. Obsan was the United Conservative Party candidate in Edmonton-South in the 2019 election where he was defeated by NDP MLA Thomas Dang.
The Conservatives are continuing to acclaim their incumbents in Alberta. As of today, I am not aware of any Conservative MPs in Alberta being challenged for their party nomination ahead of the next election.
Here is the list of the most recently acclaimed Conservatives in Alberta:
Calgary-Confederation – Len Webber has served as the Conservative MP for this district since 2015. He previously served as the Progressive Conservative and Independent MLA for Calgary-Foothills from 2004 to 2014.
Calgary-Skyview – Jag Sahota has served as the MP for this district since 2019. She was the PC candidate in Calgary-McCall in the 2015 provincial election.
Grande Prairie-Mackenzie – Chris Warkentin has served as an MP in northwest Alberta since 2006.
Fort McMurray-Cold Lake – David Yurdiga has served as an MP since 2014.
Edmonton-Mill Woods – Tim Uppal was first elected as MP for Edmonton-Mill Woods since 2019 and previously served as MP for Edmonton-Sherwood Park from 2008 to 2015.
Edmonton-West – Kelly McCauley has served as MP for this district since 2015.
Edmonton-Wetaskiwin – Mike Lake has served as MP for Edmonton-Wetaskiwin from 2006 to 2015 and MP for Edmonton-Wetaskiwin since 2015.
Medicine Hat — Cardston — Warner – Glen Motz has served as MP for this district since 2016.
See a full list of candidates who have announced their plans to run for federal party nominations in Alberta.
Most Conservative Party Members of Parliament from Alberta, who represent most of the province’s contingent in Ottawa, were acclaimed as their party’s candidates for the next election, with the exception of Mike Lake, who fended off a nomination challenge in Edmonton-Wetaskiwin.
Former Progressive Conservative MLA Moe Amery briefly launched a challenge against Deepak Obhrai for the federal Conservative nomination in Calgary-Forest Lawn but withdrew from the contest months later. Obhrai was then acclaimed.
Non-incumbent Conservatives acclaimed for their nominations include Jagdeep Sahota in Calgary-Skyview, James Cumming in Edmonton-Centre, and Tim Uppal in Edmonton-Mill Woods. Sam Lilly is seeking the Conservative Party nomination in Edmonton-Strathcona.
If Lilly is nominated in Edmonton-Strathcona, then all eleven Conservative Party candidates in Edmonton and the surrounding area will be men.
Liberal Party MP Randy Boissonnault was acclaimed as his party’s candidate in Edmonton-Centre, making him the governing party’s first nominated candidate in Alberta during this election cycle. Liberal MP Kent Hehr is expected to be nominated as his party’s candidate in Calgary-Centre on October 21, 2018 and Edmonton-Mill Woods Liberal MP Amarjeet Sohi has yet to be nominated. Sohi currently serves as Minister of Natural Resources with special responsibilities related to the expansion of the Trans Mountain Pipeline.
Yellowhead: With Conservative MP Jim Eglinski not seeking re-election, five candidates have stepped up to seek the party nomination in Yellowhead, including Christian private school principal Robert Duiker, former Drayton Valley mayor Glenn McLean, Yellowhead County Planning and Subdivision Officer Kelly Jensen, past Wildrose Party candidate Kathy Rondeau, and Yellohwead County Mayor Gerald Soroka. Two other candidates, Ryan Ouderkirk and Carolyne Mackellar, withdrew from the contest.
Conservative Party members in Yellowhead will be voting to select their candidate in Grande Cache, Hinton, Rocky Mountain House, Drayton Valley, Wabamum and Edson between October 11 and 13, 2018.
I expect to soon be tracking federal nominations in Alberta, so stay tuned. If you know any candidates who have announced their intentions to stand for federal party nomination, please send me an email at david.cournoyer@gmail.com. I will add them to the list. Thank you!
Federal Conservative Party leader Andrew Scheer and Calgary-Forest Lawn MP Deepak Obhrai (photo from Facebook)
At least three Conservative Members of Parliament from Alberta are expected to face challenges for their nominations ahead of the expected 2019 federal election (news of two of the nomination challenges was first reported by Ryan Hastman in the latest episode of The Daveberta Podcast).
Amery served as the MLA for Calgary-East from 1993 until he was defeated in the 2015 election by New DemocratRobyn Luff. He ran twice before he was first elected, placing second behind NDP MLA Barry Pashak in 1986 and 1989. Amery defeated Pashak in 1993.
Lake was first elected as the MP for Edmonton-Mill Woods in 2006 and was challenged ahead of the 2015 election by Leduc County Mayor John Whalen and former Edmonton police officer Moe Banga. Banga was disqualified from the nomination and was soon after elected to Edmonton City Council in the Ward 12 by-election called to replace outgoing Councillor Amarjeet Sohi (who was elected as the Liberal MP for Edmonton-Mill Woods).
Francis is on the board of the Leduc-Beaumont United Conservative Party association and was previously involved with the local PC Party Association.
Yellowhead
Jim Eglinski
School principal Robert Duiker is challenging incumbent Jim Eglinski for the Conservative nomination in Yellowhead. Duiker is the principal of Rocky Christian School, an alternative program in the Wild Rose School Division located in Rocky Mountain House. He is the former president of the now-defunct Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre Progressive Conservative Association and is now the president of the UCP association in that district.
Ryan Ouderkirk, who works as an executive assistant to Fort McMurray-Cold Lake MP David Yurdiga, is also challenging Eglinski for the nomination.
Carolyne Mackellar of Edson, a campaign assistant for the Nova Scotia PC Party and a former Emergency Medical Technician in Alberta, is also running for he nomination.
Eglinski is a former RCMP Officer and mayor of Fort St. John, B.C., and was first elected to the House of Commons in a 2014 by-election. Eglinski raised some eyebrows earlier this year when he was featured in a Maclean’s magazine article about his participation in Jasper’s annual Pride Week celebrations.
The Conservative Party quietly opened nominations for the next election early this month and, I am told, also closed sales of new memberships for party nominations shortly afterward.
A federal by-election will be held in Sturgeon River-Parkland in the coming months following the resignation of Conservative Member of Parliament Rona Ambrose. Ambrose served as MP for this riding from 2015 to 2017 and as MP for the now defunct Edmonton-Spruce Grove riding from 2004 to 2015.
A by-election must be called by December 31, 2017.
This is a very safe Conservative riding.
Ambrose earned 43,220 votes in the October 2015 election, compared to 9,586 votes for Liberal Travis Dueck, 6,166 for New Democrat Guy Desforges, 1,875 votes for Green Brendon Greene and 690 for Christian Heritage candidate Ernest Chauvet.
In order to find a competitive race in this riding, you have to go all the way back to a 1986 by-election, when parts of the riding were included in the former Pembina riding. In that year’s by-election, Progressive Conservative Walter Van de Walle narrowly edged out New Democrat and former Edmonton mayor Ivor Dent by 274 votes.
No doubt an indication of their political strength in the riding, the Conservatives appear to be the only party with an active candidate nomination race underway. Here is a look at the candidates, both declared and prospective:
According to her online biography, Conservative Party activist Jamie Mozeson has worked as a political staffer in the offices of a few prominent Conservative politicians, including former Stony Plain MLA Stan Woloshyn, Edmonton MP Mike Lake, Premier Jim Prentice and Prime Minister Stephen Harper. She recently served as Alberta Regional Organizer and Target Seat Manager during the 2015 election.
Vancouver businessman Rick Peterson placed 11th out of 13 candidates in the recent Conservative Party leadership race and is reported to be considering running for the Conservative Party’s nomination in this by-election. According to recent comments posted on Twitter, he is moving to Edmonton this month, presumably to run in the by-election.
Garry Keller does not appear to have officially announced his candidacy, but there was speculation by Ottawa media following Ambrose’s resignation that he might run in the by-election. Keller, who is from Stony Plain, served as Ambrose’s chief of staff and previously served as chief of staff for Minister of Foreign Affairs John Baird. He worked as Legislative Assistant to former area MP John Williams from 1997 to 2006.
Ambrose appointed to blue ribbon NAFTA Panel
It was announced today that Ambrose will be appointed to the Canadian government’s North American Free Trade Agreement advisory panel ahead of renegotiation discussions with the United States and Mexico. Ambrose joins 12 other panelists, including Canadian Labour Congress President Hassan Yussuff, fellow former Conservative MP James Moore, Assembly of First Nations National Chief Perry Bellegarde and Alberta Premier Rachel Notley‘s former Chief of Staff Brian Topp.
Here are a few items to watch out for in Alberta politics this week:
Which of the four Liberal Members of Parliament will be appointed to the federal cabinet on Nov. 4, 2015? Most speculation points toward newly elected Calgary-Centre MP Kent Hehr being given a cabinet spot. Mr. Hehr, along with Calgary-Skyview MP Darshan Kang, were the first federal Liberals to be elected in Calgary since 1968. But will one of the two Liberal MPs from Edmonton – Amarjeet Sohi and Randy Boissonnault – get a cabinet spot? If not, it would mark the first time since before Jim Edwards was appointed as President of the Treasury Board in 1993 that Edmonton has not had representation in the federal cabinet.
Two Conservative MPs from Alberta – Edmonton-Wetaskiwin MP Mike Lake and Sturgeon River-Parkland MP Rona Ambrose – have joined four other Conservative MPs with bids to become the interim leader of the Conservative Party of Canada. That party has only had one permanent leader, Calgary MP Stephen Harper, since the party was formed in 2003 and is expected to choose a new permanent leader next year.
Overshadowing debate about the Alberta NDP’s first provincial budget last week was the Wildrose Party Finance critic Derek Fildebrant‘s war with a Globe & Mail reporter and House leader Nathan Cooper‘s war against a 9:00 a.m. start time for the Legislative sitting. Will the Wildrose Official Opposition be able to move on to actual issues of substance in the second week of the fall session?
It was always expected that uniting the Wildrose and PC parties will be tough. Richard Starke, the PC MLA for Vermilion-Lloydminster, had some choice words for his Wildrose counterparts in the Legislature last week: “…the Official Opposition rather reminds me of the chippy hockey player that hacks and slashes in the corner and then, as soon as something similar happens back to them, goes running to the referee.”
I will be taking a short break from blogging this week. In my absence, check out David Climenhaga‘s informative and entertaining AlbertaPolitics.ca blog.
Known for its vocal anti-abortion position, the Campaign Life Coalition has taken strong positions in recent years against Gay-Straight Alliances in schools (which they describe as “homosexual-activist clubs“) and against Ontario’s new health and physical education curriculum (which they describe as ‘radical sex ed curriculum‘).
The ten Alberta Conservatives are part of a group of 86 Conservative candidates from across Canada who have received endorsements from the organization. Nine of the ten Alberta candidates on the list are men and six are incumbent MPs running for re-election (even Stephen Harper is deemed “not supportable” by this organization).
The four first-time Conservative candidates on the endorsement list are Calgary-Confederation candidate Len Webber, St. Albert-Edmonton candidate Michael Cooper, Sherwood Park-Fort Saskatchewan candidate Garnett Genuis and Lethbridge candidate Rachael Harder.
These four candidates, along with Mr. Hillyer, responded to a questionnaire from the Campaign Life Coalition affirming their opposition to women’s reproductive rights. The other five Conservatives were endorsed based on their voting records and public statements.
According to the organization’s website, Mr. Cooper “has been actively involved in the pro-life movement for many years and is known to CLC leaders.”
Here are the links to the ten Alberta candidates report cards and questionnaire responses:
Prime Minister Stephen Harper poses with recently acclaimed Conservative Party candidates (disclaimer: Candidates may actually be humans dressed in horse costumes).
The Lethbridge -> Medicine Hat Shuffle
Almost as soon as Medicine Hat MP LaVar Payne announced that he will retire at the next election, neighbouring MP Jim Hillyer jumped into the nomination race to replace him. The controversial Mr. Hillyer, who has represented the Lethbridge riding since 2011, had initially announced he would run against Mr. Payne for the Conservative nomination in the redrawn Medicine Hat-Cardston-Warner, but was then sternly directed by his Ottawa bosses not to challenge a fellow MP. But once Mr. Payne announced his retirement, Mr. Hillyer jumped back into the Medicine Hat race.
As a nomination challenger, he faces Dan Hein, the former president of the local Conservative association and former the campaign manager for Mr. Payne in 2011.
Meanwhile, the NDP have nominated Cheryl Meheden in Lethbridge. That party did particularly well in the last election as the NDP candidate in 2011 earned 13,097 votes (27% of the total votes cast). Ms. Meheden is a former University of Lethbridge management instructor and former board chair for Economic Development Lethbridge.
Kyle Harrietha
Fort McMurray-Cold Lake
Fresh off the by-election campaign trail in Fort McMurray-Athabasca, the Liberals are expected to nominateKyle Harrietha as their candidate in their candidate in Fort McMurray-Cold Lake on July 26 (the current riding boundaries will change when the next federal election is called). Conservative Member of Parliament David Yurdiga is expected to be automatically acclaimed as his party’s candidate because of the recent by-election.
Edmonton-Centre
The Liberals will hold a nomination meeting on August 7, 2014 where party members will have their choice of three candidates – entrepreneur Randy Boissonnaultand lawyers Don Padget and Harold Robinson.
Randy Boissonnault
On July 15, Conservatives gathered for what was described as a “soft launch” event for James Cumming, President and CEO of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, in support of his potential campaign for the Conservative nomination in Edmonton-Centre. Current MP Laurie Hawn has announced his plans to retire at the next election.
Edmonton-Strathcona Liberal activist Wendy Butler, artist Heather Workman(aka Lady Dolphin), and lawyer Eleanor Olszewski are running for the Liberal nomination in this south central Edmonton riding. Lawyer and Edmonton-Gold Bar Progressive Conservative association president Len Thom is seeking the Conservative nomination. The riding has been represented by NDP MP Linda Duncan since 2008.
Edmonton-Riverbend
On May 5, Valerie Kennedy was acclaimed as the Green Party candidate in Edmonton-Riverbend. Ms. Kennedy was the Green Party candidate in Edmonton-Leduc in 2011. where she earned 2,896 votes (4.87% of the votes cast).
Nicole van Kuppenveld
Edmonton-West
Local hotel manager Kelly McCauley has jumped into the Conservative contest in this new west Edmonton riding. Before moving to Edmonton, Mr. McCauley was the president of the Victoria Conservative association. He now faces Edmonton-McClung PC MLA David Xiaoand Edmonton Police Constable Brad Rutherford for the nomination.
Edmonton-Wetaskiwin
MP Mike Lake defeated Leduc County mayor John Whaley for the Conservative nomination in this new mostly-south of Edmonton riding. A third candidate, Mohinder Banga was disqualified shortly before the nomination vote was held.
Sherwood Park-Fort Saskatchewan Four candidates are contesting the Conservative nomination in this new east-of-Edmonton riding. Past Wildrose candidate Garnett Genuis, Bee Clean Building Maintenance vice president Randy Moore, Telus employee and retired Canadian Forces Major Joe Theberge, and 2013 Strathcona County municipal candidate Nicole van Kuppeveld.
The new Edmonton-Wetaskiwin riding includes portions of (1) Edmonton-Mill Woods-Beaumont, (2) Edmonton-Leduc, and (3) Wetaskiwin.
What happens when three federal ridings become one? South of Edmonton, large portions of the Wetaskiwin, Edmonton-Leduc and Edmonton-Mill Woods-Beaumont ridings have been merged into the new Edmonton-Wetaskiwin riding.
Mike Lake
The three Conservative MPs representing the area have chosen not to run against each other for their party’s nomination in the new amalgamated riding – Blaine Calkins will run in the new Red Deer-Wolf Creek and James Rajotte is expected to run in the new Edmonton-Riverbend – leaving Mike Lake to contest the Conservative nomination in Edmonton-Wetaskiwin.
Northeast Edmonton MP Tim Uppal was recently quietly acclaimed as the Conservative candidate in the new Edmonton-Mill Woods riding.
First elected in Edmonton-Mill Woods-Beaumont in 2006, Mike Lake now faces a challenge from Mohinder Banga and Leduc County mayor John Whaley in the new riding. In a recent post on his Facebook page, Mr. Lake suggests that he might need to sign up 3,000 new members to defeat Mohinder Banga, who he claims could sell up to 4,000 Conservative memberships to win the nomination. It would certainly be some sort of record if 7,000 people showed up for one nomination meeting.
Deadline for membership sales is Thursday, May 22 and the nomination meeting is expected to be held in mid-June 2014.
Mona Gill
Edmonton-Griesbach
The NDP will choose a candidate in the new Edmonton-Griesbach riding at a June 2 nomination meeting at Alberta Avenue Community Hall. Mona Gill, Janis Irwin and Zane Smith are seeking the nomination and have drawn crowds of hundreds to town hall forums organized by the local NDP association.
A recent Elections Canada report transposed the 2011 federal election results with the new riding boundaries and showed the Conservatives with 19,832 votes, the NDP with 14,151 votes, and the Liberals with 2,484 votes in the new Edmonton-Griesbach.
Edmonton-Strathcona
Liberal activist Wendy Butler is seeking her party’s nomination in the only NDP-held riding in Alberta. The Liberal vote has declined sharply in this riding over the past five elections as non-Conservative voters coalesced behind NDP MP Linda Duncan. In 2000, candidate Jonathan Dai earned 17,816 votes (31.8% of total votes) and in 2011, candidate Matthew Sinclair earned 1,372 votes (2.8% of total votes).
While the epic battle between Rob Anders and Ron Liepert in Calgary-Signal Hill was entertaining to watch, preparation for the next federal election has sparked nomination contests in ridings across the province. And with two by-elections expected to be called within weeks, federal political parties are lining up their candidates for the vote.
By-Election nominations
Justin Trudeau and Kyle Harrietha on the front page of Fort McMurray Today.
Fort McMurray-Athabasca
On March 30, Liberal Party members chose Kyle Harrietha as their candidate. Mr. Harrietha faced Chris Flett in the nomination contest.
The Liberals are expected to run a strong campaign in the sprawling northeast Alberta riding. Liberal leader Justin Trudeau recently visited the riding, drawing a crowd of hundreds to a meet-and-greet event in Fort McMurray.
The Conservative Party will hold its nomination votes on April 24 in High Prairie and Slave Lake, April 25 in Athabasca and Lac La Biche, and April 26 in Fort McMurray. The results will be announced following the Fort McMurray vote. Fort McMurray lawyer Arlan Delisle and Athabasca County councillor David Yurdiga are the only two candidates seeking the nomination.
Oilsands worker Lori McDaniel will run for the New Democrats and firefighter Tim Moen is the Libertarian Party candidate.
John Barlow and George Canyon
Macleod
On April 6, Dustin Fullerwas nominated as the federal Liberal candidate in the upcoming by-election. Mr. Fuller will face Conservative John Barlow when the by-election is called. There has so far been no sign of any NDP or Green Party candidates.
General Election nominations
Meanwhile, nominations for the general election are also underway. As most of Alberta are largely considered safe territory for the Conservatives, competitive races have emerged in newly redrawn ridings across Alberta. Here are some ridings with recent updates:
Bow River
Country music crooner George Canyon has withdrawn his name from the Conservative nomination contest in southern Alberta’s Bow River. Christian television talk show host Paul Arthur has since announced he will seek the nomination.
Calgary-Nose Hill Michelle Rempel was acclaimed as the Conservative candidate in this newly redrawn north Calgary riding. Ms. Rempel has represented the Calgary-Centre North riding since 2011.
Calgary-Rocky Ridge
Recent defeated in the Calgary-Signal Hill nomination contest, Mr. Anders may seek the Conservative nomination in this neighbouring riding. The Conservative nomination is already being sought by former MP Eric Lowther and party organizer Gord Elliott.
Mr. Lowther represented Calgary-Centre as the Reform Party/Canadian Alliance MP from 1997 until 2000, when he was defeated by former Prime Minister Joe Clark, who had returned to politics to lead the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada.
Edmonton-Mill Woods Edmonton-Sherwood Park MP Tim Uppal has decided to jump across the city to seek the Conservative nomination in the new Edmonton-Mill Woods riding. Mr. Uppal was the Canadian Alliance/Conservative candidate in that area in 2000 and 2004 but was defeated by Mike Lake for the Conservative nomination in 2006.
Varinder Bhullar is seeking the Liberal nomination and Deep Hundal has announced that he plans to run for the NDP nomination.
This is not Mr. Chowdhury’s first attempt at a party nomination. In 2011, he challenged Matt Jeneroux for the Progressive Conservative nomination in the provincial riding of Edmonton-South West and in 2008 he unsuccessfully sought the federal Liberal Party nomination in Edmonton-Strathcona.
Sherwood Park-Fort Saskatchewan Recent municipal election candidate Nicole van Kuppeveld has announced she will seek the Conservative nomination in this new riding east of Edmonton. Ms. van Kuppeveld, the former president of the Sherwood Park provincial PC Party, will face off against Garnett Genuis, the 2012 Wildrose candidate in Sherwood Park.
Here is the audio from a robocall placed by Mr. Anders’ campaign to Conservative Party members in Calgary-Signal Hill announcing Mr. Harper’s endorsement:
One of Canada’s most offensive hyper-Conservatives, Mr. Anders is facing a stiff nomination challenge in the new Calgary-Signal Hill from former Calgary MLA and provincial cabinet minister Ron Liepert.
Mr. Harper’s endorsement is sure to inflame supporters of Mr. Liepert, who will be quick to point out how unusual it is for leader of a party to openly endorse a candidate in a contested nomination race.
Moderate Tories have tried for 17 years to grab the nomination from Mr. Anders, sending high-profile candidates like Alison Redford, Jocelyn Burgener and Donna Kennedy-Glans to run against him, to no avail.
Fort McMurray-Athabasca
Unlike the raucous Conservative by-election nomination race in Macleod, the contest to choose the next Conservative candidate in northeastern Alberta’s Fort McMurray-Athabasca is a sleepy affair. As of this morning, only Fort McMurray lawyer Arlan Delisle and Athabasca County councillor David Yurdiga have entered the Conservative nomination race.
Today, March 24, is the deadline for candidates to enter the Conservative Party nomination contest and the cutoff for membership sales is March 31, 2014.
Lewis Cardinal
Edmonton-Centre
On March 26, Edmonton-Centre’s Lewis Cardinal is expected to be acclaimed as the first New Democratic Party candidate nominated for the 2015 federal general election. The nomination meeting will take place in the lobby of the Winspear Centre and will leader Thomas Mulcair and a handful of NDP MPs from across the country. The lobby of the Winspear is a memorable place for many local New Democrats, who remember when Jack Layton used the venue to host a large and energy-filled election campaign rally in 2008.
Edmonton-Mill Woods Varinder Bhullarhas announced that he will seek the Liberal Party nomination in the new Edmonton-Mill Woods riding.
Edmonton-Wetaskiwin
When Edmonton-Mill Woods-Beaumont MP Mike Lake decided to seek the Conservative nomination in the new Edmonton-Wetaskiwin riding, he was taking a gamble. Mr. Lake, who lives a south Edmonton neighbourhood included in the new riding now facing the challenge of winning a nomination in a riding where 75% of the new territory is new ground. Well-respected in Edmonton, he is now facing a challenge from Leduc County mayorJohn Whaley and Edmonton police officer Mohinder Banga.
Lethbridge First-term MP Jim Hillyer is facing two challengers for the Conservative nomination in the new Lethbridge riding. With Mr. Hillyer cut-off from his base of support in the southern half of the former Lethbridge riding, Doug McArthur and Alex Hann hope to replace him as the Tory candidate.
Red Deer-Mountain View
MP Earl Dreeshen has announced his plans to seek the Conservative nomination in the new Red Deer-Mountain View riding. Mr. Dreeshen has represented the current Red Deer riding since 2008.
Edmonton’s 2015 electoral districts as recommended by the Electoral Boundary Commission Final Report.
Interesting nomination races are emerging across Alberta as parties prepare to choose candidates to run in the next federal election, slated for October 2015. Below are some of the most recent updates from ridings across the province, where candidates are seeking nominations to run in two by-elections and the general election.
By-elections
Fort McMurray-Athabasca
First out of the gate, Kyle Harrietha announced that he is seeking the Liberal nomination to run in the impending by-election. Mr. Harrietha is a former Ottawa staffer and worked in Fort McMurray as the program manager of the Cumulative Environmental Management Association (CEMA). He now works as General Manager of Fort McMurray Métis Local 1935.
Three-term councillor and former Athabasca County reeve David Yurdiga is the first candidate to enter the Conservative Party nomination contest. Mr. Yurdiga currently represents the Grasslands area, which will become part of the new Lakeland riding when the next general election is called and the new Fort McMurray-Cold Lake riding is created. The current boundaries will remain the same when the by-election is held.
General Election 2015
Banff-Airdrie
Incumbent Conservative MP Blake Richards will seek his party’s nomination in the new Banff-Airdrie riding. Mr. Richards has represented the current Wild Rose riding since 2006.
iPolitics.ca is reporting that Marlo Raynolds is seeking the Liberal Party nomination in the new Banff-Airdrie riding. Mr. Raynolds is the former executive director of the Pembina Institute and spoke at last weekend’s federal Liberal Party convention in Montreal on the topic of cities and infrastructure investment. He currently serves Vice-President of Market Development for BluEarth Renewables.
Edmonton-Riverbend
Five-term Conservative Member of Parliament James Rajotte plans to seek his party’s nomination in the new Edmonton-Riverbend riding. He has represented southwest Edmonton since 2000.
Edmonton-Wetaskiwin
Three-term Conservative MP Mike Lake has announced his plans to seek the Conservative nomination in the new Edmonton-Wetaskiwin riding. Mr. Lake has represented Edmonton-Mill Woods-Beaumont since 2006 and lives in the south portion of Edmonton that will be included in the new riding. He will face Mohinder Banga for the Conservative nomination.
It’s a fight – or at least it could be if two southern Alberta Conservative Members of Parliament seek their party’s nomination in the same riding. Boundary changes in the next federal election will mean that Lethbridge Conservative MP Jim Hillyer will find himself living within the boundaries of the new Medicine Hat riding. Mr. Hillyer has already announced he plans to seek the Conservative Party of Canada nomination in the new Medicine Hat riding, which may pit him against current Medicine Hat MP LeVar Payne. Mr. Payne has represented that riding since 2008 and has not yet announced his plans for the next election. UPDATE: Mr. Hillyer may be having second thoughts.
Blaine Calkins
Another nomination contest among incumbents may have been averted as Wetaskiwin MP Blaine Calkins has announced he will seek the Conservative nomination in the new Red Deer-Wolf Creek riding. It was suspected that Mr. Calkins could have sought the nomination in the new Edmonton-Wetaskiwin riding, which could have placed him in competition with fellow Conservative MPs Mike Lake and James Rajotte.
Six-term Member of Parliament Jason Kenneyannounced on Twitter that he will seek the Conservative nomination in the new Calgary-ShepardCalgary-Midnapore riding. Mr. Kenney was first elected in Calgary-Southeast in 1997 and currently serves as Minister of Employment and Social Development.
With her Edmonton-Spruce Grove riding being redistributed in the next election, it is expected that Conservative MP Rona Ambrose may choose to seek her party’s nomination in the new Sturgeon River riding.
Bashir Mohamed
Bashir Mohamed has entered the New Democratic Party nomination race in the new Edmonton-Griesbach riding. A student at the University of Alberta, Mr. Mohammed caused a stir last year when he confronted Mr. Kenney at a Conservative Party fundraiser about the federal government’s cuts to refugee health care. He joins teacher Janis Irwin in the NDP contest.
As mentioned in my previous roundup,Ryan Hastman has made official his plans to seek the Conservative Party of Canada nomination in St. Albert-Edmonton. A fundraiser for the University of Alberta, Mr. Hastman was the 2008 Conservative Party candidate in Edmonton-Strathcona.
Matt Grant
Lawyer Matt Grant has announced plans to seek the Liberal Party nomination in the new Calgary-Confederation riding, which will include most of the current Calgary-Centre North riding. Currently an associate with Burnet, Duckworth & Palmer LLP, he previously worked as executive assistant to Calgary Liberal MLAs Craig Cheffins and Kent Hehr.
Seven-term Conservative MP Leon Benoit will also be affected by the electoral boundary changes. The Lloydminster Source reported that Mr. Benoit told an audience of supporters that “no decision has been made on where he would be running, but one thing for sure is that he would not be running against his colleagues in the next general election.”
The Vegreville-Wainwright riding, which Mr. Benoit has represented since 2004, will be redistributed into the new Lakeland riding. He currently resides in Sherwood Park, which will be included in the new Sherwood Park-Fort Saskatchewan riding. If re-elected in 2015, Mr. Benoit will become Alberta’s longest serving Member of Parliament.
Some Conservatives would like to convince former Progressive Conservative MLA Rob Lougheedto seek their party’s nomination in the new Sherwood Park-Fort Saskatchewan. Mr. Lougheed represented the area in the Alberta Legislature from 1997 to 2008.
Dan Bildhauer plans to seek the Liberal Party nomination in the new Edmonton-West riding. According to his LinkedIn profile, Mr. Bildhauer is the Director of Operations for Bildhaur Construction and worked as a Senior Policy Advisor for Citizenship and Immigration Canada from 2007 to 2013.
Tanveer Taj has announced his plans to run as a candidate in the Calgary-Skyview constituency. It is unclear whether he will seek a party nomination or run as an Independent. Mr. Taj earned 19% of the vote as a candidate in Calgary’s City Council Ward 3 in the recent municipal election.
There are 705 days until Monday, October 19, 2015, when the next Canadian federal election is scheduled to be held. With less than two years until Canadians choose who will serve as Members of Parliament and with new electoral boundaries coming into effect at the next election, candidates across Alberta are preparing to seek party nominations, a first step to becoming a candidate.
Edmonton’s 2015 electoral districts as recommended by the Electoral Boundary Commission Final Report.
Last week’s resignation announcement by Conservative MP Ted Menzies opens the door for a by-election to be held in southwest Alberta’s Macleod riding. When the next election is called, Macleod will be dissolved and the new Foothills riding will be created. Rumours circulated soon after Mr. Menzies announcement that Wildrose official opposition leader Danielle Smith could seek the Conservative nomination were quickly quashed when he announced she would remain as MLA for Highwood. According to the Okotoks Western Wheel, three local residents, businessman Scott Wagner, rancher Phil Rowland and former Parliament Hill staffer Melissa Mathieson, have expressed interest in seeking the Conservative nomination.
With former Conservative MP Brent Rathgeber confirming he will run as an Independent in the new St. Albert-Edmonton riding in the next election, aspirants are already lining up to contest Conservative Party nomination.
Lawyer and conservative activist Michael Cooper has already announced his candidacy in the St. Albert-Edmonton Conservative nomination and has the support of the provincial Progressive Conservative establishment, including endorsements from Finance Minister Doug Horner, Deputy Premier Thomas Lukaszuk, and St. Albert MLA Stephen Khan. Also in the race is Kevin Tam, a Conservative Party activist who is currently employed as a researcher with the provincial Liberal Opposition.
Lethbridge and southern Alberta 2015 electoral districts as recommended by the Electoral Boundary Commission Final Report.
Changing boundaries in southern Alberta mean that Lethbridge Conservative MP Jim Hillyer will soon find himself living inside the redrawn Medicine Hat riding, currently represented by Conservative MP LeVar Payne. While a nomination race between the two incumbents could easily be averted if Mr. Hillyer runs in the newly redrawn Lethbridge, he may still face a tough nomination contest now that his large base of support in the southern half of the old riding will now living in a new riding.
After a narrow win in last year’s by-election, Conservative MP Joan Crockatt can expect a strong challenge from a newly revitalized Liberal Party organization in Calgary-Centre.
Conservatives have still yet to resolve who will run in the handful of new ridings created in south Edmonton. Similar to the situation in southern Alberta, Conservatives are hopeful that nomination battles between MPs Mike Lake, James Rajotte, and Blaine Calkins can be averted. This may be even further complicated if current Edmonton-Sherwood Park MP Tim Uppal decides to seek a nomination in the newly redrawn Edmonton-Mill Woods riding. Mr. Uppal was the Canadian Alliance and Conservative candidate in south east Edmonton in the 2000 and 2004 federal elections and lost his party nomination to Mr. Lake before the 2006 election.
Rod Loyola announced his intentions to seek the NDP nomination in Edmonton-Mill Woods last year. Mr. Loyola was the 2012 provincial NDP candidate in Edmonton-Ellerslie and is currently the president of the Non-Academic Staff Association at the University of Alberta.
Calgary’s 2015 electoral districts as recommended by the Electoral Boundary Commission Final Report.
With the retirement of Calgary-Nose Hill MP Diane Ablonczy, who was first elected under the Reform Party banner in 1993, Calgarians can expect a hotly contested nomination race in this riding that is considered a Conservative stronghold. One candidate rumoured to be considering a run for a nomination is Calgary-Foothills PC MLA Len Webber, who served as a cabinet minister in Premier Ed Stelmach‘s government but was shuffled to the backbenches after Alison Redford became Premier in 2011.
In the always contested Edmonton-Centre, aboriginal activist and educator Lewis Cardinal, announced earlier this year that he would once again seek the NDP nomination. In 2011, Mr. Cardinal increased his party’s support in that riding by 11%, placing second to Conservative incumbent Laurie Hawn. The central Edmonton riding was represented by Liberal MP Anne McLellan from 1993 until 2006. Hoping for a revival of Liberal support in the next election, a number of candidates are said to be preparing to contest the Liberal nomination, including entrepreneur and Rhodes Scholar Randy Boissonnault,and 2011 candidate and lawyer Mary MacDonald.
Two-term Edmonton-Decore PC MLA Janice Sarich is rumoured to be mounting a challenge against current Edmonton-East Conservative MP Peter Goldring in the new Edmonton-Griesbach riding. With Mr. Goldring back in the Conservative fold after sitting as an independent, he is expected to seek his party’s nomination in the new riding. The NDP are searching for a star candidate in this riding, after seeing their support steadily increase since the past four federal elections. The new riding also significantly overlaps the areas represented by NDP MLA Brian Mason, David Eggen, and Deron Bilous in the provincial Legislature. The NDP’s 2008 and 2012 candidate, former MLA Ray Martin, was elected to serve on Edmonton’s Public School Board on October 21, 2013.
Update (November 14, 2013): Educator Janis Irwin has announced her intention to seek the NDP nomination in the new Edmonton-Griesbach riding.
