Then again, Liberal challenger Harvey Locke might have lost anyway. What’s remarkable about the campaign – what has been remarkable about it all along – is that it has been a race at all. As has been noted many times in recent days, Liberals haven’t won the seat since 1968. But Crockatt appears to have been caught up in the boiling internal family spat between Alberta Red Tories – epitomized by Premier Alison Redford – and Blue Reform-leaning Conservatives. Locke had been capitalizing on that rift.

But that was before the Grits’ week of the dunderheads – first Ottawa MP David McGuinty, blurting out that Conservative MPs should go back to Alberta; then, even more spectacularly, Trudeau, in the very act of attempting to seduce Westerners with what he says is a fresh approach to Liberalism, caught with his rhetorical pants down. He apologized in Vancouver Friday, as he should have. Under the circumstances there was little else he could do.

That said, the video and ensuing furor won’t necessarily cause lasting damage to the Trudeau campaign. In a backhanded fashion, he may actually benefit.

First, let’s restate the obvious: Alberta is not, in and of itself, a must-have for the Grits. Polls have consistently shown that Trudeau’s support West of the Ottawa River will come primarily from Ontario and British Columbia. In the context of the next federal election, these two provinces are two-tonne gorillas: Ontario will hold 121 seats in the 2015 election, British Columbia 42. The Maritime provinces, where Trudeau is strongest, will hold 32 seats between them. Alberta, by contrast, will hold just 34 seats, Saskatchewan and Manitoba 14 apiece.

In this light, the language of the current pitched battle over Alberta and its resources – which began in earnest during the New Democrat leadership campaign last March – can be deceiving. As I’ve said previously, none of the Liberal leadership candidates is aiming his or her dialogue primarily at Alberta. Rather, understanding Alberta to be the new epicenter of economic growth, they seek to persuade Ontarians and British Columbians that they can be responsible economic stewards. In particular they’re capitalizing on NDP leader Tom Mulcair’s strategic error of allowing himself to be cast by the Conservatives as anti-oil-patch. Will Ontarians and British Columbians cling to ill-considered remarks Trudeau made in French about Alberta, two years ago, for which he’s apologized? Not likely.

Second, the rest of the Liberal field – led by Martha Hall Findlay and Marc Garneau, set to formally join the race this week – aren’t in a position to capitalize on this stumble, in any crippling way, for the simple reason that Trudeau still has, at least for the time being, an unassailable lead. They read the polls. They know the history of 2006 – when an aggressive assault on leadership candidate Stephane Dion, by rival Michael Ignatieff, was later used by the Conservatives as B-roll for a brutally effective attack ad. If Trudeau’s rivals go for the jugular now they risk denying their own party its best shot at resurrection in 2015. The potential cabinet prospects among them – Findlay, Garneau, Deborah Coyne and Toronto lawyer George Takach – won’t take that chance.

Third, and most important, is the elephant in the room: Quebec and its 75 seats, soon to become 78. Justin Trudeau, for all his unaccented fluency in both official languages, self-identifies as a francophone Quebecer. He also thinks like one, enough to be able to perfectly express francophone Quebec’s perpetual ambiguity within Conferation, as he did last February, musing about separating from a future Harper-led Canada, which he framed as dystopic. In Toronto and Calgary that’s the stuff of front-page headlines. In Montreal and Quebec City, it’s no big deal. The Grits were reduced to seven seats in Quebec in 2011. A defection from the NDP increased that to eight. The simple reality is that the massive attention paid to Trudeau’s remarks two years ago, lamentable though they are, has probably broadened his coattails in Quebec.

Does any of this mean he’s wearing Teflon? No. If more such videos emerge, or there are new impolitic outbursts, Trudeau’s strangehold on the race will loosen – especially with Garneau in the field. The frontrunner can still self-destruct in any number of ways. But this video is not that. The apology dealt with, a new policy proposal within a few days – likely something that ignites debate by upending one sacred Liberal cow or another – would be the signal that Trudeau’s campaign is moving to turn the page.

Twitter.com/mdentandt

Calgary, as a city, last elected a non-conservative MP (PC/Reform/Alliance/CPC) in 1968. The closest thing to a disruption occured in this riding in 2000, when the non-Canadian Alliance vote coalesced around Progressive Conservative Party leader Joe Clark, boosting him to victory.

Now, the riding appears to be close. The Conservatives opened the door to a challenge by nominating a controversial candidate in Joan Crockett, and exacerbated it by shielding her from most public forums. All three opposition parties nominated strong candidates in their own right – the Liberals with notable conservationist Harvey Locke, the NDP with Dan Meades, the Director of Vibrant Communities Calgary, and the Greens with notable author Chris Turner. (Personal disclosure: I have some acquaintance with Harvey Locke, and serve on a board with his wife).

Two polls from Forum Research show a potential three-way race with Crockett ahead, Locke just behind, and Turner as the stalking horse in third. A poll from Return on Insight shows Crockett just ahead of Locke, with Turner comfortably in third, but far behind.

While I would love to see Harvey Locke (or Chris Turner) win this seat, safe money is still on Crockett. While by-elections do often produce abnormal results, one has to figure the floor for a Conservative candidate in this riding is in the mid-30s even with a weaker candidate. If you have the third and fourth place candidates pulling in around 30% of the vote (in ROI) or higher (in Forum), that leaves about 30-35% of the vote, if the Conservatives hit their floor. In other words, not a lot of space for another candidate to pull ahead.

This is a problem that will continue to repeat itself, until the three left of centre parties sort themselves out. I expect this to happen over the next two election cycles through attrition or merger. If three survive as viable entities, it will be because at least one retreats to becoming a largely regional entity.

Win or lose tomorrow, the Calgary-Centre by-election points to some key challenges centre-left parties, no matter which ones survive or emerge, need to overcome to be a true threat to government.

Calgary-Centre is a bellwether for progressive hopes in the west.

The Need to Stop Beating Up Your Own
The most biting attack of this campaign was a Chris Turner mailer where…he attacked Harvey Locke. Echoing the Conservative “he didn’t come back for you!” attack on Michael Ignatieff, Turner chastises Locke for spending many years away from Calgary. These are far harsher words than he has for Crockett at any point. Reminiscent of the PC/Reform battles in Ontario through the ’90s, the centre-left is likely to continue beating itself up in order to try to become the alternative. In the meantime, the Conservatives will be able to largely coast into office until this is sorted out.

Someone suggested to me that Locke and Turner are drawing strengths from two different constituencies (more established liberals vs. young civic activists), and while this may be true, the broader point is that it is unlikely that any non-Conservative candidate can win regularly without the support of both.

The Need to Be Competitive Across the Country
To their credit, Liberal Party leadership candidates have grasped the need to reach out to the west, and Alberta in particular. The NDP have made inroads in Edmonton, winning one riding in 2008 and holding it in 2011. The province is not only influential because of its role in the economy, but because of its fast growing population. It will gain another 6 seats prior to the 2015 election.

It is still possible for a party to win a majority based on strength elsewhere in the country (Ontario, Quebec, and BC remain seat-rich), but it’s hard to see any party but the Conservatives winning a majority without at least some seats from the prairie provinces, Alberta in particular.

Another consideration is this – the need to simply make this area of the country more competitive. At the moment, the Conservatives can effectively bank at least 24 of 28 seats in Alberta prior to the writ drop (that’s being generous by including Calgary-Centre, along with NDP-held Edmonton-Strathcona, and once Liberal/NDP-held Edmonton Centre and Edmonton East). That means that the party can redirect advertising dollars and human resources elsewhere, both organizers and its leader (and leading cabinet ministers). While other parties need to defend their home turf, so to speak, the Conservatives can focus on swing ridings and areas of growth. Simply making at least Edmonton and Calgary more competitive would help centre-left parties across the country in that respect.

As an aside, it’s striking how few centre-left MPs of significance Alberta has produced in the past 80 years (if not longer), aside from Anne McLellan. While many prominent Liberals or CCF/NDPs have carved out notable careers at the provincial level or as Mayor of Calgary or Edmonton, none have made a successful breakthrough to the federal level. While the province gets labeled as a bastion of conservatism, that list of prominent centre-left politicians would include Laurence Decore, Grant Notley, Grant MacEwan, Nick Taylor, Ivor Dent, Jan Reimer, Al Duerr, and Dave Bronconnier, to name a few. Every other province can point to both prominent progressive and conservative politicians it has produced, even if it reliably supports one party (or ideology) over others.

The Need to Win Across the Country
Having said all that, Calgary-Centre is precisely the type of riding that a centre-left party will need to win in order to compete for and win government on a regular basis. It’s demographics largely resemble areas that support centre-left parties across the country, and provincially, it includes parts or all of ridings that have elected Liberals in recent elections, such as Calgary-Buffalo and Calgary-Currie.

Without a major realignment, it’s hard to see any centre-left party winning government except, as I said earlier this year, in case of a charismatic leader who disrupts voting patters or when scandal and voter fatigue catch up to government.

In figuring the road to a majority government for the NDP, Liberal Party, Green Party, or some combination thereof, it’s hard to see how that happens without winning 3-6 seats in each of the prairie provinces.

Some pundits are predicting a historic upset, and I do hope to see it change hands. However, what I think is more likely is that Calgary-Centre can the launching pad for progressive inroads in the west. In this respect, Edmonton-Strathcona is a model. While most remember “Liberals for Linda”, and how the progressive vote coalesced around her as she squeaked out a win in 2008, fewer seem to remember that she effectively kept campaigning from the 2006 election onward. The NDP also targeted that riding with regular mailings and appearances. If the Liberals, Greens, or NDP are serious about winning Calgary-Centre, they can’t give up after tomorrow night, should they be unsuccessful. If they do, it will start inching back towards the status quo. Tomorrow’s by-election should be the start of a consistent, steady campaign to build inroads and support so that it’s a true race come 2015, and if it doesn’t change hands then, that it’s poised to soon afterwards. Making the necessary inroads to win support in Western Canada is going to be a long process. Done right, tomorrow night can be a catalyst for that.

While political experts don’t expect upsets, some say the results, and even the character of the races, could affect the parties’ nationally.

Typically, people place too much importance on byelections, which are usually local contests that don’t suggest larger trends, said David Mitchell, president and CEO of the Ottawa-based Public Policy Forum.

But the races in Victoria, Calgary Centre and Durham are proving to be anything but run-of-the-mill.

“These three byelections are coming at an interesting time, when the opposition in Parliament is going through some pretty big changes. And it comes at a juncture when the results of the byelections will probably result in some significant momentum for one party or another,” Mitchell said.

“There is a fair bit at stake as a result.”

Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced the byelections in late October.  NDP MP Denise Savoie had resigned her Victoria seat in August for health reasons; Conservative MP Lee Richardson had left his Calgary-Centre position in May to work for Alberta Premier Alison Redford; and former minister for international co-operation and Durham MP Bev Oda – who made headlines for a series of spending gaffes – had announced in July that she was leaving politics.

Christopher Cochrane, a political science professor at the University of Toronto, said he doesn’t expect any of the ridings to change parties, but will be keeping an eye on how left-leaning voters cast their ballots.

“I really think the most significant race right now, especially for the Liberals, is: Which is the non-Conservative party? If you’re a non-Conservative voter, who are you going to vote for?” Cochrane said.

Calgary Centre, a 42 sq.-km riding covering the city’s downtown, has been a Conservative (or variation-of-Conservative) stronghold for more than four decades. But whether or not current Conservative candidate Joan Crockatt will have an easy victory has been a matter of intense speculation.

Calgary was key in electing Premier Alison Redford, a provincial Conservative, instead of Wildrose leader Danielle Smith, who was seen as further to the right.

The riding also covers the same area that elected popular and left-leaning Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi. Nenshi has criticized Crockatt’s absence from riding debates, outlining his concerns in a Calgary Herald opinion piece, putting out a call to action on his Facebook page, and attacking her on Twitter.

The race in Calgary Centre is closer than people thought it would be, said Stephen Carter, who managed Nenshi’s campaign and is managing Martha Hall Findlay’s federal Liberal leadership run.

“As Calgary has shown both with the Redford victory and the Nenshi victory, it continues to be open to changing its mind and confounding expectations,” Carter said. “I think we’re seeing a historic shift.”

If the Conservatives were to lose the seat to the Liberals, it would revitalize the Liberal party as a whole, Carter said.

Events this past week, however, may have dealt a body blow to the chances of Liberal contender Harvey Locke. First, there were inopportune comments about Alberta politicians from federal MP David McGuinty. Then, on Thursday, a 2010 video resurfaced of federal Liberal leadership contender Justin Trudeau seeming to suggest Quebec politicians were superior to Alberta ones.

Both interim Liberal leader Bob Rae and Trudeau had earlier flown in to lend their support to Locke. NDP leader Thomas Mulcair went to Calgary to support candidate Dan Meades. And Green Party leader Elizabeth May accompanied Candidate Chris Turner on his campaign trail earlier in the month.

Darrell Bricker, CEO of Ipsos Reid Public Affairs, said he’s “highly skeptical” of early polling data that seemed to suggest anything but an easy Conservative victory. Still, he said, everyone will be watching what happens in Calgary Centre “like a hawk.”

“The one thing you can count on is that the Tories, because this is such a symbolic and important riding for them, will have all hands on deck,” Bricker said.

In Victoria, all eyes are on the NDP and the Green Party.

The NDP riding, a 43 sq.-km. swathe on Vancouver Island, is adjacent to Green Party leader Elizabeth May’s riding in Saanich-Gulf Islands. Candidates include the NDP’s Murray Rankin, Liberal Paul Summerville, Conservative Dale Gann and Green Party candidate Donald Galloway.

The race there is “fierce,” with a strong campaign being run by the Green party, said Mitchell.

“If the Green party is ever going to elect a seatmate for Elizabeth May, if the Green party is ever going to have a breakthrough beyond simply the leader of their party, this is as good as it gets for them as a chance,” Mitchell said.

And if Mulcair is unable to hold what many people thought might have been a safe NDP seat, it would be a very significant blow to the NDP as an opposition party, Mitchell said. It’s essential for Mulcair to build on the strength coming out of the last federal election, he added.

Bricker said he’d be surprised if Victoria didn’t go to the NDP. But byelections have been known to throw out some strange results, he said, noting, for instance, that Gilles Duceppe was elected in one – becoming the first Bloc Quebecois MP. He later led the party.

“There are some strange things that could happen, but it’s usually as a result of a very specific, really strong candidate, and the other side being so hated, that something weird happens,” Bricker said.

In Durham, an Ontario riding that had been held by Oda since 2004, what’s really getting people riled up is Liberal candidate Grant Humes’s campaign signs.

The red and white signs, with a Liberal logo, show an outline of a soldier and say “support our veterans.” A web address on the sign leads to a site that highlights Humes’s campaign as well as issues related to veterans.

He’s been accused by Conservative opponent Erin O’Toole and by a Facebook group called “Veterans Against Grant Humes’s Campaign” of trying to capitalize on Remembrance Day.

Many think the riding was most likely to stay Blue, with O’Toole clinching the vote. Past results show a strong Conservative stronghold in the region, with Oda maintaining a huge lead in the last three elections.

But what will be interesting is if the Liberals manage to secure the second spot — in Durham or anywhere else, said Mitchell from the Public Policy Forum.

“If the Liberals show strongly in these byelections, that would be awfully encouraging for a party that’s trying to revive itself,” Mitchell said.

In the 2011 election, Humes got 17.9 per cent of the vote compared to the NDP’s 21.1 per cent.

Trudeau recently visited the region to support Humes. The Liberal and Conservative candidates are also up against the NDP’s Larry O’Connor and the Green Party’s Virginia Ervin.

nstechyson@postmedia.com

Twitter.com/natstechyson

Related articles

• Conservatives point to 2010 video of Trudeau favouring Quebecers over Albertans to lead the country (o.canada.com)
• Bob Rae apologizes for MP David McGuinty’s attack on Alberta MPs (o.canada.com)
• PM calls Nov. byelections for 3 ridings (o.canada.com)
• Nenshi calls Crockatts’ absence “elephant not in the room” (cbc.ca)
• Big hitters wade into battle for Calgary Centre (calgaryherald.com)
• Mulcair not concerned NDP trails byelection poll (calgaryherald.com)

That depends on which candidate you ask.

Conservative Joan Crockatt said her campaign has visited more than 11,000 homes in the riding and one issue trumps all others.

“The economy is very definitely the No. 1 issue that we’ve heard from people at the doors, consistently,” Crockatt told Metro. “They realize that we’re in a global fiscal difficulty and that we need to make sure to keep the economy of Canada and Alberta strong.”

Liberal candidate Harvey Locke, meanwhile, believes it’s more complex than that.

“The Conservatives have said this election is about the economy, only – I don’t think Calgarians are that one-dimensional,” he said.

Locke believes Calgary Centre voters are, by and large, “fiscally prudent, socially progressive and environmentally responsible.”

“I use the phrase ‘entrepreneurial progressive’ to describe that,” he said.

In NDP candidate Dan Meades’ view, government transparency – or the lack thereof – remains one of the key issues in the byelection campaign.

“What we’re hearing about how frustrated the people of Calgary Centre are with the Conservative government,” he said. “They’re just so frustrated by a party that seems content if not eager to hide things from the electorate.”

As examples, Meades pointed to the government’s use of massive omnibus bills and its decision to delay a decision on the proposed purchase of Nexen by a Chinese state oil company until after the byelection.

“Let’s remember, this byelection is in a riding where thousands of jobs are at stake because of that decision,” he said.

Green party candidate Chris Turner believes riding residents see the byelection as an opportunity “to send a message” to Ottawa about issues facing Calgary.

“So in my campaign, we’re talking about a national transit strategy, more stable funding for transit, and dealing with the infrastructure deficit,” Turner said.

The Calgary Centre byelection is Monday, Nov. 26. Polls will be open from 7:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m.

In their own words:

Chris Turner, Green Party:

“We are really talking about what Calgary needs now. I think Calgary is really a city that has been taken for granted by its MPs.”

“The great opportunity here is to send a message about some of the critical issues facing Calgary now that Ottawa could be helping out on, and the obvious first example is infrastructure.”

“So in my campaign, we’re talking about a national transit strategy, more stable funding for transit, and dealing with the infrastructure deficit we know we have.”

Dan Meades, NDP:

“What we’re hearing about how frustrated the people of Calgary Centre are with the Conservative government. They’re just so frustrated by a party that seems content if not eager to hide things from the electorate – 400-page omnibus bills, putting off the Nexen and CNOOC decision until after the byelection. And let’s remember, this byelection is in a riding where thousands of jobs are at stake because of that decision. And yet they put it off and don’t have the discussion during the election. They hide everything including their candidate.”

“That’s what people are really frustrated with. They don’t feel like they have the access to the information they need.”

Joan Crockatt, Conservative:

“I think the economy is very definitely the No. 1 issue that we’ve heard from people at the doors consistently. They realize that we’re in a global fiscal difficulty and that we need to make sure to keep the economy of Canada and Alberta strong. And they realize that Alberta has been one of the drivers of the Canadian economy and it’s very important to them to keep that going.”

“I think (voters) are completely looking at national issues. There are a couple of candidates that are more focused on municipal issues, but in a federal election, you’re electing someone to go to Ottawa to speak for you on the national and also to represent you well at home. So, to me, that’s what we need to stay focused on.”

Harvey Locke, Liberal:

“I’ve believed from the beginning and I’ll believe until the end that this campaign is about the values of Calgarians and the face they want to show to Canada.”

“The values that I believe are a true reflection of the people of Calgary Centre are that we are fiscally prudent, socially progressive and environmentally responsible and that we want to behave that way at home and abroad.”

“I think Calgarians think at multiple scales. I think they perceive their local issues as having regional, national and international effect. And I think they think that because they do. It’s reality.”

“These ideas are all interconnected. The Conservatives have said this election is about the economy, only. I don’t think Calgarians are that one-dimensional.”

The two-year-old interview has resurfaced only days after another Liberal MP, David McGuinty, set off a storm of controversy for saying Albertan MPs should take a nationwide view of energy policies or go home.

Not only do the Trudeau comments threaten the Liberals’ hopes to steal a seat in Calgary during a byelection next week, they also threaten to hurt months of effort to put aside the party’s strained relationship with western Canadians and start anew.

Much of the French-language interview with Tele-Quebec from November 2010 features a moustached Trudeau talking about bilingualism, the importance of Quebec culture in Canada and the need to defend it.

At one point, Trudeau says Quebec shouldn’t try to close itself off from the rest of the country if it wants to protect its language and culture, but rather engage with all Canadians.

“Canada is struggling right now because Albertans are controlling the … social democratic agenda,” he adds.

When asked if he thinks Canada would be better served with more Quebecers in power than Albertans, Trudeau replies: “I’m a Liberal, so of course I think so.”

He goes on to say that the great prime ministers of the 20^th century were Quebec MPs, including Jean Chretien, Brian Mulroney, Paul Martin and his father, Pierre Trudeau.

Conservatives wasted no time holding up the video Thursday as further proof of a long-held anti-Alberta bias within the Liberal party that they say dates back to the Trudeau government’s controversial National Energy Program of the early 1980s.

“This is the worst kind of divisiveness, the worst kind of arrogance of the Liberal Party,” said Immigration Minister Jason Kenney, “and it brings back for many Westerners the kind of arrogance of the National Energy Program, which of course devastated the western economy.”

Trudeau was attending an event in Chilliwack, B.C., on Thursday and was not immediately available for comment.

But his campaign issued a statement saying the video comments were being taken intentionally out of context by the Conservatives to undermine the Liberals’ efforts of winning next week’s byelection in Calgary Centre.

“Justin knows that Calgary, Alberta and all of western Canada are at the very heart of Canada’s future,” the statement added.

“That’s a message he has taken to every part of the country, from the beginning of the campaign. We need to get beyond the divisive politics of the Conservatives and include all Canadians.”

The Liberal Party has not represented all of Canada geographically for a long time. It has been largely shut out of Alberta and Saskatchewan for decades, while its support in British Columbia and Manitoba has rarely been strong.

Political scientists and an increasing number of Liberals have long agreed that the party needed to abandon its habit of trying to rely on Ontario, Quebec and Eastern Canada to take it to power, and instead become a true national party.

Liberals say they have learned their lesson — a statement that comes a few years too late as the party has essentially lost its eastern base.

But there has been a clear effort to re-engage with western Canadians.

This has involved marrying proposals that are pro-oil sands policies – aimed at making voters in Alberta and Saskatchewan happy – with an environmental message that should resonate with those in B.C.

At the same time, Liberal leadership candidates such as Trudeau and Marc Garneau, who is expected to enter the race next week, have toured the West several times.

Fellow leadership candidate Martha Hall Findlay even launched her campaign in Calgary.

“Launching in Calgary was very much to make a point to Albertans, Canadians and members of the Liberal party,” she said in an interview Thursday.

“It’s not that the Liberal party has become irrelevant to a lot of western Canadians. But I would say that western Canada increasingly seemed irrelevant to the Liberal party.”

Analysts say all those efforts were getting noticed, particularly among western Canadians who live in cities and aren’t necessarily committed to the Harper Conservatives.

The Liberal candidate in next week’s byelection in Calgary South, Harry Locke, has been seen as having a chance to win the seat.

“There is a genuine effort on the part of Liberals to try to mobilize support, especially in the cities,” said Chaldeans Mensah, a political science professor at Grant MacEwan University in Edmonton.

“The efforts of Bob Rae have been exemplary and people are starting to take notice. They were making inroads in the campaign to reach out to Western Canadians.”

Which is why McGuinty’s remarks — and now Trudeau’s — are so potentially devastating.

McGuinty later apologized and resigned as natural resources minister, but not before Prime Minister Stephen Harper and other Conservatives held the comments up as proof of a long-held anti-Alberta attitude within the Liberal party dating back to the Trudeau government.

Rae admitted Wednesday that McGuinty’s comments were “not helpful” to the Liberals’ fortunes in Calgary Centre, or to western Canada as a whole.

Meanwhile, the party’s decision not to hold any debates in Alberta or Saskatchewan during its leadership campaign has also prompted anger and frustration.

Liberal spokeswoman Sarah Bain says the omission was not meant as an intentional slight to those provinces, but came down to date and venue availability.

That hasn’t sat well with some leadership candidates and their teams, a number of whom have said they’ve asked the party to reconsider.

Hall Findlay said it’s one thing for Liberals to show up in western Canada, it’s another to actually include western Canadians and look out for their interests.

“People are skeptical, and rightfully so,” she says. “The challenge for us as a party is to walk the talk.”

lberthiaume(at)postmedia.com

Twitter:/leeberthiaume

Background: I spent many years in radio journalism, where my job required me to maintain a certain distance from active political engagement. I then spent close to a decade living in the belly of the beast known as the United States, where my foreign student visa status prevented me from being involved. (Although many have been quick to point out that living in Berkeley, CA and Ithaca, NY isn’t exactly living in “real America”…but that’s another story.) Anyway, in 2004, my family and I moved “home” to Canada—specifically to Calgary.

I say “home” in quotation marks because until we arrived to live here, I had never set foot in Calgary. I grew up in Fredericton, NB. I also lived, went to school, and/or worked in Saint John, Halifax, Kingston, Ottawa, and Toronto, and briefly “ran away from it all” to the US Virgin Islands, where the temptation to work under the table as a bartender and live the Jimmy Buffett lifestyle was strong indeed, believe you me! I even spent two years as a kid living in Switzerland and Austria while my father was on sabbatical leave—but within Canada, I had never really ventured west of approximately Guelph, so I carried a lifetime of every possible “eastern” stereotype about Alberta and Calgary. (It didn’t help that the first day we were here a rather large tumbleweed rolled in front of my car…)

As such, Calgary was entirely terra incognita to me. As far as I knew, there lay dragons. I was pretty sure I knew that the social, cultural, political, and physical climates were going to be, shall we say, “challenging” for me. Boy was I in for a surprise!

There are definitely days when the physical climate does indeed pose a challenge for my skinny self. But for the most part, that aspect of life is OK. On the social front, I have been blown away. We have met and made friends with an amazing bunch of people here—people with whom we share all kinds of interests, attitudes, and values. We don’t necessarily see eye to eye with absolutely all of them on absolutely everything, but one of my myths about “Calgary” was very quickly shattered and laid to eternal rest.

Culturally, I have been even more amazed. The quality and diversity of what Calgary has to offer in every aspect of cultural life was astonishing from the day we arrived, and has only grown exponentially since then. There’s even starting to be some interesting architecture and design in the public realm (another topic for another day)!

That leaves political life. At the community and municipal level, we have again been pleasantly surprised, to say the least. I don’t need to say anything that hasn’t already been said a zillion times or more about the last municipal election. Provincially and federally, it’s been another matter entirely, and that’s the only area where my stereotypical impressions about Calgary and Alberta have thus far been completely and utterly disappointingly confirmed…until now.

Engagement in provincial and federal politics in Calgary—until now—has been a profoundly dispiriting exercise. Trudging off to the polling station to vote, knowing that regardless of whether you’re voting for someone/something or against someone/something , the outcome is as foregone a conclusion as it would be in North Korea made the entire exercise as pleasant and enjoyable as standing in line for stale pickles in Vladivostok on a pre-dawn January morning.

But today, things are so entirely different that it’s hard to put into words. Today, there is a real opportunity to throw off the shackles of living in a single-party state. Today, it is not only worthwhile but incredibly exciting to be involved in federal politics in Calgary.

I had met Chris Turner a few times before the campaign in Calgary Centre began. I can’t say we were friends, but we were acquaintances. I had read “The Geography of Hope” and some of his other work. While I didn’t agree with every word (we need to talk about New Urbanism vs. Modernism, Chris!), I was extremely impressed with the quality of his research, the logic of his articulate arguments, and the elegance of his writing. I also agreed entirely with his focus on real, meaningful, and achievable solutions to many of the crises we face—whether we choose to acknowledge them or not.

Bu the same token, I had been a member of the Green Party for several years. But, to be perfectly honest, I had let that membership lapse. I had become somewhat disillusioned and more than somewhat frustrated—both with the party and with the political process. I have been adrift, completely disenfranchised and virtually stateless, since landing in Calgary.

Well before the by-election was really on anybody’s radar, I went to the Walrus Glenbow Debate on “Calgary’s Cowboy Culture: Living Legacy or Just History?”, where Chris and Chima Nkemdirim were facing off against—as it happens—Joan Crockatt and Mercedes Stephenson. I called it the “Massacre at the Max” (Bell Theatre, that is). Chris and Chima made powerful and articulate arguments, while Joan and Mercedes trotted out banal “conventional wisdom”. Remember—this is well before the by-election. I was not only highly impressed by Chris and Chima, but utterly appalled at the paucity of ideas and the inability to express them by Joan and Mercedes. Chris has taken some unjustifiable partisan heat for his recent Walrus magazine article about Calgary. I believe that the city is actually finally ready for an honest look at itself, and the Massacre at the Max confirmed that for me.

When Chris announced that he was running, I was literally elated. Here at last was the kind of person I could support without reservation for political office—extremely well-versed in a broad range of crucial policy issues, a political “outsider” and not a “party hack”, extremely smart and articulate, and standing for public office for good and honorable reasons.

When Joan won the CPC nomination, I immediately flashed back to the Walrus debate, and simply knew that I could not accept being “represented” by her. Simply negate every reason for supporting Chris from the preceding paragraph and add a bunch more I need not list for the explanation. Meanwhile, Harvey Locke and Dan Meades are both decent, honorable guys, but the bottom line is that they’re both too (in)vested in the existing problematic political parties and dynamics that have hijacked and arrested public discourse in Canada for far too long.

As I said already, I am a lapsed Green Party member (and, for that matter, a lapsed Liberal and NDP member in various provinces as well). I am not voting for Chris Turner in Calgary Centre out of any party allegiance. I am voting for him—and doing what little I can to support his campaign—because he has ideas but is not an ideologue; because the “real”, diverse Calgary needs a diversity of voices in Ottawa and not a monolithic block of sycophants and toadies; and because we—not just Calgarians but all Canadians—stand to benefit tremendously from the reasonable, necessary, and positive perspective he will bring to public policy discussions and decisions.

I will be working as a poll clerk on November 26^th, so I will of course be entirely non-partisan that day. But before that day, I will do everything I can to support the Turner campaign. And I will look forward to a new political reality in Calgary after that day—a reality in which my voice in political conversation and (infinitely more importantly!) my actual vote are truly meaningful.

“I think it’s going to motivate particularly voters for the Greens, the NDP and the Liberals,” Lori Williams of Mount Royal University said Tuesday, shortly after Justin Trudeau spoke at a rally in support of Liberal candidate Harvey Locke.

Trudeau is the latest in a series of high-profile federal politicians to weigh in on the byelection, which has been attracting more and more interest from Canadians outside of Alberta.

That creates a “huge incentive” to vote, Williams said, especially for riding residents eager to show off a different side of Calgary, which has become known for routinely electing Conservatives in landslides.

But that stereotype is starting to change, according to Green Party candidate Chris Turner, who was pegged in a recent poll at a close third in the race with 25 per cent support.

“I think generally speaking people are kind of curious about Calgary these days,” Turner said. “Our politics has been very exciting and unpredictable.”

University of Calgary professor Barry Cooper questions the accuracy of that poll, but believes it could play into the Conservative candidate’s hands.

“If the narrative is that Joan Crockatt is in a tight race, then that will have the effect of inspiring the Conservative voters to get out (and vote),” he said.

Locke, meanwhile, is playing up his second-place poll result and calling the election a “two-horse race.”

For his part, NDP candidate Dan Meades said “we don’t put any credence in these polls, at all.”

Crockatt was unavailable for comment Tuesday.

The byelection is Monday, Nov. 26.

She is a Conservative Candidate in a Calgary Centre Bye-Election. There was a debate on Sunday at Calgary Centre Riding. The debate was focusing on city issues. Crockett decided to go door knocking on Sunday instead.

This drew the ire of Mayor Nenshi, which you can read here. http://beaconnews.ca/blog/2012/11/mayor-nenshi-calls-out-tory-joan-crockatt-for-missing-debate/

Now this will not be the first or the last time candidates have missed forums. As a matter of fact, Mayor Nenshi might remember that in the previous mayoral election, there were many candidates that did is forums. It happens in provincial elections as well.

So, do you think it is a fair expectation that all candidates should go to the debates or forums? Are some overreacting to Joan Crockatt?

The Mayor’s Office hosted the Cities Matter forum in conjunction with the Calgary Public Library and several community associations Sunday and extended the invite to all candidates whose parties have sitting members in parliament.

Boo’s came from the audience when Conservative candidate Joan Crockatt — the only candidate not in attendance — was announced, and the digs didn’t stop there.

In between discussing issues such as a National Transit Strategy, arts and culture funding, and additional federal funding for municipal infrastructure, the three candidates made their opinions of the Conservative government known.

“What we’re talking about here is a political dynasty that has become lazy,” said Dan Meades of the NDP party. “We don’t see them between elections — in fact, we don’t see them during elections.”

Following the forum, Nenshi said he was pleased with the grasp the three attending candidates have on important city issues, as it relates to the federal government.

“What I’m really looking forward to is finding out what Ms. Crockatt’s answers to these questions are,” he said.

Nenshi addressed a tweet Crockatt had sent him the night prior, which stated “@Nenshi – Hope you give the Conservative Party credit tomorrow for giving cities stable, predictable funding through the $2 B gas tax!”

“I thought it was odd that she asked me to deliver her talking points for her when she had the opportunity to do it herself,” he said.

Calls made to Crockatt’s campaign office Sunday were not returned.

Forum facts:

• There were two other candidates who were not invited to the forum, as they are not members of a party with sitting members in the parliament.
• Those two candidates are Tony Prashad (Libertarian Party) and Antoni Grochowski (Independent).
• The Calgary Centre by-election will take place on Nov. 26.

1 Calgary Centre is a website which encourages Calgarians to register for a pre-election vote on Nov. 22 — four days prior to the election — in order to determine which of three “progressive” candidates is most likely to garner the most votes to defeat supposed front-runner, Conservative Joan Crockatt.

The three candidates listed on the 1calgarycentre.com are Chris Turner running for the Green Party, Harvey Locke with the Liberal Party, and NDP candidate Dan Meades.

“We’re not anything but Conservative, we’re all for progressive and that is the difference in our narrative,” said one of the members of 1 Calgary Centre, Brian Singh.

He said their intention is to make information available to both the voters and the candidates before the ballots are in the box.

“It’s better to happen before election day than on election day”

Mount Royal University political science associate professor Keith Brownsey said strategic voting is nothing new.

“It’s a very nice idea,” said Brownsey. “It may impact the votes of some individuals, but I don’t think that it will have a determining effect on the election outcome.”

Registration for 1 Calgary Centre closes on Nov. 21. A vote will be held on the evening of Nov. 22 through a password-protected email, and the results will be made available on Nov. 23.

I strongly endorse Chris’s candidacy and encourage you to vote for his campaign. Check out his campaign site and the reddit AMA to learn more.

Said Ms. Crockatt: “If I’m a backbench MP, I’m just fine doing that. To me, the job is to support the Prime Minister in whatever way that he thinks.”

What utter nonsense.

Ms. Crockatt may only have spent a short time as a candidate for election, but she has spent a great deal of time in politics. At the very least, one would expect she would know that the job of the Member of Parliament is to represent constituents, not blindly fall in line with the ideas of one man. She should know better than she let on. Everyone should.

Ergo, a very brief history lesson:

Parliament was born when people with skin in the game decided they deserved a say on how it was played.

Land-holders from across the English kingdom demanded, and won, the right to act as a check against the unbridled authority of the King. As the system developed and democratized, elected Members of Parliament became the local voices that worked to limit the executive power of the Crown through the ability to debate and vote on legislation the King desired. They even earned the right to propose legislation of their own.

As the Westminster system developed, our structure of governance became one with three equal branches. Those branches set and maintain the legal and political order. They are the Executive branch (Crown), the Legislative branch (Parliament) and the Courts. The Crown is represented in government by the Prime Minister and the Cabinet. Parliament is comprised of its Members, the MPs we elect from our local constituencies. (The courts of law are for another discussion). Through this system, a Member of Parliament – which Ms. Crockatt aspires to be – is a part of the Legislative branch, unless appointed to cabinet. Even backbench Members in the ruling party’s caucus are a part of the Legislative branch of government.

In enlightening us with her opinion on the job that may be before her, Ms. Crockatt, a candidate for federal office, described a system which is the exact opposite of reality. And while it is likely that, if elected, Ms. Crockatt would blindly support the government, doing so is not actually her job description. That would be fundamentally contrary to the system we have, and the fact that this is not basic common knowledge is a serious problem. Not unlike a three-legged stool, our system of government requires an equilibrium between its branches. When members of the legislative branch find it their absolute duty to agree with the head of government “in whatever he thinks” we return to a system of authoritarianism which has been obsolete for hundreds and hundreds of years.

Does Ms. Crockatt not know this, or does she simply not care?

Either way, statements like these show Joan Crockatt, and others who think like her, to be unfit for the position to which they aspire. Getting the job description right should be a minimum requirement here. We really aren’t asking for much.

The last time someone other than a conservative held the riding was … uh, oh yeah … never. True, it has been known to swing between the Red Tory and bedrock Conservative wings of the party, shifting between Reform/Canadian Alliance and the old Progressive Conservatives. Former prime minister Joe Clark held it for a time, and Joe doesn’t get invited to a lot of meals at 24 Sussex these days.

The nomination comes with automatic election to the House of Commons and a salary of $157,731 plus perks. Unlike the Senate, there is no automatic retirement age. And, as fellow Calgary MP Rob Anders has shown, no amount of embarrassment is enough to lose a Calgary Tory their job in Ottawa.  No wonder five other candidates contested the job (which is more challengers than there usually are parties in a federal election). All they needed was to come first among about the 1,800 local riding members eligible to vote, and the future was secure. Divide 1,800 votes six ways, and you can appreciate it’s a rich gift in the hands of a few hundred voters.

The only danger to Crockatt, a former managing editor of the Calgary Herald, comes from within the party. Lee Richardson, who held the seat before taking a job with the provincial Tories, was considered a moderate, while Crockatt is considered more in line with the Wildrose party, the upstart provincial party that occupies territory to the right of the provincial PCs. Richardson backed on of Crockatt’s rivals, Greg McLean. Veteran Herald columnist Don Braid writes that  Calgary Centre is “one of the most politically and socially diverse ridings between Toronto and Vancouver. If the Conservatives fail to pick a moderate like Greg McLean, many byelection voters will have a hard look at the Liberals.”

Naturally, Crockatt appealed for unity after her victory. She will have to win a byelection to cement her guaranteed income job in the House.

“Now is the time for all of us to come together and say ‘we’re all Conservatives,’” she urged.
…It’s not over. We want to take a breath, we want to take a little break, and then we want to come back and redouble our efforts because our real opponents are the NDP and the Liberals. We want to make sure we put up a very strong fight and keep Calgary Centre strong in the upcoming byelection.”

If she wins the byelection and just one general election, she qualifies for the fat MP pension plan. Isn’t politics wonderful?

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Although the affectation is rarely adopted outside Stampede hours, the would-be MP has worn it ever since.

“I got it as soon as I got here because when you’re door knocking, the sun can kill you,” he said. “You’re spending 10 to 12 hours a day outside, you’ve got to cover your head. Some of your colleagues think it’s funny and they’ve been calling me Calgary Joe.”

[np-related]

He’s fine with it, though.

“I wear it with pride. It was out of practical necessity… I plan to keep it. And, in fact, I’ll bring it to Ottawa, too. I’ve checked the parliamentary rules. I can wear it in the House of Commons without any problems.”

Mr. Soares moved to Alberta about a month ago to vie for what has been described as one of the safest seats in Canadian politics.

Former MP Lee Richardson left the riding vacant several months ago to work under premier Alison Redford. Since then, an eclectic collection of Tory candidates have proffered their names for consideration. Just under 2,000 Conservatives are eligible to vote in the six-way preferential ballot race that will almost certainly pick the eventual MP for the seat. The candidates’ policies seem less varied than their political friendships.

The nomination vote is to be held on August 25. A date for the byelection has yet to be declared.

“It’s a contest about who sold the most memberships, and given that this is occurring in the summer, people have other commitments, it’s going to be difficult to mobilize the supporters,” said Chaldeans Mensah, political science professor at Grant MacEwan University.

It’s a contest about who sold the most memberships, and given that this is occurring in the summer, people have other commitments, it’s going to be difficult to mobilize the supporters

Mr. Mensah said the race is likely to come down to political commentator and former local journalist Joan Crockatt and late-entrant and agent to Mr. Richardson, Greg McLean.

The professor said Ms. Crockatt is more likely to draw support from the political types who endorsed the provincial Wildrose party in the most recent election. By comparison, Mr. McLean, who received Mr. Richardson’s endorsement, is apt to pull votes from Red Tories.

“Just from my observation post here, it appears that there are some slight overtones of the Wildrose, [provincial Progressive Conservative] divisions at play,” he said.

But Ms. Crockatt insists the Conservatives are united in Calgary — any rumours to the contrary are merely opportunistic.

“Definitely from the left, they would love to see the Conservatives split again, because that was their opportunity,” she said.

Ms. Crockatt credits her experience as a journalist, a conservative commentator, energy reporter and her support of the prime minister as among her leading credentials. Unlike other candidates, she added, she has no Plan B if she were to lose the nomination.

“I don’t think journalism is an option once you’ve crossed the line over into politics. I wouldn’t be seen as an independent analyst anymore,” she said.

Aside from Ms. Crockatt, Mr. Soares and Mr. McLean, other candidates include long-time Calgary lawyer Rick Billington, QC, former alderman and video-rental store owner Jon Lord, and Stefan Spargo.

Calgary Centre, the former home of Joe Clark, has never been anything but blue or Reform-green.

“It’s much more transient, much more multi-ethnic, much younger and more resembling other parts of Canada than other parts of Calgary,” said David Taras, a professor at Mount Royal University. “You would think that, based on what we know of the riding, that it’s made for a Red Tory, and that somebody further to the right, a Wildrose Tory, would not do as well.”

Unlike other Alberta ridings, the Conservatives tend to win by comparatively smaller margins in Calgary Centre. The seat might, therefore, be vulnerable to an upset if a centrist candidate in the mold of Naheed Nenshi were to emerge. Failing that, Mr. Taras said the race for the Conservative nomination is likely to be more interesting than the byelection.

“It’s a job for life. It’s one of those rare prizes that comes up,” he said.

That’s why Mr. Soares was keen to snap at it.

“I’ve always admired Alberta from afar and find Alberta and Albertans fascinating. Great people. So moving to Alberta and moving to Calgary in particular wasn’t a great leap of faith. It’s something my wife and I have been thinking about actively for some time, notwithstanding this campaign. We would have done this move anyway.”

Mr. Soares grew up in Gatineau and left his job in Ottawa as a policy advisor with the prime minister’s office. His Quebec roots put him in a unique position to defend Alberta’s interests against what he terms the “socialist wrecking crew.”

“I know Thomas Mulcair intimately. I know the NDP very well, being from Quebec. I think Mr. Mulcair is a very ambitious man who will stop at nothing to reach his goals. If that means pitting one province and one region against the other, I don’t think he’ll lose a minute of sleep over it.”

Mr. Billington, a longtime resident who attended the University of Calgary as the “Calgary School” was giving rise to Stephen Harper and other like-minded politicos, said he could build bridges between the Wildrose and Red Tory wings of the party. Against the NDP, on the other hand: “[Mr. Mulcair’s] outright attack on the oilsands is clearly an attempt to revive nationally divisive politics, to play one side of the country of the other side. Stephen Harper has been very careful to avoid that kind of politicking.”

Mr. Billington has long-standing ties to the Conservative party as a delegate and as a member of its national policy committee. He has even participated in several of the prime minister’s Stampede BBQs.

“I was strongly encouraged to run within Calgary Centre by good Conservatives who all came to me. They sized up the field and felt there was room for a candidate with strong credentials within the Conservative party and stronger professional credentials,” he said.

I was strongly encouraged to run within Calgary Centre by good Conservatives who all came to me

While Mr. Billington can boast a long-running law firm in the city, Mr. McLean is the only candidate with a financial background.

Despite reports to the contrary, Mr. McLean said he is “not at all” a Red Tory. Although he remains progressive on social issues, on all things economic, the candidate said he remains fiscally conservative.

“I think I understand the economic issues quite well. I’ve seen the mistakes of government intervention in certain sectors of our economy,” he said. “I don’t think, among the business community, anyone has more resonance than me.”

At least two candidates have announced intentions to seek the Liberal nomination; conservationist Harvey Locke and Rahim Sajan. The nominee will be chosen Sept. 15.

National Post

Joe Soares has always admired Alberta from afar. And last month, he made the move to Calgary.

The multilingual businessman and former PMO Quebec issues management adviser was born and raised in Gatineau, but visited Calgary several times and has now rented an apartment in the inner city. His wife Lisa is house-shopping.

He’s not wasting any time getting settled.

Soares, who also calls himself “Calgary Joe,” is one of six federal Conservatives vying in the party’s nomination race for the upcoming byelection in Calgary Centre.

Although his campaign website says he will not be granting interviews, Soares sat down for a talk at the Herald building last week.

“I’m a Conservative. I’m not ashamed of it and I don’t think I should apologize for it. So if the ground in Quebec or wherever I would be living isn’t appropriate, then I have to find a place where I’m home.”

Why Calgary? Soares, 38, agrees with Prime Minister Stephen Harper:  “Calgary is the best city, in the best country in the world. . .I think Calgary has a special spirit to it.”

Many eyes are trained on the Conservative nomination vote at the end of the month that will decide who will carry the banner for the governing party, and some of the chatter has focused on whether Soares is using the rare opening of a Calgary seat to find an easy route to the government benches in the House of Commons.

But Soares doesn’t think his status as a newcomer matters.

“I think the Calgary race was a good opportunity, so I took it,” he says. “We planned to move to Calgary and that’s what we’ve done.”

Soares says he’s the perfect person to represent Calgary Centre because he understands the ways of Tom Mulcair and knows how to protect the province’s oilsands industry from the federal NDP leader’s “socialist wrecking crew.”

“I know them intimately. I know how they work, how they operate,” he says. “I’m the best candidate to face their threat because they are the only legitimate threat we have now in Calgary Centre.”

Soares says he has been door-knocking for more than two weeks – always wearing a white cowboy hat – and has heard about the issues that matter to Calgary Centre residents.

He also says his campaign is only one that has made specific commitments, such as supporting the reform of Canada’s equalization system and never supporting tax increases. He’s using demon dialers to reach party members and his news releases target fellow entrant Joan Crockatt, a political commentator and former Herald editor, for what he says is her lack of specific policies.

The nomination vote will take place on Saturday, Aug. 25. A public forum with all the contenders will be held the day before – exact times and locations are yet to be announced by the party.

The other contenders in the Conservative nomination battle are Rick Billington, Jon Lord, Greg McLean and Stefan Spargo. A byelection date has not yet been set.

Rick Billington – whose long political involvement includes serving on the Conservative party national policy committee -  said Friday he was getting into the race.

He joins pundit Joan Crockatt, former alderman and MLA Jon Lord,  businessman Jordan Katz and riding executive Stefan Spargo in the contest for the nomination to replace Lee Richardson, who resigned as Calgary Centre’s MP to become Premier Alison Redford’s principal secretary.

Ald. John Mar this week pulled out of the contest.

With an August 2 deadline to get into the race there has been a perception in some circles that party heavyweights are throwing their support to Crockatt.

 But Billington said he doesn’t think that’s the case.

“The perception I have is that I’ve got substantial party support that is actually lining up behind me. It comes from longstanding Conservative members and then also people who are more recent members of the party,” said Billington, who served as emcee at Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s recent Stampede barbecue. 

“The people who came to me felt they could find stronger candidates for the position and they expressed to me that they thought I was the candidate to do it.”

Meanwhile a former Quebec Tory organizer and PMO staffer named Joe Soares has created a web site announcing his candidacy for the Calgary Centre nod.

Soares’ web page – full of red meat attacks on the federal NDP – says he’s too busy to do media interviews and he did not respond to an email seeking comment.

Calgary Centre riding association president Glenn Solomon said he doesn’t know Soares.

“I’ve never heard of Joe Soares. He’s free to seek the nomination if he wants to. We’re an open party,” he said.

As it turns out, the Canadian Jon Lord is a Calgary businessman and politican looking to win the Conservative nomination for Calgary Centre after Lee Richardson stepped down.  A former alderman and MLA, he also failed in his bid to become mayor–finishing in a distant sixth place with just 0.4 per cent of the vote, and also failed to secure his riding’s nomination in the last provincial election, which was won by the eventual PC Candidate, Christine Cusanelli.  But that’s not to say he’s a complete failure.  According to his bio (scroll down for it), he’s a “long-term member” of MENSA, that organization for people with genius-level IQs, a provincial judo silver-medalist who’s “also studied street-fighting and knife and sword techniques” and the long-time owner of Casablanca Video in Marda Loop.  He also looks awfully cute and cuddly in a cowboy hat:

“Vote for me, or the puppy gets it!”

That said, for all his accomplishments, web design is definitely not his forte.  His, ugly, primitive Web 1.0 site features a distracting dissected picture of the Calgary sideline split by a grey background with a variety of text shapes and sizes (I’m pretty sure he uses Comic Sans for some quotes, even!), not to mention a logo that looks like it’s straight from 1972.  The pages are far too content heavy, and if you actually bother to scroll through all that text, you’ll find that while the initial paragraphs mention Calgary Centre, he talks about an awful lot that isn’t federal jurisdiction in his mission statement, and still mentions how he’d be a great candidate for mayor.  Guess even he couldn’t go through all that text to make the updates!

Mind you, if he hasn’t put any effort into jazzing up his site, it may be because he’s not considered a top candidate for the nomination.  This iPolitics article, which actually quotes Lord quite, erm, liberally, suggests that it could be a two-horse race between ex-journalist Joan Crockatt and current alderman John Mar–though I’m sure Lord’s campaign might’ve gotten a small boost from all those Deep Purple fans curious about the Canadian site with all the Calgary-related keywords.

The former alderman, Progressive Conservative MLA and mayoral candidate is expected to soon formally enter the race for the Conservative nomination in the federal riding of Calgary Centre.

“An announcement is fairly imminent, yes. I’m at the stage of dotting the i’s and crossing the t’s,” Lord said Monday.

“I’ve been encouraged by a lot of people that are familiar with my previous work in the district. They really strongly feel I should run.”

There are two candidates seeking the Tory nod so far – Ward 8 alderman John Mar and consultant Joan Crockatt. Lawyer Andy Crooks had announced a Tory run and then backed out of the race.

The seat was vacated with the resignation of Lee Richardson to serve as principal secretary to Premier Alison Redford.

Beena Ashar, who has run for city council and for the Liberals in Calgary-Elbow in the spring provincial election, has announced she is seeking the Liberal nomination. Other candidates are also expected to run for the Liberal slot.

William Hamilton, the provincial Evergreen candidate in Calgary-Elbow and the Green Party standard-bearer in Calgary Centre in 2011, has also announced on Twitter he would again seek to run again under the Green banner.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper must call the byelection before the end of the year although the actual vote could be as late as early 2013.

The Facebook site went up last night. Crockatt, a former managing editor at the Calgary Herald who now is a constant presence on Twitter, said she believes “the people of Calgary Centre deserve an MP who will actively promote our province’s energy industry and tell its story at each and every opportunity.”

“As someone who has called Calgary Centre home for the past 17 years, and as a strong supporter of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, I will bring a new passion and energy to Parliament, and push hard on the issues that matter to our riding.”

Crockatt joins a growing list of candidates expected to run for the nomination, including Calgary city Ald. John Mar and Sean Chu, a police officer and former provincial and civic candidate.

A story a day could probably be written about the potential candidates, or the speculation about potential candidates. But Calgary Centre is highly sought-after (red?) Tory territory, after all. Other former MPs include Joe Clark and Harvie Andre.

Richardson, who is well liked by members in all parties, is taking a job as a senior aide (principal secretary) to Alberta Premier Alison Redford, a longtime friend.

The affable MP, whose political roots trace back to working for former Tory prime minister John Diefenbaker and past Alberta PC premier Peter Lougheed, delivered a heartfelt goodbye speech Wednesday in the House of Commons, which drew applause and handshakes from MPs on both sides of the House.

Here’s his full speech, along with comments from the opposition.

Lee Richardson:

“Mr. Speaker, I rise in the House to inform you of my resignation as the member for Calgary Centre.

Serving in this House on two different occasions, in two different centuries, has been the greatest honour of my life.

From 1988 to 1993, I was privileged to serve as the member of Parliament for Calgary Southeast in the government of Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, whose achievements included the free trade agreement and the acid rain accord, two landmark agreements between Canada and the United States.

Since 2004, I have been equally privileged to serve as the member for Calgary Centre and, since 2006, in the government of Canada’s 22nd prime minister, the right hon. member for Calgary Southwest.

To both prime ministers, I thank them for the honour of serving in their caucus. Each has remarkable listening skills when it comes to leading a united caucus, the most important leadership attribute in our parliamentary system.

This Prime Minister has reunited our party and brought it from political wilderness to government, where he leads our country with great distinction.

As a Calgarian, I think all Calgarians take great pride that our country is led by one of our own. I am proud to have served in his government and am grateful for his friendship and support.

I am equally proud of Laureen Harper, a wonderful chatelaine of 24 Sussex and ambassador for Canada.

I first sat in the members’ gallery, and some members will recall me saying not long ago, 40 years ago, as executive assistant to the Right Hon. John Diefenbaker, Canada’s 13th prime minister. He was no longer leader of the Progressive Conservative Party at that time, but he was still master of this House, the greatest parliamentarian of his time. It was a privilege to have known him and have worked with him on his memoirs, One Canada. There was never a more partisan figure in this House than Mr. Diefenbaker, but he was, above all, a man of this House.

If I could share one thought with colleagues, it would be this. While we advocate for different ideas of Canada, we are all Canadians and we all love our country. We would all, I think, do well to remember that and leave the partisan furies at the water’s edge.

There are many people I would like to thank, many people to be thanked, beginning with the voters of my two ridings who sent me here in five elections.

I would like to thank the volunteers and supporters in my Calgary association and my dedicated staff who have served me so well over the years.

In particular, I want to thank Lynda MacKay, my executive assistants, who is now the longest-serving staffer on Parliament Hill. Just last week, she received the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Medal for her decades of unbroken service.

I am leaving to take up a new opportunity as principal secretary to the premier of Alberta, Alison Redford. This is an exciting challenge at a moment when Alberta’s new premier is claiming Alberta’s leadership role in the Canadian federation in a way that only Peter Lougheed, among her predecessors, has done.

To my friends here, goodbye for now. I hope to see all of you at the 100th anniversary of the Calgary Stampede this July. It has been an honour to be in your company.”

NDP House leader Nathan Cullen:

“Mr. Speaker, I await my call from the Premier of Alberta but it is a long time in coming.

As my friend receives salutations and congratulations from many of our colleagues around the House, he can look at these blues later for my comments. I consider him a friend, and do so much because of the way he just responded and told us about his life and experience here.

I thank him for his many invitations to the Stampede and we now all have one for the centennial, which is great.

I also must commend him. This life, this work is not often kind to us and for somebody who can reflect back to days with former prime minister Diefenbaker, I must say the time has been remarkably good to my friend from Calgary Centre. He is looking great. We wish him the very best from the New Democratic Party of Canada and from all the citizens we represent.”

Interim Liberal leader Bob Rae:

“Mr. Speaker, these events are somewhat like Tom Sawyer’s funeral where he had the benefit of attending so he could hear the eulogies. The hon. member for Calgary Centre is in exactly that position.

I simply say, as somebody who I suspect has been hanging around the House of Commons perhaps even a little longer he has, what a great privilege it has been to serve with him in this House.

His words to us were well expressed and a worthy reminder of how important a very simple word like “civility” really is. Civility does not just apply to whether we are polite with one another. Civility also applies to how the House itself is run. All of us who have had a chance to work with the member for Calgary Centre, whether on committee where he has served as a very effective and fair-minded chair; whether in the House itself where his interventions have always been singularly well-spoken, positive and thoughtful; or in private conversations, it can be said that he is someone who is constantly reaching out to all sides of the House to not only establish political relationships but also to establish personal relationships.

De la part du Parti libéral du Canada, nous offrons à notre ami, le député de Calgary-Centre, tous nos meilleurs voeux pour la tâche qu’il accomplira dans l’avenir. Je pense qu’il n’y a personne de plus qualifié que lui pour faire ce travail, non seulement pour la province d’Alberta et pour le premier ministre de cette province, mais pour tout le Canada.

I know the hon. member served a similar role at the time of the premiership to Peter Lougheed. I can think of no one in the country who is more qualified to serve the Premier of Alberta who, I must say, contrary to what has been said by the House Leader of the Official Opposition, has certainly always returned my phone calls without any difficulty. Maybe he has the wrong number. However, just to say I cannot think of anybody more qualified, not only to serve her and the people of Alberta but also to serve the people of Canada. We wish him well.”

Green Party leader Elizabeth May:

“Mr. Speaker, I was very emotional as my dear friend from Calgary Centre stood to announce his resignation. I worked, as some may know, as senior policy advisor to the federal minister of the environment in the Mulroney office and one of the luckiest breaks I ever got was when the hon. member for Calgary Centre, who worked in the prime minister’s office, took the time to help advance an issue and make sure that the great environmental goals of that government were achieved.

It has been one of the greatest pleasures for me to serve in Parliament with an old and dear friend. However, he is not that old. I want to clear something up. He first worked with John Diefenbaker when he was only four or five years old. I do not know what use he possibly was to the prime minister in that era, but it speaks well of Progressive Conservative policies for child labour that we still have the hon. member for Calgary Centre among us and we will miss him very much.

I wish him the best of luck with the Alberta government.”

Although I won’t be getting involved in any sort of significant way in the federal election I will be remaining engaged and informed about the candidates, the race itself and the issues. There is often an attitude surrounding federal elections in Alberta – one of apathy and disinterest. I challenge you to think differently this time around.

Lee Richardson’s visit to the University of Calgary last year was an unforgettable moment for me. I really did leave inspired – and I still tell the story of Lee coming in and sharing with the students in a casual and personal way. I had never experienced a politician coming to deliver a speech and then moving the chairs into a circle, sitting down and engaging with students. It was simple and genuine. It was exactly what the students needed and it perfectly exemplified what Lee was all about. Lee is about real connections with real people. Those people are young, old, engaged or political newborns.  

He is a fantastic representative of Calgary and is a reason why I will vote CPC in the May election.

Whatever your reasons, get engaged and get out to vote. Your opinion matters. Inspiring individuals that give all Albertans their time the way Lee does deserve at least a bit of your attention.

Happy #elxn41!

CR xo

On March 26 the UCCCA hosted MP Lee Richardson for an afternoon of casual conversation and light refreshments. As our conversation with him began it became clear why he was the perfect choice to come speak to university students – he was encouraging, inspiring and reminded all of us that the future ahead of each of us is what we choose to make it.  

I sat fascinated by his stories about his time at the University of Calgary – his time in the Conservative Association, attending his first national convention, and his role on the Students’ Union as a strong conservative voice. His journey continued in politics as a young adult. I won’t forget the moment he said “…and then I turned 24″; I had to laugh because at that point in his life he already seemed to have a lifetime worth of accomplishments. But, lucky for us, he continued on to become a highly respected advisor to top politicians, and a powerful voice for Calgarians as an elected Member of Parliament.  

I am so glad Mr. Richardson could come to share with us – walking away encouraged is what I believe these events should be about. That is why I love my role in the UCCCA. 

If we learned anything from Mr. Richardson it was to keep following our dreams and never give up on what we believe in. I’m excited about the possibilities that are ahead of all UCCCA members.  

Thanks for inspiring all of us Lee!

Christina
UCCCA President

Cross Posted on March 30, 2010