Calgary-Peigan

Named for the Peigan (also known as Piikani, Pikuni and Piikuni), one of the three nations of the Blackfoot Confederacy, whose traditional territories stretched along the foothills of the Rocky Mountains from present-day Rocky Mountain House south to Montana.

The district is located in eastern Calgary, containing the western part of Dover, and below it, Ogden, part of a gigantic industrial area.

On the river, the urban area has parks and an athletic park, the neighbourhoods of Ogden, Riverbend, Douglasdale and Douglasglen, Douglasdale Estates, the northern part of McKenzie Lake, Caravan Trailer Lodges and South Hill Mobile Home Park and the former hamlet of Shepard.

An irrigation canal cuts through the industry, there is a soccer centre in the middle of it all and at the bottom, three sewage plants.

It is bounded on the west by the Bow River and stretches to the eastern edge of Calgary, also including the sprawling industrial subdivisions around the CPR lands and Ralph Klein Park.

It is named for Peigan Drive, which forms part of its northern boundary.

ELECTION HISTORY

There was an early version of Calgary East until 1971, with Albert W. Ludwig of the Social Credit as the MLA. Then it was known as Calgary-Millican, held 1971-1975 by Art Dixon of Social Credit; followed by all PCs: Tom Donnelly 1975-1979; David Carter 1979-1982; Gordon Shrake 1982-1993.

Calgary-Millican was in much the same area as the present Calgary-Fort. In 1993, Calgary East was created, but the area continued to grow and Calgary-Fort was created by redistribution in 1997.

Wayne C.N. Cao (PC) was the first MLA in the new riding in 1997. He won big from 2001 and did well until a bare win in 2012. He retired in 2015, when Andy Bao Nguyen running for the Tories lost to Joe Ceci, NDP, who got just under half the vote.

In 2019, redistribution led to a game of political musical chairs, as Ceci moved to Calgary-Buffalo, which was made up of parts of Calgary-Fort that offered him strong support. The incumbent in Buffalo, Kathleen Ganley, moved over to Calgary-Mountain View.

UPC’s Tanya Fir won Calgary-Peigan in 2019 with double the vote of NDP’s Joe Pimlot.