In the sea of Conservative blue in Alberta, just three seats went to other political parties, including one in Calgary. Liberal candidate Corey Hogan won in Calgary Confederation, defeating Conservative Jeremy Nixon. The Conservatives swept every other riding in the city, including the new Calgary McKnight riding. In his victory, Hogan told the media that he brings a unique perspective to the role of MP, given his extensive background working in the oil and gas sector. “We want to make sure that the policy intent of the government is well understood by industry and industry’s concerns are well understood by government,” he said, adding he fully understands this relationship. “There wasn’t a major pipeline project in the past 15 years that I wasn’t a part of – I was involved in Northern Gateway, Energy East, TMX and KXL to a lesser extent. “With that first-hand knowledge, I can speak to both sides and we can bridge that gap a bit.” Most of Edmonton’s ridings went blue, with just one seat for the Liberals and one for the NDP, which lost its party status on election night. Minority government not ideal One political expert CTV News spoke with said the Liberals may have won, but the situation they face isn’t the best scenario, especially when the country needs to focus on the U.S. trade dispute. “Going into negotiations with the United States with a very unpredictable president, it would be nice to have a very strong government that doesn’t have to keep going back to find out if it has support on things,” said University of Lethbridge political scientist Trevor Harrison. He also said that the new minority government could fuel talks on separation in Alberta. While the idea is still on the fringe, Harrison says many prominent figures are continuing to push the concept. Smith congratulates Carney In a statement Tuesday, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith congratulated Prime Minister-elect Mark Carney on his minority victory. She also expressed her thanks to Pierre Poilievre “for his powerful and principled advocacy” over the past decade. “Mr. Poilievre’s vision for a safer, more affordable, united and prosperous Canada drove the policy debate in this country for the last several years and has inspired millions to see the unique potential of our nation,” Smith wrote. “While Liberals and New Democrats demeaned and demonized Albertans, our values and our industries for political gain, Mr. Poilievre made empowering Albertans and our energy sector a cornerstone of his campaign.” Poilievre lost his seat in Ottawa’s Carleton riding to Liberal Bruce Fanjoy. Fanjoy received 42,374 votes, compared to 38,581 votes for Poilievre. She said she hopes Carney will work to “reset the relationship” between Ottawa and Alberta and calm the frustration she says many Albertans feel with the federal government. “As Premier, I will not permit the status quo to continue. Albertans are proud Canadians that want this nation to be strong, prosperous, and united, but we will no longer tolerate having our industries threatened and our resources landlocked by Ottawa.” With files from Mason DePatie and CTVNews.ca
