The Alberta PCs are holding their nomination meeting in Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview tonight. A Conservative bird informed me that the Tories in Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview were causing a stir a couple of months ago when they threatened to hold a "protest nomination meeting" to protest the PC party's nomination rules.
Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview should be an interesting race and is definitely in the 'one's to watch' column. With NDP MLA Ray Martin running for re-election, he will face a strong challenge from Alberta Liberal Dawit Isaac. Depending who the Tories nominate in Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview, it could get even more interesting. Martin defeated Liberal-turned-Tory MLA Julius Yankowski in 2004. Yankowski was elected as an Alberta Liberal in 1993, but quickly crossed the floor to wilt away in the Tory backbenches until 2004.
Further south, there's the question of what's going on in Calgary-Montrose. It seems that all has been quiet on the Calgary-Montrose front with no Tory nomination meeting schedules for this east Calgary constituency. With Calgary-Montrose Tory MLA Hung Pham (aka the MIA MLA) having ties to those connected with the Ward 10 scandal in the 2004 Calgary municipal election, I'm sure Pham is a caucus member that many Tory MLAs wouldn't miss being associated with. In 2004, various Calgary-Montrose Tories ended up in court after challenger Gus Barron was disqualified from the Tory nomination race.
The ND's have been nominating a flurry of candidates across the province. In the new hotbed of the New Democratic revolution, Tophie Davies will carry the NDP banner against Tory Luke Ouellette in Innisfail-Sylvan Lake. Also in the ND corner, Sidney Sadik was nominated in Edmonton-Decore. Sadik will face incumbent-Alberta Liberal MLA Bill Bonko and Tory candidate and former Catholic School Trustee Janice Sarich.
Also, it looks like the ND's are setting up to nominate an ND-sized big candidate in Edmonton-Gold Bar to take on Alberta Liberal MLA Hugh MacDonald (Janice Melnychuk?). Edmonton-Gold Bar has been one of the strongest Alberta Liberal supporting constituencies since 1986 when former Edmonton City Councillor Bettie Hewes was elected. Hewes served as MLA until 1997, when Hugh MacDonald was first elected. In 2004, MacDonald was re-elected with the second largest margin of victory in the province.
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Beverly-Clareview won't be close. Who the heck is Dawit Issac anyways? Way to try to put Liberal spin on a fairly solid NDP riding there Dave.
ReplyDeleteAlso your other info seems off. Janice Melnychuk has repeatedly said to the media that she is much happier now that she's left public life. I doubt she'll run again, at any level, anytime soon. If she was going to run for the NDP, they would have ran her somewhere they had a better shot, like in Manning.
You sure seem to have a lot to say about the extremists on the right and those on the left of the world lately. What's wrong, you can't find anything bad to say about Ed Stelmach & the government of the day?
No, I suppose not. Kevin Taft as premier wouldn't be all that different...
Who is Dawit Isaac? Isaac is pretty well known in the constituence, through his local advocacy and membership to community groups. He also has had an active role in the African community of Edmonton. For all these reasons he has a legitimate shot to unseat Ray Martin.
ReplyDeleteFran in Medicine Hat remarks: I agree that Isaac has a shot...he is personable, energetic, young (attractive) and has a solid community rep. I was pretty impressed with him when I chatted at a couple of Liberal events. Actually, I'm surprised that Martin is running again, he seems so much more frail than in his "glory days." But alas, age catches up to all of us, but a year or go or so I had heard rumours of his retirement.
ReplyDeleteMelnychuk would be an incredible MLA, but Gold Bar is the wrong riding for her. If she were going to run it should be in Manning or Beverly-Clareview. Maybe when the NDP get the sense to get rid of Mason, she will run in Highlands, but until then...
ReplyDeleteMelnychuk is not running. The NDP is running Sherry McKibben in Gold Bar. McKibben was briefly a city councillor for ward three back in the 90s. She also served as the NDP Chief of Staff, and recently managed Lewis Cardinal's municipal campaign in Ward Four. She'll improve the NDP vote a bit, particulaly north of the river, but Hugh shouldn't lose too much sleep.
ReplyDeleteIsaac is the founder of a small, fundamentalist church with very un-liberal views on same sex marriage and abortion. A pretty weird fit for Taft's party. He will place third in Beverly.
"Isaac is the founder of a small, fundamentalist church with very un-liberal views on same sex marriage and abortion."
ReplyDeleteShades!
Well, I'm sure Dave will be able to spin it as to be something entirely different than the Chandler episode. Young David is a more effective member of the Official Opposition than most of the guys/gals occupying the benches in the Leg.
'Isaac is the founder of a small, fundamentalist church with very un-liberal views on same sex marriage and abortion.'
ReplyDeleteAny proof to justify these claims?
I don't know about an NDP revolution in Sylvan Lake, but Tophie Davies is a bit of a star recruit. He is also known as Christopher Davies - former Canadian Junior figure skater. http://www.goldenskate.com/articles/2003/070103.shtml
ReplyDeletehttp://www.dawitisaac.com/About%20Dawit.html
ReplyDelete*Community of Grace Church Leader.
Apparently they are an invisible force when it comes to the Interweb, so I could not find proof to either back up or refute the other Anon's claims.
It really doesn't matter though. Ray Martin, despite being a socialist, has always rode to victory in that area thanks to the strong Germanic community. I doubt any other candidate can break Mr. Martin's strong ties to this large voter block.
Ray Martin will win in a cakewalk. If you want to unseat a Dipper then look to Calder.
Between Kane and Elniski, I certainly don't see Eggen being unseated any time soon!
ReplyDeleteYeah, Kane is likely too GLBT for the good folks of Calder. Pretty standard small 'c' conservative north Edmonton riding...
ReplyDeleteOn the ND front, interesting that they are running all of the arabic candidates in the North (Sid Sadik in Decore, Ali Haymour in Castledowns)... does anyone know the history between former lib MLA Sine Chadi and Taft? Apparently there was quite a rift there, leading to Arab candidates for the NDP...
Time to start up the old Alberta Report blog again. I think Sherry McKibben has a better shot than people realize - the Lewis Cardinal, Amarjit Sohi, and Linda Duncan marks in Gold Bar and the fact that Hughie is a batshit crazy paranoiac will make it closer than people think, me thinks. Riverdale and Boyle-McCauley is strong NDP territory as well, for sure.