Chief Government Whip and Vancouver Island North MP John Duncan will oversee the Athabasca-Fort McMurray constituency until a new MP is elected, as is the practice for any political party that suddenly loses an MP.
“If a member resigns or dies, then the whip of their party basically oversees the day-to-day operations of those offices until a new member can be elected,” said Laura Smith, a spokesperson for the Government Whip office. “So it’s an official role taken on by the whips of all parties.”
The Athabasca-Fort McMurray seat has been vacant since former MP Brian Jean resigned Jan. 17. Elections Canada announced last Friday that the earliest a byelection may be held is on Monday, March 24, though as of press time, no date has been chosen.
The Chief Electoral Officer of Canada received notice that the seat is vacant just last Thursday; from that day, at least 11 days must pass (and as many as 180) before the byelection is called, and the election must be on a Monday at least 36 days after that.
“There always has to be (a byelection), and it’s up to the Prime Minister to call the byelection, and it’s going to be happening very soon, I believe,” said Adrianna Fedossow, who remains employed at what was Jean’s Fort McMurray office.
That office, said Fedossow, is still open, and constituents are encouraged to keep calling with their concerns.
“We’re sort of the vessel that would decide to bring it to the attention of MP Duncan,” said Fedossow. “We do help constituents as well, but really it’s MP Duncan that would take care of everything. He’s aware of what’s going on in the riding. He would address things as they need addressing.”
However, Smith said Duncan’s role as whip — aside from his usual work enforcing discipline amongst the Conservative Party — is simply to oversee the Athabasca-Fort McMurray office and make sure day-to-day functions are being carried out.
“It’s making sure the paperwork’s done for employees, making sure there’s employees there — that sort of thing,” Smith said.
When asked if Duncan would advocate for constituents’ concerns pre-byelection, an interval that could last more than seven months, Smith said, “There is no MP. Basically, you need to elect someone from there to represent there.”
She said the bulk of constituency work will be done by staff in Jean’s old office.
“They help when people have trouble navigating the federal bureaucracy, that sort of thing,” Smith said.
Fedossow said that prior to Jean’s resignation, “I was the communications and legislative director. Now that we don’t have an MP, I don’t know what my title is … constituency manager, I’m pretty sure.”
Still, she said, “It’s been a really smooth transition, and yes, we’re still receiving constituents’ concerns, and we’re dealing with things the same way that we would have when Mr. Jean was the person in our office.”
She said she was not aware of any matters that were left in limbo or only partially addressed at the time of Jean’s resignation.
The Fort McMurray office can be reached at 780-743-2201.
Jean’s former Athabasca office is closed.
