Alberta’s provincial election has been run and won and the outcome is clear — Wildrose rules rural Alberta and the NDP own the cities.
After 28 days of handshakes, public forums, open houses and baby kissing, the voters of the Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock riding elected Glenn van Dijken of the Wildrose Party to be their MLA.
His victory was decisive, claiming close to 1,000 more votes than the NDP’s Tristan Turner and 2,300 more than PC incumbent Maureen Kubinec.
With all 87 polls reporting, van Dijken claimed 7,205 votes, Turner netted 6,233, while Kubinec finished with 4,878
In just the Westlock area, van Dijken’s margin of victory was even greater jumping from 39.3 to 41.9 per cent of the vote and winning 20 polls.
Kubinec and the PCs saw greater support in the Westlock area than across the riding, going from 26.6 to 29.5 per cent locally.
However, Kubinec only won two of the 27 area polls — including Westlock-Brookside and the mobile booth — and suffered a crushing defeat in her home region of Naples.
Those extra numbers for the PCs meant that Turner was pushed into third place in the Westlock area with 28.5 per cent of the vote — despite the NDP winning the Westlock polls of Altador, Eastglen, and the hospital, as well as Clyde and Half Moon Lake.
Turnout across the riding was huge, with 65 per cent of eligible voters casting a ballot, up five per cent on the 2012 election. Locally that number held up, with a comparable number of residents voting.
Political pundits are divided on whether the PCs stunning capitulation was due to their own unpopularity, or a shift in the mood of the electorate to support for both the NDP and Wildrose.
Sources within the Kubinec camp said that while the incumbent retained a lot of personal support, that didn’t translate into votes for the PCs as people were keen to punish the party on a range of issues.
An unpopular budget, unwanted election, and a premier that was out of touch with voters were all given as reasons why people were unable to support the 44-year old Tory dynasty.
That apprehension and anticipation was on display from the candidates themselves on polling day.
Kubinec said she was “nervous, but excited” about the election and praised her campaign team for their effort.
“I’ve got an amazing group of volunteers,” she said.
“Their dedication is mind boggling. So that’s been really good, it’s been a really good team and we have had a lot of fun.”
Yet by 10 p.m. the fun had soured, with one source at the Kubinec post election event describing the mood in the room as “subdued” with supports surprised at the size of the spanking.
At 10 a.m. on May 5, NDP candidate Turner sensed that something special was in the offing.
“I think we’re on the verge of a new government in Alberta and what I have been hearing at the doors is nothing short of incredible,” he said.
Van Dijken was also positive, although unwilling to make the same kind of prediction as Tuner.
“Things have gone well,” van Dijken said. “It’s been a whirlwind of activity over the 28 days and now it’s in the hands of voters and I’m feeling good about it.
“You can always think of things you’d do differently but we’re happy with the ability to get the message out. The people have had the opportunity to hear from all the candidates and be able to make an informed decision.”
And informed is exactly what the voters were, with local and provincial news outlets dedicating thousands of column inches and hundreds of broadcast hours to the election.
Those stories and articles were generated from a number of open houses and campaign events including an all candidate debate at the Westlock Legion where all three hopefuls battled it out and voters go an opportunity to raise issues what were important to them.
