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PC leadership hopefuls hitting the links

Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock constituents will have an opportunity to meet at least some of the candidates for the province’s top job next weekend.

Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock constituents will have an opportunity to meet at least some of the candidates for the province’s top job next weekend.

MLA Ken Kowalski said he has invited all six of the candidates who have declared their intention to run for the Progressive Conservative Party leadership to his 25th annual golf tournament June 18 in Barrhead.

“This is an opportunity for them to meet with members who will be voting, I’m sure, for one of them as leader,” Kowalski said.

The winner of the party’s leadership race will become premier and hold that position at least until the next provincial election, which is expected to be called for spring 2012.

Current MLAs Doug Griffiths, Doug Horner, Ted Morton and Alison Redford, along with former MLAs Gary Mar and Rick Orman, have already announced their intention to run for the leadership of the party.

As of press time, all the candidates had been invited but not all had committed to attend.

Kowalski said he wouldn’t speculate on who might come out on top, since more than 100,000 Albertans are likely to cast their vote for the leadership.

“Our party allows every citizen in Alberta to vote,” he said. “This is not a handful of selected delegates or candidates from 83 constituencies who make these decisions.”

Anyone with a party membership, which costs $5, will be able to vote for the party’s leader.

Kowalski said while it was impossible to predict who might win, he suggested Doug Horner might be the most popular because he was born and raised in Barrhead.

“I think there will be more interest in our area for Doug than for the rest of the candidates because he’s more well known,” he said.

As for his own intentions, Kowalski dismissed the idea he might file nomination papers by the July 20 deadline — he has been happy to serve the public as an MLA but the party’s leadership is something he’s never been interested in.

“The one thing a leader doesn’t have is any privacy. I’ve been doing this a long time and the little bit of privacy I have is important to me,” he said.

He cited the example of the recent controversy with Prime Minister Stephen Harper attending Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final series, with the seemingly innocent trip drawing harsh criticism.

“That’s the kind of stuff I just don’t want any part of,” he said.

He has faith that the leadership candidates who have put their names forward will be very capable of filling that role, however, regardless of who comes out on top.

“All in all, there’s great diversity. Every one of them is a very unique individual with very special talents, and some really unique stories,” he said. “I think people will be very impressed.”

While the golf tournament itself has sold out, everyone is welcome to attend a $20 dinner and silent auction to meet the candidates.

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