Alain Houle is making his debut as a political candidate by throwing his name into the running for the federal election as the Lakeland riding’s People’s Party of Canada representative.
Houle decided to step forward after researching the party and their leader, Maxime Bernier, and thought it was a group he could get behind.
“They really line-up with the way I think, and my personal values. I want to help move those forward, and I want to let people know about these ideas and values that we’re moving forward with,” explained Houle. “Also, to give the people of the Lakeland riding another choice on the ballot in October when they go to vote.”
Bernier left the federal Conservative Party in August 2018 and formed the People’s Party of Canada one month later.
The party’s platform will gradually be released in the coming weeks, and will mainly follow Bernier’s policies from when he ran for the leadership of the Conservative Party in 2016. Currently, it includes scrapping Canada’s supply management system, reducing the overall size of government, and ending all corporate subsidizes.
After hearing about Bernier briefly, Houle did further digging and discovered he agreed with what the party’s leader stood for.
“I like his boldness, his courage to speak out and about things that other politicians weren’t speaking about,” he said.
For Houle, his top priorities for the Lakeland are freedom of speech, issues facing indigenous communities, and pipelines.
Another important factor for him is a balanced federal budget.
“I think the nation shouldn’t be in the situation that it’s in now with the riches and the resources we have in this country, we should be at a surplus. We shouldn’t be spending what we are, or spending it the way we are,” he said, adding pipelines would assist with reducing the debts by getting Canadian resources to market.
Originally from Ontario, Houle currently lives in Vegreville with his wife and two-year-old daughter. He started working on an oil rig after relocating to Alberta when he was 19-years-old, and moved around the province before accepting a position with ATCO Electric as a power lineman.
Despite the fact that he doesn’t have much experience in politics, Houle believes his character and personality make him a great candidate.
“I’ve been a blue collar worker my whole life, so I’m in touch with the middle class and I know what we’re all about,” he noted.
Since winning the nomination for the Lakeland riding, he’s found that constituents aren’t too concerned with his lack of experience.
“I’m probably very unqualified for this job, but it doesn’t seem to really make a difference. Everybody I’ve talked to doesn’t care what my background is, they just really care how I’m speaking and, when they get to know me, they care about my character and the fact that I’ve stepped forward. They’re very appreciative of that, and that they actually have the choice in the next election. I feel that means more, and there’s more concern about who I am rather than what I’ve done in the past and what qualifies me for this.”
As he’s running for a party that’s relatively new, Houle encouraged constituents to read their platform, as it may align for residents with conservative values.
“What I would say is have a look at the People’s Party of Canada’s platform and just inform yourself. Have a look, read it over, and compare the two. If you still feel that a vote for the Conservative Party of Canada is what’s in your heart, then vote, but, if you like our platform, which I think most people will, especially if they’re conservative-minded, they will find ours very attractive, more common sense, and simple.”
Houle joins two other candidates that will be vying for votes in the Lakeland riding: Conservative Shannon Stubbs and Libertarian Robert McFadzean. Voters will head to the polls on, or before, Oct. 21, 2019.
