On Sept. 17, members of the Progressive Conservative (PC) Party of Alberta will vote for a new leader, and the six candidates are hitting the campaign trail.
At the first all-candidates forum held July 21 in Vermilion, local politicians took the opportunity to listen to what candidates had to say and weigh-in about who they think might be best suited to lead Alberta in the future. The six candidates are Alison Redford, Gary Mar, Doug Horner, Rick Orman, Ted Morton, and Doug Griffiths.
Town of Bonnyville Coun. Gene Sobolewski said, “Two individuals that did stand out in my opinion were Rick Orman and Gary Mar. They started to pound the message and I think it's going to be their campaign.”
He added the format of the forum made sure things stayed a little too polite.
Sobolewski ran for leadership of the Bonnyville – Cold Lake constituency for the Wildrose Party, losing to Chuck Farrer in October. Since then, he has left the Wildrose and rejoined the PC Party, citing a difference of opinion, particularly with the party's health care policies.
“The vision I had a year ago wasn't the vision that they were purporting to (me) in the spring,” he explained. “I said, well, that's no longer representing my views, so I divorced myself from that.”
MD of Bonnyville Coun. David Fox, a 40-year PC Party member, also attended the forum, taking the opportunity to scope out the candidates and question them with Sobolewski after the forum finished about the Cold Lake Air Weapons Range tax reassessment.
“I've got a choice to make,” he said. “I'm not sure yet. Right now, I'm walking around and I'm going to talk to Orman, I talked to Doug Griffiths. I'm going to talk to all of ‘em. All in all, they all made some good points. I think it was educational if nothing else.”
Brian Storseth, MP for Westlock – St. Paul, was also in Vermilion to hear the candidates speak.
“I thought there were some very strong candidates up there,” he said after the forum. “There's a wide divergence of the political spectrum represented up there. I liked the way Gary Mar fused the issues that we have moving forward with Alberta. I think he's absolutely right when he says that a lot of our issues come from outside of Alberta and we need somebody who has a vision for that.”
MLA for Bonnyville – Cold Lake Genia Leskiw was unable to attend the forum, but she spoke on the candidates afterwards, saying, “Doug Horner is my number one choice and Gary Mar is probably my top two. I had a chance to listen to all of them at caucus meetings the other day … It was good to hear all of them. I'm hoping that whoever wins can bring the party together. I can work with anyone that happens to get in.”
She added she has been working at getting all of the candidates to bring their campaigns to the Bonnyville – Cold Lake area, though plans with both Redford and Morton have fallen through.
According to Leskiw, Mar has plans to come out but has not yet set a date, and Orman's campaign managers are currently working with Sobolewski to work a visit to Bonnyville into their schedule.
Leskiw has extended invitations to all of the candidates to visit the area except Orman, who she does not know and has been trying to contact.
“I would like the area to hear all of them,” she explained, “and meet all of them, and make a decision on their own who they want to support, regardless of who I am supporting.”
