Politicians ready to battle for vacant Lethbridge-West seat

By Justin Sibbet - Lethbridge Herald Local Journalism Initiative Reporter on July 25, 2024.

Herald file photo - Voters exit a polling station in Lethbridge after casting their ballots in the last provincial election.

LETHBRIDGE HERALDjsibbet@lethbridgeherald.com

Currently in limbo, the constituency of Lethbridge-West will soon be a political battleground once again.

The Lethbridge-West seat in Alberta’s Legislature was vacated by Shannon Phillips at the end of June and a by-election will be called before 2024 is over.

The former NDP MLA first took the seat in 2015 during an orange wave that swept across the province and saw the New Democrats unseat the then Progressive Conservatives, marking the first time in over 40 years the Tories failed to win in Alberta. Though, the Social Credit party, another ‘right-wing’ party, had held power for 36 years before the Conservatives first won in the 1971 election. The United Farmers of Alberta, (currently the UFA retail supply chain), a ‘non-partisan’ party, formed government for 14 years before the Social Credit.

In fact, the only ‘left-wing’ party to find victory in Alberta prior to the NDP in 2015 was the Liberal party, which held power from 1905, when Alberta first became a province, until it lost to the United Farmers in 1921. Though, politics have shifted over the past century, changing what we consider as ‘left’ or ‘right’.

In the two elections after 2015, Phillips retained her seat on the westside, creating an island of orange surrounded by a sea of blue. Her seat was the only NDP-controlled riding south of Calgary at the time of her resignation on July 1.

During her tenure, Phillips saw varying degrees of success during the elections. While she certainly emerged victorious in 2015, 2019 and 2023, the results were night and day at times. In 2015, she cruised to a landslide victory, claiming nearly 60 per cent of the vote and more than 7,000 favourable ballots above her nearest competitor, the Progressive Conservative incumbent Greg Weadick.

This dominance shrunk in 2019, however, when she defeated the UCP’s Karri Flatla by less than 300 votes, taking home just over 45 per cent of the overall share.

During the election last year, Phillips returned to a more comfortable margin of victory, winning by over 2,500 votes and securing nearly 54 per cent in total over Cheryl Seaborn of the UCP.

Wanting to put those results in the rearview mirror and repaint the westside blue, the United Conservative Party Constituency Association for Lethbridge-West is hoping to return the riding to its historic colour. The riding, formed in 1971 when Lethbridge was first split into two constituencies, was originally won by the Social Credit candidate, Richard Gruendwald. However, from 1975 until Phillips’ victory in 2015, the seat belonged to the Progressive Conservatives.

Lethbridge-West UCP Constituency Association president Davey Wiggers says his team is ready to hit the campaign trail, even if they weren’t expecting it for a few more years.

“The constituency association board has met a fair amount over the last couple of months, especially in light of former MLA Phillps’ announcement,” said Wiggers. “Of course, nobody really saw that one coming. That puts everything into high gear.”

He says the Tory candidate has yet to be decided, though the process has already begun.

“We have, as a (constituency association), wanted to see the contested nomination. We did not want the party to parachute anyone in,” said Wiggers.

He says they have opened a local candidate nominating committee (LCNC) which will take applications for candidate hopefuls, vet them and eventually recommend candidates to the constituency association and party.

“My understanding is, because it’s all very private until all the protocols have been followed, that there are applicants (who) have applied to the executive director to be a nomination candidate.”

Wiggers says, once the nominees are named, there will be a campaign of around three to five weeks where Lethbridge-West UCP members can vote. He says it can certainly take a while to select a candidate, particularly when there are several good options.

“Nominations, especially when there’s a contested nomination, always takes time.”

The Alberta NDP sent out a press release on Tuesday afternoon declaring they have also officially begun the process of finding a candidate.

“Alberta’s New Democrats opened nominations today to select their candidate for the Lethbridge West by-election. The candidate will be selected by members at a vote on September 7.”

The new leader of the Alberta NDP, Naheed Nenshi, says Lethbridge-West needs a capable MLA.

“Lethbridge deserves a strong voice in the Legislature,” said Nenshi in the press release.

Furthermore, the New Democrats say this by-election could send a message to the Tories in Edmonton.

“Since former MLA Shannon Phillips stepped down on July 1, Lethbridge New Democrats have been preparing for a nomination contest and a strong campaign to send a message to the governing UCP.”

Wiggers, meanwhile, says the process of an election costs money as well as time. However, the Lethbridge-West UCP Constituency Association is all set.

“Unlike the NDP, who fund each of their campaigns from a central party location, the UCP funds it based on every individual constituency association. The Lethbridge-West (constituency association) can fully fund a campaign start to finish,” said Wiggers. “We have enough funds in our coffers to do that currently. We still continue to raise more funds, but we are there.”

Beyond money, Wiggers says the manpower required to run an effective campaign is also significant, but again, he says the UCP is up to the task.

“We have a veritable army of volunteers already on standby as far as door knocking goes.”

Furthermore, he says because this is a by-election, he is confident sitting UCP MLA’s will be happy to support the eventual Lethbridge-West candidate in any way they can.

“I can’t see anybody saying no.”

He says the riding will be a “central focus for the UCP” because it is the sole orange outpost in a field of blue ridings.

“I know the party and the (constituency association) are going to throw everything we’ve got at this,” said Wiggers. “Now, that in and of itself by sheer willpower does not guarantee us a win, but whoever the candidate for the NDP will be is going to face… a hell of a fight.”

Meanwhile, Nenshi says the NDP is up to the task as the party maneuvers under his new leadership.

“We have seen phenomenal growth in our party this year, and I am looking forward to members selecting a candidate in a competitive, open, and democratic process.”

Prior to the upcoming clash between the eventual UCP and NDP candidates on the debate stage, the nominees must first be chosen. From the Tory side, Wiggers says the party is inclusive to all wishing to seek candidacy and he encourages those interested to reach out.

“The UCP is all about ‘the more, the merrier’,” said Wiggers.

The NDP executive director, Garrett Spelliscy, says his party is also happy to accept nominees for this political battle.

“We encourage any members who are interested in taking the next step with Naheed Nenshi and the Alberta NDP to consider applying for candidacy,” said Spelliscy. “The Constituency Association is ready to get down to work and call a nomination meeting, so any potential candidates should apply soon.”

Other parties will likely field candidates as well, but the UCP and NDP are seen as the likely frontrunners. The Alberta Liberal Party, the province’s oldest operating party, saw zero candidates elected in the 2019 election for just the fourth time ever, according to Elections Alberta. The Liberals did not regain any ground in 2023, instead seeing its lowest vote percentage ever at under one per cent and still zero seats.

According to Elections Alberta, there were a total of 14 registered parties fielding candidates in the 2023 general election, with only the UCP and NDP securing seats. 22 candidates across the province also ran as independents.

Specifically in the Lethbridge-West riding, just four parties had a candidate on the ballot in 2023 – The UCP, NDP, Alberta Liberal Party and Alberta Party. There were no independent candidates.

Per Elections Alberta, a by-election must be called within six months of a vacancy officially opening. However, the election itself does not need to happen within that six-month period.

The Lethbridge Herald reached out to the Alberta Party for comment but did not receive a response by deadline. The Herald also reached out to the Alberta Liberal Party but was told the Lethbridge-West constituency association was currently “not active.”