2004 Alberta general election

November 22, 2004 (2004-11-22)

83 seats in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta
42 seats needed for a majority
Turnout45.12%
  Majority party Minority party
 
Leader Ralph Klein Kevin Taft
Party Progressive Conservative Liberal
Leader since December 14, 1992 March 27, 2004
Leader's seat Calgary-Elbow Edmonton-Riverview
Last election 74 seats, 61.9% 7 seats, 27.3%
Seats before 73 5
Seats won 62 16
Seat change Decrease11 Increase11
Popular vote 417,092 261,471
Percentage 46.8% 29.4%
Swing Decrease15.1% Increase2.1%

  Third party Fourth party
  AA
Leader Brian Mason Randy Thorsteinson
Party New Democratic Alberta Alliance
Leader since July 13, 2004 February 15, 2003
Leader's seat Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood ran in Innisfail-Sylvan Lake (lost)
Last election 2 seats, 8.0% pre-creation
Seats before 2 1
Seats won 4 1
Seat change Increase2 ±0
Popular vote 90,897 77,506
Percentage 10.2% 8.7%
Swing Increase2.2%

Popular vote by riding. As this is a first-past-the-post election, seat totals are not determined by total popular vote, but instead by results in each riding.

Premier before election

Ralph Klein
Progressive Conservative

Premier after election

Ralph Klein
Progressive Conservative

The 2004 Alberta general election was held on November 22, 2004 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.

The election was called on October 25, 2004. Premier Ralph Klein decided to go to the polls earlier than the legislated deadline of March 2006. This election was held in conjunction with the 2004 Alberta Senate nominee election.

When the election was called, it was expected to be anticlimactic, with Klein cruising to his fourth straight majority, the tenth for his Progressive Conservative Party.

Shortly after the drop of the writs, Klein's mother died and all parties suspended their campaigns for several days. After the campaign resumed, Klein avoided making any policy announcements and attended few events. One commentator called it "Kleinfeld: the campaign about nothing" (a reference to the television sitcom Seinfeld). The Liberal Party, which had hoped to hold on to the five seats it had and regain the two seats that it had lost to resignations, began to pick up momentum and became far more optimistic.

In the end, the Conservatives were re-elected, despite losing 11 seats and 15% of the popular vote, having dropped to a minority position in the polls. The Liberals more than doubled their seats by electing 17 MLAs on election night The Liberals dominated in Edmonton and made strong inroads in Calgary.

The Alberta New Democrats (NDP) held on to their two seats and gained two more, all in Edmonton.

The Conservatives swept rural Alberta except for one seat that went to the Alberta Alliance, which also placed second in a number of rural ridings. The Conservatives received no more than 56 percent of the vote in any of the three rural regions so was very much over-represented by its almost-total one-party sweep of the rural seats.

The Alberta Greens gained in the popular vote, jumping from 0.3% in the 2001 election to 2.8%, and placed third in some places. Despite placing second in the riding of Drayton Valley-Calmar ahead of the Liberals, it did not win any seats.

Social Credit placed third in a number of ridings, and its leader tied for second in Rocky Mountain House.

The Conservative, Liberal and NDP leaders all easily held onto their own seats.

Electoral System

Alberta's 83 MLAs were elected through First-past-the-post voting in 83 single-member districts.

Election night summary

Overall voter turnout was 45.12%.[1]

Party Party leader # of
candidates
Seats Popular vote
2001 Dissolution Elected % Change # % % Change
  Progressive Conservative Ralph Klein 83 74 73 622 -15.1% 416,886 46.8% -15.1%
Liberal Kevin Taft 82 7 5 162 +220% 261,737 29.4% +2.1%
  NDP Brian Mason 83 2 2 4 +100% 90,829 10.2% +2.1%
Alberta Alliance Randy Thorsteinson 83 * 1 1 - 77,466 8.7% *
Green George Read 49 - - - - 24,451 2.8% +2.5%
  Social Credit Lavern Ahlstrom 42 - - - - 10,998 1.2% +0.7%
  Separation Bruce Hutton 12 * - - - 4,695 0.5% -0.37%1
  Alberta Party Bruce Stubbs 4 * - - - 2,481 0.3% *
  Independent 10 - - - - 994 0.1% -0.9%
Communist Naomi Rankin 2 - - - - 98 <0.1% ~0%
    Vacant * 2  
Total 450 83 83 83 - 890,635 100%  

Note:

* The Alberta Alliance and Alberta Party did not contest the 2001 election.
1 The Separation Party results are compared to the Alberta First Party.
2 A judicial recount changed the results in Edmonton Castle Downs, Liberal. Chris Kibermanis lost to Progressive Conservative Thomas Lukaszuk.
Popular vote
PC
46.81%
Liberal
29.39%
New Democratic
10.20%
Alliance
8.70%
Others
4.90%
Seats summary
PC
74.70%
Liberal
19.28%
New Democratic
4.82%
Alliance
1.20%

Results by region

Party name Cgy. Edm.1 Leth. R.D. North Central South Total
  Progressive Conservative Seats: 20 3 1 2 10 19 7 61
  Popular vote: 50.5% 31.5% 38.3% 44.1% 55.5% 52.7% 55.1% 46.8%
  Liberal Seats: 3 11 1     1   16
  Popular vote: 32.1% 40.3% 37.9% 32.5% 19.8% 21.9% 19.1% 29.4%
  New Democrats Seats:   4           4
  Popular vote: 4.9% 22.0% 8.1% 6.1% 8.6% 7.9% 4.4% 10.2%
  Alberta Alliance Seats:             1 1
  Popular vote: 6.5% 4.2% 10.2% 14.9% 13.8% 11.3% 13.1% 8.7%
Total seats: 23 18 2 2 10 20 8 83
Parties that won no seats:
Green Popular vote: 5.5% 1.0% 3.1% 1.2% 1.1% 2.5% 2.1% 2.8%
  Social Credit Popular vote: 0.3% 0.8% 2.6% - 1.1% 2.3% 2.4% 1.2%
  Separation Popular Vote: 0.2% - - 1.3% - 0.9% 2.6% 0.5%
  Alberta Party Popular vote: <0.1% - - - - 0.6% 1.3% 0.3%
Communist Popular vote: <0.1% <0.1% - - - - - <0.1%
  Independents Popular vote: 0.1% 0.2% - - 0.1% 0.1% - 0.1%

1 "Edmonton" corresponds to only the city of Edmonton. (Only the ridings whose names begin with "Edmonton".) The four suburban ridings around the city as listed below are grouped with Central Alberta in this table.

Results by riding

Results by riding

Party Seats Second Third Fourth Fifth Sixth
  Progressive Conservative 62 20 1 0 0 0
Liberal 16 50 16 0 0 0
  New Democratic Party 4 2 29 27 18 3
Alberta Alliance 1 10 26 37 9 0
  Green 0 1 9 12 23 4
  Social Credit 0 0 1 3 17 21
  Separation 0 0 0 2 4 6
  Alberta Party 0 0 1 2 0 1

Names in bold indicate party leaders and cabinet ministers.

Northern Alberta

Electoral District Candidates Incumbent
PC Liberal NDP Alliance Green Other
           
Athabasca-Redwater Mike Cardinal
5,706
Nicole Belland
3,258
Peter Opryshko
1,407
Sean Whelan
1,174
Luke de Smet
252
Leonard Fish
(Soc. Cred.) 179
Mike Cardinal
Athabasca-Wabasca
merged district
Dave Broda
Redwater
Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock Ken Kowalski
6,967
Alan Fiebich
2,250
Peggy Kirkeby
1,098
Mike Radojcic
1,012
Carl Haugen
(Soc. Cred.) 404
Ken Kowalski
Barrhead-Westlock
Bonnyville-Cold Lake Denis Ducharme
3,621
Lloyd Mildon
797
Denise Ogonoski
312
Shane Gervais
955
Denis Ducharme
Dunvegan-Central Peace Hector Goudreau
3,670
Don Thompson
689
Leon R. Pendleton
446
Dale Lueken
3,332
Lanny Portsmouth
(Soc. Cred.) 118
Hector Goudreau
Dunvegan
Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo Guy Boutilier
4,429
Russell Collicott
1,800
Dave Malka
460
Eugene Eklund
224
Reginald Normore
(Ind.) 94
Guy Boutilier
Fort McMurray
Grande Prairie-Smoky Mel Knight
4,369
Neil Peacock
1,965
Georgina Szoke
724
Hank Rahn
688
Mel Knight
Grande Prairie-Wapiti Gordon Graydon
4,348
Cibylla Rakestraw
1,677
Jerry Macdonald
972
John Hilton-O'Brien
547
Allan Webber
348
Gordon Graydon
Lac La Biche-St. Paul Ray Danyluk
4,898
Dickson Broomfield
1,877
Phil Goebel
648
Oscar Lacombe
1,703
Ray Danyluk
Lesser Slave Lake Pearl Calahasen
3,894
Jonathan Pleckaitis
530
Doris Bannister
354
Valerie Rahn
977
Ian Hopfe
254
Pearl Calahasen
Peace River Frank Oberle
2,888
Adam Bourque
1,101
Stephen Crocker
558
Gary Checknita
541
Patsy Lindberg
(Soc. Cred.) 204
Gary Friedel

Western and Central Alberta

Electoral District Candidates Incumbent
PC Liberal NDP Alliance Green Other
           
Banff-Cochrane Janis Tarchuk
4,236
Ian McDougall
1,649
Melissa Cambridge
468
Bob Argent
476
Chris Foote
1,205
  Janis Tarchuk
Drayton Valley-Calmar Tony Abbott
5,231
Laura Higgerty
890
Lynn Oberle
641
Viona Cunningham
764
Edwin Erickson
927
Thomas Cliff
(Soc. Cred.) 244 Elmer Knopp
(Ind.) 115
Tony Abbott
Foothills-Rocky View Ted Morton
6,770
Herb Coburn
1,954
Roland Schmidt
232
Jason Herasemluk
1,081
Shelley Willson
1,186
New district
Innisfail-Sylvan Lake Luke Ouellette
6,206
Garth Davis
1,816
Chris Janke
585
Randy Thorsteinson
2,242
  Wilf Tricker
(Soc. Cred.) 349
Luke Ouellette
Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills Richard Marz
7,277
Tony Vonesch
1,336
Christopher Davies
257
Gordon Quantz
2,021
Sarah Henckel-Sutmoller
469
Brian Vasseur
(Sep. Pty.) 746
Myrna Kissick
(Soc. Cred.) 143
Richard Marz
Red Deer-North Mary Anne Jablonski
3,736
Norm McDougall
2,640
Steven Bedford
430
Rand Sisson
1,660
Colin Fisher
244
  Mary Anne Jablonski
Red Deer-South Victor Doerksen
5,371
Walter Kubanek
4,073
Jeff Sloychuk
836
Patti Argent
1,418
  Judy Milne
(Sep. Pty.) 261
Victor Doerksen
Rocky Mountain House Ty Lund
5,773
Susan M. Scott
1,267
Anthony Jones
300
Ed Wilhite
810
Jennifer Isaac
337
Lavern Ahlstrom
(Soc. Cred.) 1,267
Bruce Hutton
(Sep. Pty.) 505
Ty Lund
Stony Plain Fred Lindsay
5,644
Bill Fraser
3,402
Ruth Yanor
1,375
Marilyn Burns
1,878
  Henry Neumann
(Soc. Cred.) 245
Stan Woloshyn
West Yellowhead Ivan Strang
3,769
Rob Jolly
1,682
Barry Madsen
1,783
Earl Cunningham
615
Monika Schaefer
360
  Ivan Strang
Whitecourt-Ste. Anne George VanderBurg
5,071
George Higgerty
1,219
Leah Redmond
996
David Dow
2,333
    George VanderBurg

East Central Alberta

Electoral District Candidates Incumbent
PC Liberal NDP Alliance Green Other
           
Battle River-Wainwright Doug Griffiths
6,409
Gordon Rogers
1,069
Len Legault
616
Orest Werzak
1,440
  Robin Skitteral
(Soc. Cred.) 319
Doug Griffiths
Wainwright
Drumheller-Stettler Shirley McClellan
6,770
  Richard Bough
890
Dave France
1,413
  Eileen Walker
(Ab Pty.) 616
Dave Carnegie
(Sep. Pty.) 465
Mary-Lou Kloppenburg
(Soc. Cred.) 279
Shirley McClellan
Drumheller-Chinook
Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville Ed Stelmach
6,160
Peter Schneider
3,160
Wes Buyarski
1,633
Byron King
1,411
  Mark Patterson
(Soc. Cred.) 379
Ed Stelmach
Vegreville-Viking
Lacombe-Ponoka Ray Prins
6,919
Glen Simmonds
2,218
Jim Graves
1,124
Ed Klop
2,349
  Teena Cormack
(Soc. Cred.) 467
Judy Gordon
Merged district
Halvar Jonson
Leduc-Beaumont-Devon George Rogers
6,809
Joyce Assen
3,425
Katie Oppen
904
Dave Dalke
1,140
Stephen Lindop
381
Karen Richert
(Soc. Cred.) 249
Albert Klapstein
Leduc
Vermilion-Lloydminster Lloyd Snelgrove
5,464
Patricia Thomas
706
Ray Stone
553
David Benoit
2,437
    Lloyd Snelgrove
Wetaskiwin-Camrose LeRoy Johnson
6,177
Keith Elliott
2,713
Clay Lawson
908
Dale Trefz
1,193
  Janice Wolter
(Soc. Cred.) 309
LeRoy Johnson

Central Edmonton

Electoral district Candidates Incumbent
PCLiberalNDPAllianceGreenOther
Edmonton Beverly Clareview Julius Yankowsky
3,059
Sam Parmar
1,166
Ray Martin
5,268
Phil Gamache
457
Benoit Couture
141
Ken Shipka (Soc. Cred.)
283
Julius Yankowsky
Edmonton Centre Don Weideman
2,622
Laurie Blakeman
6,236
Mary Elizabeth Archer
1,538
Tony Caterina
264
David J. Parker
336
Linda Clements (Soc. Cred.)
111
Laurie Blakeman
Edmonton-Glenora Drew Hutton
3,758
Bruce Miller
4,610
Larry Booi
4,059
Blaine Currie
307
Peter Johnston
272
Walter Schachenhofer (Soc. Cred.)
112
Drew Hutton
Edmonton Gold Bar Manjit Dhaliwal
2,574
Hugh MacDonald
8,794
Keith Turnbull
1,966
Delmar Hunt
538
  Dave Dowling (Ind.)
167
Hugh MacDonald
Edmonton Highlands-Norwood Terry Martiniuk
2,209
Jason Manzevich
1,035
Brian Mason
6,053
Ray Loyer
315
  Dale W. Ferris (Ind.)
66
Brian Mason
Edmonton Mill Creek Gene Zwozdesky
5,071
Aman Gill
4,286
Nathan Taylor
1,709
Robert Alford
523
Eric Steiglitz
386
Cameron Johnson (Ind.)
72
Gene Zwozdesky
Edmonton-Mill Woods Naresh Bhardwaj
2,989
Weslyn Mather
5,014
Lloyd Nelson
1,565
Charles Relland
816
  Naomi Rankin (Communist)
42
Don Massey
Edmonton Riverview Fred Horne
3,571
Kevin Taft
10,279
Donna Martyn
1,053
David Edgar
315
John Lackey
355
Dave W. Power (Soc. Cred.)
111
Kevin Taft
Edmonton Rutherford Ian McClelland
4,173
Rick Miller
7,217
George A. Slade
995
R. J. (Bob) Ewart
516
  Anit Ashmore (Soc. Cred.)
210
Ian McClelland
Edmonton-Strathcona Shannon Stubbs
2,256
Steven Leard
1,850
Raj Pannu
7,430
Jeremy Burns
275
Adrian Cole
287
Kelly Graham (Soc. Cred.)
162
Raj Pannu

Suburban Edmonton and Environs

Electoral district Candidates Incumbent
PCLiberalNDPAllianceGreenOther
Edmonton-Calder Brent Rathgeber
3,680
Brad Smith
3,028
David Eggen
4,055
Vicki Kramer
526
    Brent Rathgeber
Edmonton Castle Downs
Election
Recount
Thomas Lukaszuk
5,014
Chris Kibermanis
5,019
Peter Cross
1,317
Colin Presizniuk
583
  Ross Korpi (Soc. Cred.)
78
Thomas Lukaszuk
5,022 5,019 1,314 586 78
Edmonton Decore Walter Szwender
3,033
Bill Bonko
4,418
Shirley Barg 1,524 Gary Masyk
830
  Geoffrey Chevrier (Soc. Cred.)
94
Bill Bonner
merged district
Gary Masyk
Edmonton Ellerslie Gurnam Dodd
3,245
Bharat Agnihotri
3,444
Marilyn Assheton-Smith
2,257
Eleanor Maroes
985
  Amelia Maciejewski (Soc. Cred.)
238
vacant
Edmonton-Manning Tony Vandermeer
3,646
Dan Backs
3,873
Laurie Lang
2,371
Mike Pietramala
515
Ross Adshead
240
Sean Tisdall (Soc. Cred.)
130
Tony Vandermeer
Edmonton McClung Mark Norris
5,331
Mo Elsalhy
5,864
Lorne Dach
1,362
Reuben Bauer
401
  Patrick Conlin (Soc. Cred.)
104
Mark Norris
Edmonton Meadowlark Bob Maskell
4,243
Maurice Tougas
4,436
Lance Burns
1,303
Aaron Campbell
444
Amanda Doyle
245
Peggy Morton (Ind.)
77
Bob Maskell
Edmonton-Whitemud Dave Hancock
7,493
Donna L. Smith
6,567
Brian Fleck
1,634
Kathy Rayner
469
  John Andrews (Ind.)
76
David Hancock
Sherwood Park Iris Evans
7,276
Louise Rogers
5,587
Tim Sloan
994
Cora LaBonte
444
Lynn Lau
362
Gordon Barrett (Soc. Cred.)
474
Iris Evans
Spruce Grove-Sturgeon-St. Albert Doug Horner
6,140
Ray Boudreau
5,559
Dale Apostal
1,020
Tim Friesen
740
  Glen Blaylock (Soc. Cred.)
170
Doug Horner
St. Albert Mary O'Neill
6,064
Jack Flaherty
6,474
Travis Thompson
1,652
Michaela Meldrum
591
Conrad Bitangcol
407
  Mary O'Neill
Strathcona Rob Lougheed
6,838
Jon Friel
4,115
Tom Elchuk
1,177
Ryan Seto
466
Bruce Stubbs (Ab. Pty.)
775
Brian Rembowski (Soc. Cred.)
327
Roberta McDonald (Separation)
297
Recreated District

Southern Alberta

Electoral district Candidates Incumbent
PCLiberalNDPAllianceGreenOther
Airdrie-Chestermere Carol Haley
6,842
John Burke
1,633
Grant Massie
569
Bradley Gaida
758
Angela Scully
434
Jeff Willerton (Alberta Pty.)
1,036
Bob Lefurgey (Separation)
394
Jerry Gautreau (Soc. Cred.)
178
Carol Haley
Cardston-Taber-Warner Broyce Jacobs
3,753
Paula Shimp
783
Luann Bannister
185
Paul Hinman
3,884
Lindsay Ferguson
225
  Broyce Jacobs
Cypress-Medicine Hat Leonard Mitzel
4,623
Stuart Angle
2,234
Cliff Anten
345
Dan H. Pierson
651
  Eric Solberg (Soc. Cred.)
561
Lorne Taylor
Highwood George Groeneveld
6,782
Lori Czerwinski
1,843
Catherine Whelan Costen
432
Brian Wickhorst
733
Sheelagh Matthews
547
Cory Morgan (Separation)
299
Don Tannas
Lethbridge-East Rod Fong
4,703
Bridget Pastoor
5,340
Gaye Metz
607
Brian Stewart
1,472
Erin Matthews
360
Darren Popik (Soc. Cred.)
251
vacant
Lethbridge-West Clint Dunford
4,416
Bal Boora
3,675
Mark Sandilands
1,316
Merle Terlesky
949
Andrea Sheridan
368
Scott Sawatsky (Soc. Cred.)
357
Clint Dunford
Little Bow Barry McFarland
4,894
Arij Langstraat
1,965
Hugh Logie
327
Jay Phin
859
  Brian Cook (Soc. Cred.)
556
Grant Shaw (Separation)
432
Barry McFarland
Livingstone-Macleod David Coutts
5,095
Craig Whitehead
2,030
Joyce Thomas
626
George Lyster
1,493
Chris Watts
468
Jim Walker (Separation)
339
David Coutts
Medicine Hat Rob Renner
5,392
Karen Charlton
3,482
Diana Arnott
560
Scott Cowan
1,073
  Jonathan Lorentzen (Soc. Cred.)
246
Rob Renner
Strathmore-Brooks Lyle Oberg
6,051
Carol Jacques
1,055
Don MacFarlane
405
Mark D. Ogden
852
  Jay Kolody (Separation)
559
Rudy Martens (Soc. Cred.)
313
Lyle Oberg

Suburban Calgary

Electoral district Candidates Incumbent
PCLiberalNDPAllianceGreenOther
Calgary-Bow Alana DeLong
6,097
Kelly McDonnell
3,509
Jennifer Banks
1,135
James Istvanffy
1,015
Marie Picken
713
Margaret Askin (Independent)
98
Doug Picken (Soc. Cred.)
97
Alana DeLong
Calgary-Cross Yvonne Fritz
3,763
Raleigh DeHaney
1,452
Jeanie Keebler
391
Gordon Huth
648
Ryan Richardson
271
  Yvonne Fritz
Calgary-Foothills Len Webber
5,820
Stephen Jenuth
3,559
Malcolm Forster
407
Vincent S. Jansen-Van Doorn
472
    Pat Nelson
Calgary-Fort Wayne Cao
4,136
Gerry Hart
1,784
Elizabeth Thomas
583
Travis Chase
589
Tyler Charkie
440
Leo Ollenberger (Separation)
212
Wayne Cao
Calgary-Hays Arthur Johnston
5,529
Sharon Howe
1,952
Rachel Weinfeld
298
Robert Wawrzynowski
534
Bernie Amell
378
  new district
Calgary-Lougheed David Rodney
6,334
Allan Pollock
2,971
Matthew Koczkur
365
Tariq Khan
445
Ryan Boucher
471
  Marlene Graham
Calgary-Mackay Gary Mar
5,640
Darryl Hawkins
2,615
Giorgio Cattabeni
395
Shawn Hubbard
640
David McTavish
443
Paul Martin (Independent)
193
Gary Mar
Calgary-McCall Shiraz Shariff
3,203
Darshan Kang
2,958
Gurpreet (Preet) Sihota
264
Ina Givens
573
Sean Robert Brocklesby
359
  Shiraz Shariff
Calgary-Montrose Hung Pham
3,318
Arthur Danielson
1,651
Jason Nishiyama
434
Cyril Collingwood
674
Kevin Colton
355
  Hung Pham
Calgary-North West Greg Melchin
7,768
Judy Stewart
4,488
Bob Brunet
518
Jenell Friesen
622
Jeffrey Krekoski
636
  Greg Melchin
Calgary-Shaw Cindy Ady
6,732
John Roggeveen
2,373
Jarrett Young
300
Barry Chase
620
Rick Papineau
380
Daniel Doherty (Separation)
171
Cindy Ady
Calgary-West Ron Liepert
6,964
Derek Smith
4,286
Chantelle Dubois
434
John Keyes
988
James Kohut
732
  Karen Kryczka

Central Calgary

Electoral district Candidates Incumbent
PCLiberalNDPAllianceGreenOther
Calgary-Buffalo Harvey Cenaiko
3,370
Terry Taylor
2,777
Cliff Hesby
455
Nadine Hunka
290
Grant Neufeld
656
Elizabeth Kaur Fielding (Soc. Cred.)
71
Carl Schwartz (Alberta Pty.)
58
Harvey Cenaiko
Calgary-Currie Jon Lord
4,413
Dave Taylor
4,984
Robert Scobel
468
Ken Mazeroll
348
Kim Warnke
810
  Jon Lord
Calgary-East Moe Amery
4,492
Bill Harvey
2,359
Paul Vargis
461
Brad Berard
605
Rick Michalenko
367
Bonnie-Jean Collins (Communist)
56
Moe Amery
Calgary-Egmont Denis Herard
5,691
Michael Queenan
2,371
Christopher Dovey
599
David Crutcher
1,657
George Read
914
  Denis Herard
Calgary-Elbow Ralph Klein
6,968
Stephen Brown
4,934
Becky Kelley
343
Diana-Lynn Brooks
485
Allison Roth
666
Trevor Grover (Soc. Cred.)
68
Lloyd Blimke (Ind.)
51
Ralph Klein
Calgary-Fish Creek Heather Forsyth
6,829
Tore Badenduck
2,801
Eric Leavitt
794
Mike Kuipers
780
Chris Sealy
561
  Heather Forsyth
Calgary-Glenmore Ron Stevens
6,257
Avalon Roberts
4,360
Holly Heffernan
550
Ernest McCutcheon
572
Evan Sklarski
531
Larry R. Heather (Soc. Cred.)
135
Ron Stevens
Calgary-Mountain View Mark Hlady
4,058
David Swann
7,155
John Donovan
711
Ryan Cassell
589
Mark MacGillivray
912
  Mark Hlady
Calgary-North Hill Richard Magnus
4,384
Pat Murray
3,223
Aileen L. Machell
630
Brent Best
627
Susan Stratton
1,264
  Richard Magnus
Calgary-Nose Hill Neil Brown
4,369
Len Borowski
2,605
Dirk Huysman
552
Bill McGregor
1,073
John Johnson
584
Raymond Hurst (Soc. Cred.)
163
new district
Calgary-Varsity Michael W. Smyth
5,585
Harry B. Chase
6,303
Mark Gabruch
625
Ron Beninger
763
Richard Larson
753
Len Skowronski (Soc. Cred.)
118
Murray Smith

Electoral re-distribution

Alberta's electoral laws fix the number of legislature seats at 83. As a result of the Alberta Electoral Boundary Re-distribution, 2004, Calgary gained two seats. Edmonton lost one seat, and one "special consideration" division was eliminated. Dunvegan-Central Peace is the sole remaining "special" division - due to its isolation, it is allowed to have a population below 75% of the provincial average. Lesser Slave Lake is now considered to be a standard rural division as its boundaries were re-drawn so that its population is slightly above 75% of the provincial average. One urbanized division outside Calgary and Edmonton was added, and two rural seats were eliminated.[2]

Political parties

For this election, there were 11 political parties registered with Elections Alberta.

Parties that elected MLAs in the previous election

The parties are listed in descending order of number of MLAs elected in 2001.

Progressive Conservative Party

Leader: Ralph Klein

In the 2001 election, the Progressive Conservatives recorded a result that was comparable to those achieved in their years of dominance under Peter Lougheed. The Tories received 627,252 out of 1,013,152 votes cast and won 74 seats, gaining 11 seats over and above their 1997 result at the expense of the Liberals. This result was achieved due to a resurgence of the party in Edmonton, where the Tories won a majority of seats for the first time since 1982. Premier Ralph Klein easily retained his Calgary-Elbow seat.

On April 8, 2002, Doug Griffiths retained the Tories' seat in Wainwright in the only by-election held since the 2001 election, albeit with a substantially reduced plurality. The Tories lost only one seat since the 2001 election, after Edmonton-Norwood MLA Gary Masyk crossed the floor to join the Alberta Alliance. As expected, the Tories nominated a full slate of candidates for the 2004 election.

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Liberal Party

Leader: Kevin Taft

The 2001 election was generally regarded to be as a disaster for the Liberals. Although the Liberals retained Official Opposition status and received 276,854 votes, the party lost 11 seats to the Tories and won only seven seats, six of them in Edmonton. Leader Nancy Macbeth even lost her own seat in Edmonton-McClung - she resigned days after the election and was replaced by Ken Nicol, the Opposition's sole representative outside the capital.

Nicol eventually resigned as MLA for Lethbridge East and as Leader of the Opposition to run (unsuccessfully) for the Liberals in the federal election, as did Edmonton-Ellerslie MLA Debby Carlson. These seats remained vacant through dissolution. The Liberals were led in the 2004 election by Edmonton-Riverview MLA Kevin Taft, who was elected to the position in March 2004. The Liberals had 82 candidates in the 2004 election - they were absent from the ballot in Drumheller-Stettler after failing to file papers for their expected candidate, Don McMann before the deadline.

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New Democratic Party

Leader: Brian Mason

In 2001, the New Democrats were unable to claim Official Opposition status from the floundering Liberals, but Leader Raj Pannu managed to hold the party's two existing seats—Pannu's own in Edmonton—Strathcona and Brian Mason's seat in Edmonton Highlands (later merged into Edmonton Highlands-Norwood). The "NDs", as they were then known, received 81,339 votes. Pannu resigned the leadership in July 2004, with Mason filling the role of interim leader before being elected to that position in September 2004. The party has also ceased abbreviating its name as "ND in favour of the more traditional "NDP" abbreviation. The NDP nominated a full slate of candidates for the 2004 election.

External link

Other registered parties

The parties are listed in descending order of number of candidates nominated in 2004.

Alberta Alliance

Leader: Randy Thorsteinson

The Alberta Alliance was registered in October 2002 and held its founding convention in February 2003. Its leader, Randy Thorsteinson had led Social Credit through a modest rebirth before quitting that party in April 1999. The party's sole MLA, Gary Masyk (Edmonton-Norwood) crossed the floor from the governing Progressive Conservatives on June 29, 2004. The Alliance nominated a full slate of candidates for the 2004 election, the only other party besides the Tories and the NDP to do so.

External link

Greens

Leader: George Read

Also known as the "Green Party of Alberta", the Alberta Greens ran 10 candidates in the 2001 election, who combined for 2,850 votes. In the 2004 election, the Greens nominated 49 candidates - more than 4 times the highest number of candidates they had previously run in an election.

External link

Social Credit Party

Leader: Lavern Ahlstrom

Prior to the 2001 election, the Social Credit Party was in turmoil following the departure of party leader Randy Thorsteinson. Under Lavern Ahlstrom, the party nominated 12 candidates in the 2001 election (down from 70 in 1997), and received 5,361 votes (down from 64,667). The party had 42 candidates for the 2004 election.

External link

Separation Party

Interim Leader: Bruce Hutton

The Separation Party of Alberta was founded in June 2004 taking over the rights of the Alberta First Party. Bruce Hutton became interim leader. As a separatist party, it is the separatist successor to the Alberta Independence Party, which ran some independent candidates in the 2001 election, but never achieved official party status. The separatist cause was first taken up by the Western Canada Concept in the early 1980s when Gordon Kesler won a by-election. The Separation Party had 12 candidates in the 2004 election. See Alberta separatism.

External Link

Alberta Party

Leader: Bruce Stubbs

The Alberta Party did not nominate any candidates in 2001, but nominated four candidates for the 2004 election.

External Link

Communist Party

Leader: Naomi Rankin

The Communist Party nominated two candidates in the 2001 election, who combined for 117 votes. They ran two candidates in the 2004 election.

The Equity Party

Leader: Emil van der Poorten

The Equity Party ran no candidates in this election, The party was de-registered after the Alberta government amended the Elections Act to force a party to run at least one candidate, the party failed to field a candidate and was de-registered.

Reform Party

Leader: David Salmon

The Alberta Party, Equity Party and the Reform Party did not run any candidates in the 2001 election. The Equity Party and Reform Party were also absent from the ballot in 2004. The party was de-registered after the Alberta government amended the Elections Act to force a party to run at least one candidate, the party failed to field a candidate and was de-registered.

De-registered parties

The Natural Law Party of Alberta was de-registered by Elections Alberta in 2001, after they stopped filing financial statements. In 2001 The Natural Law Party did not nominate any candidates.

Independent candidates

29 independent candidates ran in the 2001 election. These candidates won a total of 10,528 votes. 10 independents ran in 2004.

Standings in the 25th Legislature

Standings after the 25th general election

Political party Calgary Edmonton Urbanized Rural Special Total
Progressive Conservative 21 11 20 20 2 74
Liberal 0 6 1 0 0 7
New Democrat 0 2 0 0 0 2
Totals 21 19 21 20 2 83

Standings at dissolution

Political party Calgary Edmonton Urbanized Rural Special Total
Progressive Conservative 21 10 20 20 2 73
Liberal 0 5 0 0 0 5
New Democrat 0 2 0 0 0 2
Alberta Alliance 0 1 0 0 0 1
Vacant 0 1 1 0 0 2
Totals 21 19 21 20 2 83

Timeline

March 27, 2004 - Kevin Taft becomes leader of the Alberta Liberals.

June 29, 2004 - Gary Masyk crosses the floor from the Progressive Conservatives to the Alberta Alliance.

July 13, 2004 - Raj Pannu resigns as leader of the Alberta New Democrats. Brian Mason is appointed interim leader.

September 9, 2004 - Alberta Alliance kicked off five-city "I Blame Ralph" tour in Edmonton.
Ralph Klein announces Senate Election

September 18, 2004 - Brian Mason formally becomes leader of the Alberta New Democrats.

October 25, 2004 - At the request of Premier Ralph Klein, Lieutenant-Governor Lois Hole dissolves the legislature and sets the election day for November 22.

October 28, 2004 - Premier Klein is harshly criticized by opposition parties and activist groups after he claims that protestors on Alberta's Assured Income for the Severely Handicapped (AISH) who had heckled him did not look severely disabled.

October 31, 2004 - Premier Klein's mother, Florence Gray dies at the age of 80 following a year-long illness. All major parties announce they will suspend their provincial campaigns while the premier mourns.

November 4, 2004 - Global Television Network re-iterates that they will not invite Alberta Alliance leader Randy Thorsteinson to their leaders debate, because his party did not elect any members in the previous election and their sole MLA crossed the floor. The decision sparks anger amongst Alliance members and even disappoints the other three leaders.

November 8, 2004 - Close of nomination's and the Global television leaders debate involving Klein, Taft and Mason.

November 13, 2004 - NDP leader Mason releases a brochure entitled Health Care for Dummies in an effort to mock the premier's reluctance to discuss health care in detail during the campaign.

November 18, 2004 - Advance polling stations open.

November 19, 2004, - Advance polling stations open, and Students across the province vote in Alberta Student Vote, 2004.

November 20, 2004 - Advance polling stations open.

November 22, 2004 - Voting day for the 26th Alberta general election.

  • 8:00 p.m. local time: Polls close (03:00, November 23 UTC)
  • 8:36 p.m.: CBC projects a PC majority (03:36, November 23 UTC)

December 9, 2004 - The Court of Queen's Bench rules that Chris Kibermanis (Lib.) won the election in Edmonton Castle Downs by three votes, upholding the result of the initial, election-night result. The PC candidate, Thomas Lukaszuk, appealed to the Court of Appeal of Alberta.

January 24, 2005 - The Alberta Court of Appeal rules that Lukaszuk won the election in Edmonton Castle Downs by three votes, overturning the result of the first vote-count, which had given the seat to Kibermanis of the Liberals. Kibermanis accepted defeat and did not appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Poll numbers

  • Ipsos-Reid, 2004-10-29: PC 50%, Lib 26%, NDP 10%, AAP 9%, Green 4%
  • COMPAS Inc. / Calgary Herald, 2004-11-03, 2004-11-04: PC 61%, Lib 19%, NDP 16%, Green 3%, Separation 1%, Other 1%. The pollsters only prompted for the three "major" parties yet Green and Separation showed up over 1% in the results while the Alliance, which is contesting every riding and holds a seat in the legislature, did not.
  • Cameron Strategy Inc. / Global News / Calgary Herald, 2004-11-08-11-16: PC 47%, Lib 21%, NDP 11%, AAP 9%, Green 5%
  • Ipsos-Reid, 2004-11-12 to 2004-11-17: PC 44%, Lib 29%, NDP 12%, AAP 9%, Green 4% (800 adults, MoE 3.5%)

Works cited

References

  1. Election Alberta (July 28, 2008). 2008 General Report (PDF). p. 158. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 24, 2012. Retrieved April 29, 2011.
  2. Alberta Electoral Boundaries Commission (February 2003). "Proposed Electoral Division Areas, Boundaries, and Names for Alberta. Final Report to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta". Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Retrieved May 29, 2020.

Bibliography

Further reading

Media coverage

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