Sean Amato
CTV News Edmonton
Published Sept. 21, 2021
Conservative Michael Cooper in the Edmonton area on Monday, Sept. 20, 2021.
(Sean Amato/CTV News Edmonton)
EDMONTON -
The “unpopularity” of Alberta’s UCP government hurt conservative candidates in Monday’s election, according to an experienced Edmonton-area MP.
Conservative Party candidate Michael Cooper held onto his seat in St. Albert but acknowledged he heard a lot of anger from voters about the UCP and Premier Jason Kenney while he was door knocking.
The UCP has trailed the NDP in numerous Alberta polls for much of 2021.
“It had an impact. We have seen a little bit of a drop in the capital region and I think that’s attributable to, frankly, the unpopularity of the provincial government,” Cooper said in an election night interview with CTV Edmonton.
“That was expected. I heard it at the doors. We also had a little bit of bleeding to the PPC.”
CPC vote share in the province fell by about 10 per cent, and the party lost one seat in Calgary and is at risk of losing two more in close Edmonton races.
Federal election 2021: Results for all 34 Alberta ridings, 2 races too close to call
Federal conservatives still dominated the province they usually win though - capturing at least 30 seats and about 55 per cent of votes in Alberta.
Cooper secured his third straight election victory, defeating the NDP’s Kathleen Mpulubusi by about 11,000 votes.
Kenney - a supporter of Erin O’Toole - was quiet on social media Monday, not posting anything about the election.
Cooper said Albertans will get a chance to address their provincial concerns in 2023, the next scheduled election.
As for his party leader - Cooper dodged a direct question about whether O’Toole should stay on, or resign.
“We’ve got to look at the results across the country, but I think we ran a good national campaign and had a good national result,” Cooper said.
EDMONTON -
The “unpopularity” of Alberta’s UCP government hurt conservative candidates in Monday’s election, according to an experienced Edmonton-area MP.
Conservative Party candidate Michael Cooper held onto his seat in St. Albert but acknowledged he heard a lot of anger from voters about the UCP and Premier Jason Kenney while he was door knocking.
The UCP has trailed the NDP in numerous Alberta polls for much of 2021.
“It had an impact. We have seen a little bit of a drop in the capital region and I think that’s attributable to, frankly, the unpopularity of the provincial government,” Cooper said in an election night interview with CTV Edmonton.
“That was expected. I heard it at the doors. We also had a little bit of bleeding to the PPC.”
CPC vote share in the province fell by about 10 per cent, and the party lost one seat in Calgary and is at risk of losing two more in close Edmonton races.
Federal election 2021: Results for all 34 Alberta ridings, 2 races too close to call
Federal conservatives still dominated the province they usually win though - capturing at least 30 seats and about 55 per cent of votes in Alberta.
Cooper secured his third straight election victory, defeating the NDP’s Kathleen Mpulubusi by about 11,000 votes.
Kenney - a supporter of Erin O’Toole - was quiet on social media Monday, not posting anything about the election.
Cooper said Albertans will get a chance to address their provincial concerns in 2023, the next scheduled election.
As for his party leader - Cooper dodged a direct question about whether O’Toole should stay on, or resign.
“We’ve got to look at the results across the country, but I think we ran a good national campaign and had a good national result,” Cooper said.
BOTH LOST
Races involving incumbent Conservative MPs James Cummings and Kerry Diotte were still undecided Monday.
Author of the article:David Staples • Edmonton Journal
Publishing date:Sep 20, 2021 •
Author of the article: Rick Bell
Publishing date: Sep 20, 202
Races involving incumbent Conservative MPs James Cummings and Kerry Diotte were still undecided Monday.
FROM THE RIGHT
David Staples: It looks like Justin Trudeau won his election campaign against Jason KenneyAuthor of the article:David Staples • Edmonton Journal
Publishing date:Sep 20, 2021 •
Canada's Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau visits Quebec City.
REUTERS/Mathieu Belanger
At the time of my deadline, media organizations were saying the Trudeau Liberals would form a minority government
In coming out on top, Trudeau and the Liberals engineered a major turn-around in their fortunes.
Their campaign comeback started to spark up only when Trudeau stopped running against the ghost of that old bogeyman of progressive voters, Stephen Harper, and started to run against a new and very much alive bogeyman of progressive nightmares, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney on the issue of vaccine passports.
Trudeau also pitted his supporters against all Canadians who have refused to get vaccinated, a darkly divisive move, but one that was effective in stalling the momentum of moderate federal Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole.
It pushed away voters from O’Toole’s right-of-centre party toward Maxime Bernier’s People’s Party of Canada. Bernier led the only party to remain steadfastly opposed to vaccination passports.
Vaccine passports became the winning wedge for Trudeau.
When it comes to vaccines, most Canadians have decided that it’s completely fair that people who choose not to get vaccinated — thus endangering the freedom of all others — deserve to face extra restrictions. But conservative leaders failed to quickly grasp this concept.
As a result, Trudeau was able to make his move. At long last he had something to counter O’Toole devastating attacks on him for selfishly calling an unnecessary election in the middle of a pandemic, a strategy that saw O’Toole edging up in the polls by early September to take a three or four point lead.
Trudeau’s response, something he was pounding on most campaign stops, including last weekend, was to ask one tough question: “Mr. O’Toole wants all of Canadians to get vaccinated but can’t even make sure all of his own candidates are vaccinated. How do you want to lead the country in getting vaccinated if you can’t lead the people who signed up to follow you?”
Just a few months ago, almost all major Canadian political leaders were against vaccine passports, including Trudeau. On March 12, he said he was uneasy with a national vaccine passport as it could marginalize people who can’t or won’t get the vaccine. “The idea of certificates of vaccination for domestic use does bring in questions of equity. There are questions of fairness and justice. There could be discrimination,” Trudeau said in French.
Trudeau nailed it there. Vaccine passports are a form of coercion, pushing the unwilling to get vaxxed so they can travel, keep their certain jobs, or attend certain events and places.
But with the threat of a massive and widespread lockdown rising up again, leader after leader has changed positions on passports. Trudeau was the first, thus painting himself as Captain Vaccine Passport. A few days before he called the election, he came out in favour of them for travellers inside and outside Canada.
On Aug. 27, he challenged Ontario Premier Doug Ford to take up his offer of federal funding for provincial passports. A few days later, on Sept. 2, the Ford government adopted passports, with O’Toole also changing his position on Sept. 4.
If Kenney and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe had moved at the same time, much of the heat might have been taken out of the issue. But they did not budge.
Trudeau was all over their lame response like Connor McDavid on a loose puck in the offensive slot.
One huge moment for Team Trudeau came Sept. 9 when he lashed out at a reporter from the Rebel news organization. Said Trudeau: “The reality is organizations like yours that continue to spread misinformation and disinformation on the science around vaccines on how we’re actually going to get through this pandemic and be there for each other and keep our kids safe is part of why we’re seeing such unfortunate anger and lack of understanding of basic science.”
That attack got anxious Liberal supporters up and off their feet like their all-time favourite song just came on at the nightclub. And they were ready to dance all night when Trudeau started to call out Kenney and Moe.
On Sept. 19 in Montreal, for example, Trudeau said all the wrong choices were being made in Alberta and Saskatchewan. “Folks in Alberta have a really important choice to make whether they want Erin O’Toole to keep working with Jason Kenney on not ending this pandemic.”
Trudeau’s win represents a blow to Alberta. He’s pushing ever harder on policies that will undermine the Canadian resource sector. I also fear his rhetoric and plans will keep dividing us and push us into the most crushing debt we’ve ever known.
I’m far from a fan of Trudeau and his policies. But I have to give him credit on his campaign comeback. That was brilliant political messaging.
At the time of my deadline, media organizations were saying the Trudeau Liberals would form a minority government
In coming out on top, Trudeau and the Liberals engineered a major turn-around in their fortunes.
Their campaign comeback started to spark up only when Trudeau stopped running against the ghost of that old bogeyman of progressive voters, Stephen Harper, and started to run against a new and very much alive bogeyman of progressive nightmares, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney on the issue of vaccine passports.
Trudeau also pitted his supporters against all Canadians who have refused to get vaccinated, a darkly divisive move, but one that was effective in stalling the momentum of moderate federal Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole.
It pushed away voters from O’Toole’s right-of-centre party toward Maxime Bernier’s People’s Party of Canada. Bernier led the only party to remain steadfastly opposed to vaccination passports.
Vaccine passports became the winning wedge for Trudeau.
When it comes to vaccines, most Canadians have decided that it’s completely fair that people who choose not to get vaccinated — thus endangering the freedom of all others — deserve to face extra restrictions. But conservative leaders failed to quickly grasp this concept.
As a result, Trudeau was able to make his move. At long last he had something to counter O’Toole devastating attacks on him for selfishly calling an unnecessary election in the middle of a pandemic, a strategy that saw O’Toole edging up in the polls by early September to take a three or four point lead.
Trudeau’s response, something he was pounding on most campaign stops, including last weekend, was to ask one tough question: “Mr. O’Toole wants all of Canadians to get vaccinated but can’t even make sure all of his own candidates are vaccinated. How do you want to lead the country in getting vaccinated if you can’t lead the people who signed up to follow you?”
Just a few months ago, almost all major Canadian political leaders were against vaccine passports, including Trudeau. On March 12, he said he was uneasy with a national vaccine passport as it could marginalize people who can’t or won’t get the vaccine. “The idea of certificates of vaccination for domestic use does bring in questions of equity. There are questions of fairness and justice. There could be discrimination,” Trudeau said in French.
Trudeau nailed it there. Vaccine passports are a form of coercion, pushing the unwilling to get vaxxed so they can travel, keep their certain jobs, or attend certain events and places.
But with the threat of a massive and widespread lockdown rising up again, leader after leader has changed positions on passports. Trudeau was the first, thus painting himself as Captain Vaccine Passport. A few days before he called the election, he came out in favour of them for travellers inside and outside Canada.
On Aug. 27, he challenged Ontario Premier Doug Ford to take up his offer of federal funding for provincial passports. A few days later, on Sept. 2, the Ford government adopted passports, with O’Toole also changing his position on Sept. 4.
If Kenney and Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe had moved at the same time, much of the heat might have been taken out of the issue. But they did not budge.
Trudeau was all over their lame response like Connor McDavid on a loose puck in the offensive slot.
One huge moment for Team Trudeau came Sept. 9 when he lashed out at a reporter from the Rebel news organization. Said Trudeau: “The reality is organizations like yours that continue to spread misinformation and disinformation on the science around vaccines on how we’re actually going to get through this pandemic and be there for each other and keep our kids safe is part of why we’re seeing such unfortunate anger and lack of understanding of basic science.”
That attack got anxious Liberal supporters up and off their feet like their all-time favourite song just came on at the nightclub. And they were ready to dance all night when Trudeau started to call out Kenney and Moe.
On Sept. 19 in Montreal, for example, Trudeau said all the wrong choices were being made in Alberta and Saskatchewan. “Folks in Alberta have a really important choice to make whether they want Erin O’Toole to keep working with Jason Kenney on not ending this pandemic.”
Trudeau’s win represents a blow to Alberta. He’s pushing ever harder on policies that will undermine the Canadian resource sector. I also fear his rhetoric and plans will keep dividing us and push us into the most crushing debt we’ve ever known.
I’m far from a fan of Trudeau and his policies. But I have to give him credit on his campaign comeback. That was brilliant political messaging.
SNARK FROM THE RIGHT
Bell: Kenney on the ropes, Trudeau's back!Author of the article: Rick Bell
Publishing date: Sep 20, 202
1 • 
While that dumpster fire burns we also vote Monday for who runs the country and Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau is back, at press time another minority government with the help of the usual suspects.
In these trying times, many would like us to be voting for who runs this province.
Yes, stories about Kenney abound in Alberta.
Kenney will resign soon, say some. Others say Kenney won’t resign.
Kenney will fight back. Kenney will dig in and live to lose another day.
Another storyline.
United Conservative members of the legislature will vote no confidence in the premier at a closed-door chinwag Wednesday. That is said to be very much in the cards.
Or United Conservative party members will push for a vote on the premier’s leadership sooner rather than later.
The scuttlebutt shares one sentiment.
Kenney is in a world of hurt. Big hurt. More than a few insist it’s fatal. This could be one hell of a week.
The bad news continues.
COVID-19 doesn’t pick sides but the number of virus-afflicted patients in this province’s hospitals closes in on 1,000 in the Worst COVID Ever, the product of a provincial government absent when we needed them most, an outfit dripping with incompetence.
Is Kenney past the point of no return?
It sure looks bleak.
And all this happens against the backdrop of a federal election, a ballot battle we didn’t need, pushed by a prime minister confident his handling of COVID would lead to a Liberal majority and a free hand to do whatever he damn well pleases.
And Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wins. Shy of a majority, but he still wins.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney during a news conference regarding the surging COVID cases in the province in Calgary on Wednesday, September 15, 2021.
PHOTO BY AL CHAREST / POSTMEDIA
Premier Jason Kenney fights for his political life.
Premier Jason Kenney fights for his political life.
While that dumpster fire burns we also vote Monday for who runs the country and Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau is back, at press time another minority government with the help of the usual suspects.
In these trying times, many would like us to be voting for who runs this province.
Yes, stories about Kenney abound in Alberta.
Kenney will resign soon, say some. Others say Kenney won’t resign.
Kenney will fight back. Kenney will dig in and live to lose another day.
Another storyline.
United Conservative members of the legislature will vote no confidence in the premier at a closed-door chinwag Wednesday. That is said to be very much in the cards.
Or United Conservative party members will push for a vote on the premier’s leadership sooner rather than later.
The scuttlebutt shares one sentiment.
Kenney is in a world of hurt. Big hurt. More than a few insist it’s fatal. This could be one hell of a week.
The bad news continues.
COVID-19 doesn’t pick sides but the number of virus-afflicted patients in this province’s hospitals closes in on 1,000 in the Worst COVID Ever, the product of a provincial government absent when we needed them most, an outfit dripping with incompetence.
Is Kenney past the point of no return?
It sure looks bleak.
And all this happens against the backdrop of a federal election, a ballot battle we didn’t need, pushed by a prime minister confident his handling of COVID would lead to a Liberal majority and a free hand to do whatever he damn well pleases.
And Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wins. Shy of a majority, but he still wins.
FILE PHOTO: Canada’s Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau speaks at an election campaign stop on the last campaign day before the election, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada September, 19, 2021.
PHOTO BY REUTERS/CARLOS OSORIO
Trudeau is such damaged goods. Still he just does not go away. Now we will see how it all shakes out.
Once a national rock star, a seemingly pleasing cardboard cutout, a second-rate drama teacher who knew enough to play a part.
So promising as a poster boy.
So full of sunny ways, spewing out the correct woke sentiments, serving as catnip for low-information voters wooed by sweet-sounding and politically fashionable syllables no matter how devoid of meaning.
A leader who could not lead or would not lead, except in the wrong direction. A man whose government would indulge in virtue-signalling but almost never traffic in virtue.
Still, there was even a time the crowds down on Calgary’s Stephen Avenue mobbed him.
Why did they do so? He was a celebrity. He was a somebody. He was worth a selfie.
That’s all gone now.
Yes, there’s a sucker born every minute but why are there so many suckers and why do some hang on so long to their illusions and delusions?
In this ballot battle, Trudeau still paints himself as a progressive saviour against the backward-thinking conservative barbarians and he has takers for his shtick.
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole is cast simply as Not Trudeau and better than his predecessor Andrew Scheer, which is not saying much.
Trudeau is such damaged goods. Still he just does not go away. Now we will see how it all shakes out.
Once a national rock star, a seemingly pleasing cardboard cutout, a second-rate drama teacher who knew enough to play a part.
So promising as a poster boy.
So full of sunny ways, spewing out the correct woke sentiments, serving as catnip for low-information voters wooed by sweet-sounding and politically fashionable syllables no matter how devoid of meaning.
A leader who could not lead or would not lead, except in the wrong direction. A man whose government would indulge in virtue-signalling but almost never traffic in virtue.
Still, there was even a time the crowds down on Calgary’s Stephen Avenue mobbed him.
Why did they do so? He was a celebrity. He was a somebody. He was worth a selfie.
That’s all gone now.
Yes, there’s a sucker born every minute but why are there so many suckers and why do some hang on so long to their illusions and delusions?
In this ballot battle, Trudeau still paints himself as a progressive saviour against the backward-thinking conservative barbarians and he has takers for his shtick.
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole is cast simply as Not Trudeau and better than his predecessor Andrew Scheer, which is not saying much.
Canadian Conservative leader Erin O’Toole watches early election results at party head quarters, September 20, 2021 in Oshawa, Ont.
PHOTO BY ADRIAN WYLD/POOL/AFP VIA GETTY IMAGES
One day in the future, the federal Conservatives may elect a conservative leader with fire in the belly. A conservative leader who does not backtrack.
A leader who will not pander and will be true blue and let the chips fall where they may. Then let’s find out where Canada really sits.
We are nowhere near that day.
There was little juice in the election, little enthusiasm. Understandably so.
We were not voting for Big Change.
O’Toole was Little Change and, when questioned, became the leader of Really Little Change.
He would be better than Trudeau, which is not saying much.
A guy who was said to not scare the frightened suburbanites of southern Ontario. One wag said one could hope he would be the real deal by a fraction of a corner of an eyelash.
O’Toole twists and turns to the left but it is not near enough.
On Monday night our attention shifts back to our home province.
Kenney sure didn’t do the federal Conservatives any favours and was such an easy target in the final days of the federal campaign.
He now fights for his political life.
But, unlike the federal election, it is an arena where we are mere spectators, waiting to see if and when the hammer comes down.
rbell@postmedia.com
One day in the future, the federal Conservatives may elect a conservative leader with fire in the belly. A conservative leader who does not backtrack.
A leader who will not pander and will be true blue and let the chips fall where they may. Then let’s find out where Canada really sits.
We are nowhere near that day.
There was little juice in the election, little enthusiasm. Understandably so.
We were not voting for Big Change.
O’Toole was Little Change and, when questioned, became the leader of Really Little Change.
He would be better than Trudeau, which is not saying much.
A guy who was said to not scare the frightened suburbanites of southern Ontario. One wag said one could hope he would be the real deal by a fraction of a corner of an eyelash.
O’Toole twists and turns to the left but it is not near enough.
On Monday night our attention shifts back to our home province.
Kenney sure didn’t do the federal Conservatives any favours and was such an easy target in the final days of the federal campaign.
He now fights for his political life.
But, unlike the federal election, it is an arena where we are mere spectators, waiting to see if and when the hammer comes down.
rbell@postmedia.com
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