The Stelmach government’s quietly advertised cabinet tour swung through key Calgary-area ridings Monday, including a stop in Airdrie-Chestermere, a critical battleground in the Tories’ attempts to shore up support in rural Alberta.
The constituency is home to an increasingly bitter political battle between the ruling Progressive Conservatives and their right-of-centre challengers from the Wildrose Alliance party.
Rob Anderson, the riding’s Wildrose MLA who defected from the Tories in January, is quite popular in the area — with some members of his former PC riding association backing the move to his new party.
But Tory roots run deep in these parts and many other small-c conservatives won’t forgive or forget.
A semi truck recently planted along Highway 2 leading into Airdrie — which had been used as an advertising billboard saying "Home of the . . ." was painted over to say "Home of the . . . Tory traitor."
"There’s obviously a lot of loyalty to the PCs, but there’s definitely a lot of support for the Wildrose," Airdrie Mayor Linda Bruce said Monday before meeting with ministers from the Stelmach government. "There are a lot of PCs here who are not very happy (with the government)."
She believes the government’s cabinet tour is partly designed to stabilize eroding support in rural areas, a difficult endeavour in Airdrie-Chestermere because Anderson is widely supported. The Tories must field a "very strong" candidate in the next provincial election, expected in March 2012, if they’re to win back the riding from the Wildrose MLA, she added.
At Airdrie’s Woodside Golf Course, Transportation Minister Luke Ouellette and Employment Minister Thomas Lukaszuk met Monday with members of the Airdrie Chamber of Commerce to discuss the needs of the community, before chatting later in the afternoon with the local economic development board.
Outside, near the putting green, Dave Lamont — like most people at the course — was oblivious to the fact a couple of provincial ministers were inside. He’s got several concerns with where the Tory government is taking the province.
"It seems to me they don’t seem to have a clear direction. They seem to waffle on a lot of issues," said Lamont, 66, who’s voted PC in the past, but is now disappointed with what he believes is a lack of fiscal discipline.
Inside the clubhouse, the ministers said Airdrie business leaders support the government’s three-year, $20-billion capital plan, but don’t necessarily agree with the Wildrose’s demands to protract infrastructure spending over a longer period of time to help erase an expected $4.7-billion deficit.
"Politics is one thing. Governance is another. What Rob has done and is doing is political. What we are doing is governing the province," Lukaszuk said. "Politics will begin when the campaign kicks off and we will try to make sure that this seat returns back to the Conservative fold."
Ouellette said the ministers didn’t stop in Airdrie "asking for a vote," but are simply doing their due diligence to ensure the community receives the provincial programs and services it deserves.
He made it clear, though, they won’t meet with Anderson to get his feedback on the needs of the riding.
"I don’t think there’s one damn thing he can do for me," Ouellette added.
Anderson, who’s volunteered to resign his seat if the premier calls an immediate byelection, said he appreciates the ministers coming to his riding to listen to what constituents have to say.
But he maintains the Stelmach government is rudderless and can’t differentiate between wants and needs in Alberta. He insists the cabinet tour is simply a vote-buying exercise to help the 39-year PC dynasty hold on to its rural base.
"They put money into places where they think they’ve got problems electorally," Anderson said. "It’s full-out damage control."
Political observers said Airdrie, which is slated to be separated from Chestermere and spun off into a separate riding next election, will be difficult for the Tories to recapture. It’s one of many rural constituencies up for grabs come the next election, argued Duane Bratt, political scientist at Mount Royal University.
"There’s going to be very few guaranteed ridings next election," Bratt said. "No party has ever governed Alberta without sweeping (most of) rural Alberta. That will be the test."
Other cabinet ministers touring Calgary-area rural ridings on Monday included Yvonne Fritz meeting with the mayor of Chestermere, while Dave Hancock and Hector Goudreau chatted with community leaders in Cochrane, before stopping by a school in Canmore.
Mel Knight and Len Webber, meanwhile, were scheduled to swing through Cochrane.
The cabinet tour continues today with the same ministers meeting various community and business groups in Banff.
jfekete@theherald. canwest.com
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