The Bastard’s Guide to the 2011 Federal Election
So the government fell and we’re now staring down the barrel of an election. Whose fault is it? This is the one point that every politician agrees on: it’s the other guy’s fault!
Here in Medicine Hat, we finally have a race. A legitimate non-conservative candidate with a decent shot at taking office has shown up. For your reading pleasure, here are all the relevant and irrelevant candidates for the 2011 election along with my take on their leadership.
Incumbent: The Conservative Party
Party: Conservative
To be honest, it doesn’t matter who is running for the conservative party this election, they’re likely to win. Medicine Hat doesn’t vote for a candidate, they vote for a blue C. That all may change thanks to the next guy, though.
My take: http://www.yunoconfidence.ca
Challenger: Norm Boucher
Party: Liberal
Medicine Hat’s current mayor is making his entry into federal politics. He’s the mayor, so he has at least some experience campaigning. 40% of 30% of Hatters voted for him in the last mayoral election, so he has a good shot at getting a decent number of votes in this election. His biggest drawback is that he’s running as a Liberal in Alberta.
The biggest complaint I’ve heard is that he shouldn’t have run for mayor if he knew was just going to run for Parliament, because everyone knows you’re supposed to quit your current job before looking for another one. Oh, and that arena thing. That one’s gonna hurt a lot.
My take: http://www.stopthescandals.ca
“Challenger”: Dennis Perrier
Party: NDP
I’m putting as much effort into this as he put into his facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dennis-Perrier-Federal-NDP-Candidate-for-Medicine-Hat/154084814647356
No chance. The only thing he can do now is split the left enough to guarantee a Conservative seat.
My take: http://www.foreverfourth.ca
“Challenger”: Graham Murray
Party: Green
Another lost cause. In the newspaper, he said that his signs were being printed up. That doesn’t seem very green to me. He had an opportunity to make a point and pick up a lot of the youth vote by campaigning electronically, but he blew it. Personally I’d love to see him get elected just to watch him squirm as he slowly realizes that his constituency’s economy is heavily based on oil and gas.
My take: It would cost me infinity dollars per Green Party seat to set up a site for them. Doesn’t seem like a good investment. Maybe next time.
Conspicuously absent: Bloc Québécois
This party has a large support base in Quebec but never runs candidates in Alberta. I have no clue how they think they’re ever going to form a majority acting like that.
My take: http://www.youareincanada.ca
March 31st, 2011 at 9:30 AM
Vaughn says:
The best is definitely the NDP site.
March 31st, 2011 at 11:36 AM
Brian says:
Great post! Harper site is my favourite.
April 19th, 2011 at 6:36 PM
Myradon says:
I think a serious problem is that the assumption of a Conservative win does keep some people home on election day, and prevents their voice from being heard. Regardless of who I support i want people in our community to take part and stay interested in our democracy.
April 25th, 2011 at 11:07 PM
Bridge the Gap says:
We are starting a voter turnout challenge among Alberta ridings – we are aiming for 80% in Lethbridge…think you Medicine Hatters can beat us?
Visit the facebook page, start your own, and game on!
http://www.facebook.com/Bridge.Gap.Vote