Separatists want to 'hold Poilievre's feet to the fire' in Alberta byelection bid
OTTAWA — Currently seatless Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is eyeing an easy win in a not-yet-called byelection in rural Alberta, but locals say he could be caught in the middle of a growing firestorm over Alberta separation.
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The first hurdle for Poilievre, who represented suburban Ottawa as an MP for two decades before losing his seat last month, will be convincing locals that he's not just another central Canada politician who sees Alberta as a giant ATM machine.
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'I'm somewhat suspect that Mr. Poilievre has said publicly that he doesn't feel there should be any big changes to the equalization formula,' said Rick Strankman, referring to the federal wealth redistribution program Alberta hasn't seen a dime from since the mid-1960s.
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Strankman is a third-generation resident of Poilievre's prospective riding of Battle River—Crowfoot, who represented the area as an Wildrose MLA from 2012 to 2019.
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He says he's seen an uptick in support for Alberta separatism within the community since last month's federal election, which saw the Liberals win their fourth-straight mandate.
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'I think many people are deeply unsatisfied, and many people are frustrated in that they don't know how to achieve a positive change, unless it… evolves from a referendum,' said Strankman.
Province-wide polls show up to two-thirds of Albertans who support the governing United Conservative Party would vote 'yes' in a referendum on Alberta independence.
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Poilievre said last week that he was 'against (Alberta) separation' but sympathized with the 'legitimate grievances' of those who were for it.
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Strankman, who's involved with the pro-separation Alberta Prosperity Project, noted that the group has several upcoming events in and around the riding, including a forum in the 800-person town of Castor next month.
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'I just saw a poster for the Castor event at my local tractor repair shop,' said Strankman.
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Strankman doesn't think that Poilievre is in danger of losing the byelection but suspects that turnout could suffer if he ignores the rising tide of Alberta separatism.
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'You could almost run a straw bale in our riding under the Conservative flag and that would get elected… but there might be an apathy there if (Poilievre) can't shake the label of being a parachute candidate from Ottawa,' said Strankman.
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