PC 61
Lib 17
NDP 4
AAP 1
Boy! My numbers came mighty close yesterday.
With only 46.8 percent of the vote, an issue-less campaign, the loss of some prominent Tories, NDP Leader Brian Mason was right when he said that Klein has no mandate to ram through privatized health care.
But it still astounds me that folks vote for the PC's despite the contempt they've shown towards the voters by not bothering to cobble together a platform. Specifically, saying that they won't unveil their health care plan until after the election. Or, one could say that Klein has a mandate to govern on the platform he ran on and the issues he presented as his priorities.
But if Klein himself was what the PC government had going for them heading into this election, then what might happen in 4 years after Ralph retires? We might have (shockers!) a Liberal government in Alberta. Kevin Taft certainly has the ideas, vision, and ability to pull off a victory when Klein gets out of the way. The Liberals doubled their seats with no money and against a very popular premier. Imagine what could happen with a fully stocked war chest against some nutty cabinet minister who's taken over Klein's job.
Alberta politics just got interesting.
1 comment:
You're right, I'm also amazed that people would vote for Klein because of his arrogance, but I think that part of it is people supporting the party that opposes the national leaders. It's a common joke out here in rural Alberta but is probably true, that if a dead dog could win the conservative nomination, it would win the election.
Don't count on a liberal government once Klein retires - if Ken Nicol had remained in provincial politics it might be possible, but Kevin Taft doesn't inspire much of anything ... if the Conservatives do pick one of their nutty members to be leader after Klein there is a chance, but it's more likely that a former minister who has quit instead of working with Klein (like Jim Dinning) will become leader and reintroduce 'compassionate conservativism'
your right wing radical reader,
markh
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