Voters in the city of Camrose, the largest jurisdiction in the sprawling rural riding of Battle River-Crowfoot, went to the polls Monday in a by-election that Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre needs to win to restore his seat in Parliament.
Polls opened at 8:30 a.m. local time, and many people came out to cast their votes in a race they say is crucial.
Michael Gacusan, a 17-year resident of Camrose, arrived at a voting station with his wife and daughter, showing support for Poilievre.
“He’s a good leader, honestly,” said Gacusan.
“Very important for all of us, of course. Like I said, we need some changes in our province,” he added.
Poilievre is expected to win in the central Alberta riding, which has been deemed “safe” due to its traditionally conservative roots. Former MP Damien Kurek, who won the riding in the general election with 83 per cent of the vote, stepped aside so his party leader could run and restore his seat in the House of Commons after losing his Ottawa-area seat in April, which he had held for 20 years.
Voters CTV News spoke to believe Poilievre will win. Those in favour of him are excited, while those who aren’t say they are frustrated.
“He’s not going to care what’s going on in the constituency,” said Louie Hagel.
“He’s more concerned about his own rear end being in Parliament down in Ottawa.”
Glen Miller described Poilievre as “parachuting into this riding.”
“He’s going to win. It’s kind of frustrating for me, not being a Conservative,” he said.
Voters say what they will be paying attention to is the margin by which Poilievre wins.
“If he does well here, he will probably keep it (the seat),” said Glenda Hagel.
“But if he doesn’t do as well, because it’s such a strong Conservative base here, then they might be looking at a leadership review.”
That leadership review by Conservative Party members is slated for January.
“I’m very positive he’s not going to pull in the 82 per cent or 83 per cent of the popular vote,” said Louie.
“He’s going to be lacking some support because the anticipation is that he’s not going to be here full time like Damien was.”
Poilievre is one of 214 candidates on the record-breaking ballot. The majority are affiliated with the “Longest Ballot Committee,” advocating for a review of Canada’s first-past-the-post electoral system, which they say doesn’t adequately represent the vote. The group also ran a campaign in Poilievre’s former Ottawa riding where he lost.
Because of the large number of people on the ballot, for the first time ever, Elections Canada will have a write-in ballot, meaning voters will write out the name of their preferred candidate.
Elections Canada will start counting ballots from advance polls early in the day to ensure results are available as quickly as possible.
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