Alberta Election on March 3

This is from CBC. This hardly comes as a surprise. Even though Stelmach is not all that popular and the Conservatives have been in power for decades at worst it would seem that the Conservatives may lose some urban seats. Already, with his announcement that he will do away with health care premiums over four years Stelmach has undercut part of the Liberal program.


Alberta election called for March 3
Last Updated: Monday, February 4, 2008 4:12 PM MT
CBC News
Albertans will go to the polls on March 3, Conservative Leader Ed Stelmach confirmed Monday.
Stelmach made the announcement in the legislature to the applause of his fellow Conservatives less than an hour after Lt.-Gov. Norman Kwong delivered the speech from the throne to open a new session of the legislature.
Ed Stelmach rose in the legislature Monday to announce a provincial election for March 3.
What was supposed to be an outline for the Conservative government's plans for the coming session quickly turned into the the Tory election platform.
In the speech, the government promised to eliminate health-care premiums over four years, increase the number of health-care workers in the province and allocate significant new funding for crime reduction.
NDP Leader Brian Mason launched his party's campaign late Monday morning promising to be the party that speaks for "regular families."
Liberal Leader Kevin Taft announced his election platform Thursday night saying Albertans are tired of 36 years of Conservative rule. The Liberals are also promising an end to health-care premiums, and promise to lower electricity rates.


Tory leader must win over urban voters
This will be the first major election test for Stelmach, the 56-year-old rural politician who still operates a small grain farm near Lamont, 80 kilometres northeast of Edmonton.
Known by many as "Steady Eddie," he staged a "come from behind" victory to replace former premier Ralph Klein as party leader in December, mainly because of his support from rural Conservatives.
But his rural power base got him into trouble last June when the party suffered an embarrassing loss in a Calgary by-election. The Liberals won Calgary-Elbow, taking Klein's long-time seat. Many Calgarians accused Stelmach of not paying enough attention to the problems there.
Government spending preceded election call
Stelmach has spent the last few months rolling out a series of plans on everything from affordable housing to dealing with a backlog of schools, hospitals and other construction projects.
His mantra — "Alberta has a plan" — is seen as a move to distance himself from Klein, who admitted in September 2006 that his government had been caught off guard by the explosive growth in the province.
Currently, the Progressive Conservatives have 60 seats in the legislature, the Liberals 16, the NDP 4 and the Wildrose Alliance Party 1, with one independent and one seat vacant.