In Alberta election Progressive Conservatives attack Wildrose on race, age issues

In the Alberta election the long ruling Progressive Conservatives are trailing in the polls against the Wildrose party. Both are on the right and both have women as leaders. In desperation the ruling right wing party is accusing their opponents of having an agenda that is being set by old white guys.

While it is true that Danielle Smith's Wildrose party does have more support among men than women, it is also true that those old white guys elected a woman as leader. In Calgary where the Wildrose has much more support than in Edmonton old white guys must have helped elect a Muslim mayor Naheed Nenshi. The city is known more for the Calgary stampede than for electing minorities to office but nevertheless it is a fact! He was elected because he was young, has lots of ideas and was pro-business!

Tom Olsen a Tory strategist said:"I'll tell you exactly what I'm saying: This is the party of yesterday. This is the party of the middle-aged male who has lost control of the Progressive Conservatives because they have moved forward." The Wildrose house leader Rob Anderson said the Progressive Conservatives sound hysterical:"They sound utterly hysterical. It's literally like watching grown men and women in tinfoil hats running around yelling: 'The end is near! The end is near!'"Danielle and the caucus have been clear from the day Danielle was elected leader: the Wildrose will not be legislating on any of these contentious moral issues, period."

The Conservatives have even carried the race age issues into their newspaper ads. Perhaps the campaign will work but I would not be surprised if it backfires. After all it is the Progressive Conservatives who have long been the establishment not the Widlrose party. For more see this article.