Municipal elections: if you blinked, you missed it
Voting day was Monday, October 20, and counting was still ongoing Tuesday afternoon. I don’t often have much to say about municipal elections generally but this year was different: I absolutely didn’t want to get involved. My condolences to the lovely, funny, (and fabulously spicy) Jyoti Gondek, Brian Thiessen and his hard-working campaign team, and to my other friend Jeromy Farkas who became the Mayor of Calgary, congratulations!
Considering how closely it ended up, you’d think there would have been more to talk about (though I’m still glad there wasn’t). Jeromy Farkas won with just 583 votes more than former councillor Sonya Sharp and she has requested a judicial recount. Usually, a judicial recount is performed by hand while the tabulators complete the initial count, but that all changed this year because the UCP banned the use of vote tabulators. So, sure; get those ballots counted by hand — again. Why not?
Former city councillor Andrew Knack is the new Mayor of Edmonton and congratulations to him again as well!
The party pilot in Edmonton and Calgary is not over, even though the election is done. In Calgary, six of 14 candidates were party members (four from one, and one each from the other two). In Edmonton, four candidates of 12 were from one party, and neither Mayor-elect was from a party (Sonya Sharp was on a party slate, however).
UCP’s new rules for municipal political parties allow the party to continue running and accepting donations in advance of the next election, and if they ever become the party to run council, the people behind the scenes will become “king makers”, picking and choosing which lucky candidates get to run with their signs — like provincial politics, but responsible for fixing water lines and ensuring there’s enough money for snow clearing rather than preventing high school kids from seeing cartoon porn at the library.
To all the candidates who tried, and those who were successful, never stop trying to make your community better. Government — like pretty much everything else — only fails when you stop trying to make it work.
No doctor? No problem!*
According to a late night infomercial-worthy video (on X), Alberta will now “allow” us to get any diagnostic test we want!*
Alberta is way behind, they say, as a new technology has shown to improve preventative health, when used alongside healthy eating, exercise, not smoking, getting enough sleep, and taking proper care when sportsing and driving. What is that new tech, you ask?
Artificial Intelligence!
Investors are putting billions into diagnostic clinics everywhere else and Alberta is open to their business. Soon, every Albertan* will be able to access this potentially life-saving option!*
To stay in compliance with Canada’s Public Health Act, if one of these diagnostic tests finds a “life threatening condition” that was previously unknown, Alberta Health will reimburse you for the cost!
I’m definitely curious if it’s still a refundable expense if they find it “early” and it’s not — at that time — “life threatening”. I lived in the U.S. and had an HMO — phrasing is critical to determining if you qualify for reimbursement.
*must be able to pay for services requested
Snark aside, the single good thing is that they “guarantee” clinics will prioritize doctor referrals.
We still have to keep voting on these
I completely forgot they were going to round robin the licence plates. I have nothing else to to add other than the “Strong and Free” font is embarrassing. For the love of whatever/whomever matters to you, please respect expertise and hire a professional.
Whodunit?
Remember when I said government only fails when you stop trying to make it work? I did not expect to find it useful twice in one post.
The provincial government is responsible for K-12 education.
The provincial government.
In every province in Canada, the provincial government is responsible for education.
If the federal government has a robust immigration program, the provincial government is still responsible for education.
If the former premier rolls out a campaign to lure more Canadians to Alberta, the provincial government is still responsible for education.
If the UCP is elected, the provincial government is still responsible for education.
If oil prices tank, the provincial government is still responsible for education.
It’s the provincial government’s responsibility to plan for the future, even if that future is beyond the next election cycle.
It’s the provincial government’s responsibility to meet the needs of kids in classrooms today.
It’s the provincial government’s responsibility to properly fund education for our children.
It’s the provincial government’s responsibility to properly fund classrooms so our kids can learn in the best environment.
Say it with me: it’s the provincial government’s responsibility.
Thanks for coming to my Ted talk; feel free to share it with “Spanky” McAllister.
How prepared are you for an early provincial election?
The UCP is worried.
Republicans are after their special separatist base and they’re bringing in some decent dollars considering they’re not yet a year old.
Progressive Conservatives are not happy with them.
Teachers want properly-funded classrooms.
Parents want their kids back in school, with properly-funded classrooms.
NDP wants to bring back solid socialist policies like publicly-funded healthcare the province began under Social Credit’s Ernest Manning and expanded under Progressive Conservative leader Ralph Klein.
Their government is under investigation for the procurement scandal.
They want to know what your priorities are for the fall session (though they already have their own) and, hey, totally just out of curiosity, if an election were held today, would you vote UCP or NDP because those are totes your only options.
ICYMI: the UCP is also going to introduce new legislation to include “further protection for our local elections ensuring only those who truly care, and are serious about representing a community or riding, are allowed on the ballot.” (Emphasis mine.)
If I was the executive director of a political party, I’d be making sure they were ready for a snap election.
Final thoughts
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So, is the Provincial Gov responsible for education?? Just reconfirming ... 🤣
I resonate with what you wrote, tabulator ban seems so arcaic.