Conservative Lloyd wins Ambrose’s seat in byelection

Rona Ambrose’s former riding remains staunchly Conservative after a byelection Monday that saw the Tory candidate romp to victory.

Dane Lloyd secured 77.4 per cent of the vote in the Sturgeon RiverParkland byelection with 240 of 251 polls reporting at press time.

Lloyd and his supporters gathered at Sorrentino’s in Stony Plain to watch the results.

To represent the riding in Ottawa is “a dream come true,” he said.

Lloyd said his first order of business in Ottawa will be pushing for Canadian No Body No Parole legislation, in which convicted killers must reveal the location of their victims if they want to be heard by the parole board.

He said he’s happy to work across the aisle with his Liberal counterparts to get the law passed.

Lloyd was one of four candidates vying for the riding, up against pro-lifer Ernest Chauvet from the Christian Heritage Party, New Democrat Shawna Gawreluck and Liberal Brian Gold.

A personal visit by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to Gold’s campaign office Friday night wasn’t enough to convince voters.

At 26, Lloyd was the youngest candidate vying for the job. A social media past that included Facebook posts using terms like “feminazi” and praising political incorrectness didn’t deter voters.

An officer in the Canadian Forces reserves, Lloyd had just finished an intense three-month training exercise when the chance came up to vie for the Sturgeon RiverParkland nomination. He beat out a number of Conservative heavy hitters to win his spot on the ballot.

The unofficial voter turnout for the byelection was estimated at 20 per cent by Elections Canada on Monday night.