Less than 30 per cent of MLA hopefuls are women

In the dog days of summer, with a provincial election still months away, Bettina PierreGilles is pounding the pavement in a southwest Calgary neighbourhood, drumming up support for her campaign.

Pierre-Gilles has been relentlessly door-knocking since May in a bid to secure the nomination for the United Conservative Party in Calgary-Currie.

The business owner and mother has been getting a warm reception on doorsteps and is finding her feet as a first-time candidate, motivated to run by the suffering she saw as a result of the economic downturn.

“I know so many different people that have lost their jobs. I was volunteering with the party (and) I was complaining about it. Afterwards I said, ‘You know what? I’ll do something about it,’” she said.

“I’ve got the skills and experience that can assist, so I put my name forward.”

Of the more than 330 people in Alberta currently nominated or seeking the endorsement of a party to run in the next provincial election, women comprise less than 30 per cent.

While early efforts are underway by political organizations and parties to increase the numbers of female candidates in the next election, the results, so far, have been uneven.

The NDP leads the pack on gender parity, with women comprising just over 46.4 per cent of the party’s current nomination contestants and candidates. The Alberta Party is currently fielding around 30.6 per cent female contestants and candidates, while the UCP has 27.8 per cent.

The Alberta Liberal Party has no female nomination contestants, but a spokesperson with the party says several will be registered soon.

All of the major parties have programs or funds aimed at developing female candidates. Outside the partisan sphere, organizations such as Equal Voice and Ask Her provide resources, networking and workshops for women interested in politics.

But despite the success of the Alberta NDP in achieving near gender parity in its caucus, those calling for better gender balance in the legislature overall are frustrated with the slow pace of progress.

When it comes to the number of women put forward by a party, the buck stops with the leader, said University of Calgary political scientist Melanee Thomas.

“The most important thing is the leader. What the leader wants, the leader gets,” Thomas said.

“If the leader wanted things to look different, they would just tell the party, ‘Go and do it,’ and they would go and do it. Stephen Harper did this for the federal Conservatives between 2006 and 2008 (and) they doubled the number of women that they nominated.”

“Anybody who wants to credibly compete against the current government of Alberta is going to have to do better on diversity, and the UCP is really vulnerable on this.”

It comes down to recruitment, Thomas said, and there are strategies that can help attract more women.