Luan rides blue tide to win in Hawkwood
Aloud cheer erupts at the Arbour Lake Community Centre, followed by hoots and hollers as Progressive Conservative Jason Luan fist-pumps one of about 50 supporters gathered to see who wins the new CalgaryHawkwood riding in the city’s far northwest.
Around 10:15 p.m.,it’s clear the 41-year Progressive Conservative dynasty has been extended across Alberta and Luan has a long lead of more than 1,000 votes over Wildrose candidate David Yager — in second.
With more than half of the 85 polling stations in the new constituency he expects to represent having reported, Luan’s victory “is a done deal,” he says.
Calgary-hawkwood was no party’s to lose, but eight candidates had lined up pledging to win the new riding, a product of a redesign of Alberta electoral districts in 2010.
That’s more MLA hopefuls than any other constituency in the province, in a riding that played host to a fierce battle dominated by the province’s two right-leaning parties, the Progressive Conservatives and the Wildrose.
Each candi date had wanted to lay claim as the first to win the new riding of 47,686 people, made up mostly of half of the old Calgary-north West constituency, as well as one-fifth each of the pre-2010 CalgaryBow and Calgary-foothills ridings, and just three per cent of pre-existing Calgary-varsity. Calgary-north West has been held for 15 years by the Tories, for the last four consecutive elections.
Neighbourhoods comprising Calgary-hawkwood include Ranchlands, Silver Springs, Hawkwood, Arbour Lake, and Citadel.
Luan says it wasn’t financial backing of his campaign or connections that pushed him ahead.
“The most important thing is who has the connection to the grassroots, it’s your ability to reflect their view and speak on their terms and understand their issues,” the 49-year-old social worker says.
“I had never doubted we would win, based on that.”
Luan has worked as a planner for the City of Calgary the past 14 years.
It’s in Calgary-hawkwood where the party leading polls heading into the election, the Wildrose, placed its candidate most likely take up the energy file in cabinet under a potential Wildrose government — Yager, 58. A longtime commentator on energy industry issues in broadcast and print as an oilfield service company founder and executive, including in the Calgary Herald, Yager was appointed co-chair of the Wildrose energy policy task force in No- vember 2009.
As the numbers started to roll in earlier in the evening, showing Luan ahead, Yager was still optimistic at his campaign office shared with Calgary-north West Wildrose hopeful Chris Challis, and said it was still early in the night.
Yager said he joined Wildrose and became a candidate to bring a business focus to government, upset at the royalty hike on the energy sector imposed by the Tories in 2007.
“There aren’t enough business people in government with large organization management experience,” Yager says.
Maria Davis, a 56-year-old substitute teacher, represented the Liberals in Calgary-hawkwood. The Alberta Party put forth Kevin Woron, 44, a pyrotechnician. The NDP’S candidate was Collin Anderson, 56 a retired telecommunications electrician. Alberta Social Credit Party leader Len Skowronski ran, as did independent Ed Torrance, a safety and risk management consultant. Janet Keeping, a legal researcher, ran under the Evergreen Party of Alberta banner.