Greenway poses diversity challenge
Alberta statistics show that half are immigrants, with majority from Asia
When politicians knock on doors in Calgary- Greenway, there’s a good chance they’ll be greeted in a language that’s not English.
Whether candidates and their volunteers can adequately respond is just one of the challenges they face in a seat one political organizer calls “one of the more complicated ridings in Alberta.”
The northeast Calgary riding — site of a hard-fought byelection campaign that will be decided Tuesday — is one of the most diverse ridings in Alberta, second only to its neighbouring constituency of Calgary-McCall.
Statistics from the Alberta government based on the 2011 census show nearly half of Calgary- Greenway residents are immigrants, with the vast majority coming from Asia. Overall, 62 per cent of the riding population is of Asian descent, with about half of that group East Indian or Pakistani.
The report shows that the mother tongue of nearly 40 per cent of residents is a non-official language (neither French nor English), with Punjabi speakers making up 14 per cent and Vietnamese speakers at five per cent. About 10 per cent of the population report multiple languages as their home language.
While the riding profile does not break down religious affiliation, major Sikh, Hindu and Muslim places of worship are all in the northeast of the city.
Shiraz Shariff, who served as the Progressive Conservative MLA for Calgary-McCall from 1995 to 2008 and now lives in Calgary- Greenway, said building support from ethnic and religious communities takes on significant importance in the northeast — especially in a byelection where turnout is likely to be “dismal.”
“The outcome in northeast Calgary is not going to be based on party politics,” he said in an interview this week.
“It will be based on the cultural support that candidates will receive ... they’ll win because they will be able to get the base out and turn out the most number of support for a byelection.”
There has long been a focus on ethnic outreach at the federal level of politics, with the Liberals for years having an advantage among new Canadians.
The federal Conservatives in turn assiduously courted those communities — notably through the efforts of Jason Kenney, Calgary MP and former cabinet minister — though debates around citizenship and immigration issues in last year’s federal vote helped elect a new Liberal government under Justin Trudeau.
Former Tory MLA Rick Orman, who represented Greenway’s predecessor riding of Calgary-Montrose until 1993, said that while the issues are different, provincial parties have long recognized the need for connecting with ethnic communities.
Orman has maintained strong ties in northeast Calgary — a significant portion of support in his 2011 PC leadership bid came from the area — and said politicians hoping for success “need to earn your stripes out there.”
“It’s not just a matter of ... some- one showing up,” he said.
“You have to build your alliances. And your alliances are built on trust and they’re built on their belief you can deliver on the things that are of greatest interest to them.”
Orman said that means building relationships with leaders within the ethnic communities, but he cautioned against the idea that voters from those groups simply fall in line.
“There’s going to be competition for support within the various ethnic communities and I can tell you — and this is a mistake a lot of people make — it is not homogeneous inside the Sikh or Punjabi community or inside the Vietnamese community,” he said.
Political parties contesting the byelection are reluctant to talk too much about strategy.
But they acknowledge the demographics of the riding mean they must have people and resources in place who can communicate with all potential voters.
“It adds some complexity,” said Wildrose executive director Jeremy Nixon. “It’s probably one of the more complicated ridings in Alberta.”
But Nixon, who speaks admiringly of Kenney’s work for the federal Conservatives, said there is no tailoring of the Wildrose message to the ethnic voters of the riding.
NDP provincial secretary Chris O’Halloran said a candidate needs a strong team to connect with “very diverse communities.”
“We’re going to use every tactic we have at our disposal, whether its through face-to-face communications, written communications, online communications, phone, to make sure we outreach, communicate and talk to people ... in their language.”
It’s not just a matter of ... someone showing up. You have to build your alliances. And your alliances are built on trust and they’re built on their belief you can deliver on the things that are of greatest interest to them. Former PC MLA Rick Orman.