Latest news with #EdmontonStrathcona
CBC
26-06-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Former conservative MP Rahim Jaffer running for mayor, after years out of the public eye
A former conservative MP who left public life nearly 15 years ago says he wants to be Edmonton's next mayor. Rahim Jaffer — who represented Edmonton-Strathcona in Parliament for more than 11 years — says a private life of parenthood, running a small business, and sitting on school councils has put him in touch with community needs. Jaffer made headlines during his days in politics and in years to follow after a flurry of controversies, including a traffic violation, a finding that he broke the Lobbyists' Code of Conduct and a phoney interview on a Vancouver radio show. Why is he running for mayor? "The amount of challenges and lack of focus that I find in creating an environment for Edmontonians to really succeed, whether it's in business or any other area that they are focused on," he said in an interview Wednesday with CBC News. "Our city can do so much better, and I hope to offer that change." Five other contenders have also signalled their intent to run for mayor in Edmonton's Oct. 20 municipal election. They are: Past councillor Tony Caterina Ward pihêsiwin councillor Tim Cartmell Geological engineer Abdul Malik Chukwudi Ward Nakota Isga councillor Andrew Knack Pediatric dental surgeon Omar Mohammad Jaffer says feedback from customers at his Whyte Avenue restaurant, The Rooster, and the struggles of small business owners are among the frustrations prompting his council run. He says business owners are facing insurmountable costs and lengthy delays when trying to get permits to improve commercial properties. Jaffer said sitting on the sidelines is no longer an option for him. "Over the last decade, I've just seen a decline of the city," he said. "What I've continuously heard from people, over and over, is we really need some change. So today I'm going to offer that change." He said what differentiates him from other candidates who share his ideology is that he hasn't spent years in council chambers. Jaffer has a colourful history from his time as an MP, and in the years immediately following elected life. He says he won't try to run from those controversies — that at least his skeletons are all out in the open. "I was given a pink card, and it gave me a chance to take some steps back and think about things," said Jaffer, 53. "I was very fortunate to be able to have a son soon after. I had all that excitement when I left Ottawa, so I really focused on that." All that excitement, as he called it, includes a conviction for a provincial traffic offence of careless driving in connection with a September 10, 2009, incident in the village of Palgrave, Ont, after he'd left office. Jaffer accepted a plea deal, allowing him to dodge a criminal record after a traffic stop left him charged with impaired driving and possession of cocaine. A month later, Jaffer and his then-wife, Stephen Harper cabinet minister Helena Guergis, were at the centre of vague allegations of wrongdoing that saw Guergis kicked out of the Conservative caucus. The RCMP later cleared the couple of any criminal wrongdoing. Investigative reports suggested Jaffer had offered a businessperson special access to the Prime Minister's Office — access Harper's spokespeople said Jaffer didn't have. Guergis faced accusations that Jaffer was using the leverage of her office to make business deals. She then sat as an independent, and then lost the seat in the 2011 election. In 2011, the federal lobbying commissioner ruled Jaffer and his business partner at the time broke federal rules by neglecting to register as lobbyists while seeking federal funding for their projects. Jaffer also faced heat earlier in his political career when one of his staffers imitated him for a 45-minute live segment on a Vancouver radio station. Jaffer denies lobbying, drug use Alliance MP suspended over aide's impersonation What would 2025 Jaffer say to his 38-year-old self? "Hopefully you've learned a lot of lessons," he said. "I was young when I was in politics. I was so fortunate to have the opportunity to serve this community for almost 12 years as the member of Parliament. And you know, when you have that kind of profile, you're also a target. So, look. I made mistakes." Businessperson and former Edmonton MP Ian McClelland, who served alongside Jaffer in Parliament and officiated his wedding to Guergis, said he was surprised to hear about Jaffer's mayoral run. "My initial reaction is, 'Why would he want to put himself into that position?'" he said in an interview Wednesday. "And my secondary reaction was, everyone deserves a second chance. He's a bright person. He comes from a very good family … I don't know anybody that hasn't made a stupid mistake in their life." McClelland says he hasn't talked to Jaffer in years. He said city council could benefit from more members who have experience trying to run a business in Edmonton. "Rahim has a huge hill to climb, and if he's able to do it, more power to him," he said.
National Post
24-06-2025
- Politics
- National Post
Naheed Nenshi returns to Alberta's legislature, NDP wins two of three byelections
Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi has won a seat in the legislature after a year of sitting on the sidelines. Article content He held Edmonton-Strathcona for the New Democrats in one of three provincial byelections Monday night, replacing former premier Rachel Notley in the party stronghold. Article content 'It means I get a parking spot at the legislature. But in reality, I think I've been doing this job for a whole year, and I'm just really grateful for the people of Edmonton-Strathcona to put us up on the next step,' he told reporters in Edmonton Monday night. Article content 'It was a three-step process: win the leadership, get a seat in the house, and now we win the general election,' he said. Article content 'I look forward to constructive debate and, above all, working to advance Alberta's interests: growing our economy, building critical infrastructure, and securing a stronger future for all Albertans,' she wrote on X. Article content Nenshi will face off with the premier in the legislature's question period when the house reconvenes in the fall. Article content 'It will be a little fun for me to be able to stand toe-to-toe with the premier,' said Nenshi. Article content Article content His NDP also declared victory in Edmonton-Ellerslie, where the party's candidate, Gurtej Singh Brar, came in ahead of United Conservative Party candidate Naresh Bhardwaj by over 1,000 votes. Article content Thank you, Edmonton-Ellerslie, for putting your trust in me. I'm grateful to everyone who welcomed me, shared their stories, and supported our campaign. Today, SE Edmonton sent a strong message to Danielle Smith and the UCP. I look forward to being your voice in the Legislature. — Gurtej Singh Brar (@gsinghbrar_yeg) June 24, 2025
CBC
24-06-2025
- Politics
- CBC
Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi heading for legislature after byelection win
Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi has won a byelection in Edmonton-Strathcona, according to unofficial results posted online by Elections Alberta. With all polls reporting, Nenshi's party colleague Gurtej Singh Brar was also leading in the Edmonton-Ellerslie race. And in central Alberta, the United Conservative Party hung onto a seat in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills. With all polls in Edmonton-Strathcona reporting, Nenshi had 7,952 of the 9,665 votes counted, or about 82 per cent of the ballots. The UCP candidate Darby Crouch earned 14 per cent of the vote. "This is your result, your victory," Nenshi told supporters gathered at a south Edmonton hotel for a victory party. "It's your inroads you made tonight." Nenshi defeated five other candidates who ran for the UCP, Liberal Party, Alberta Party, Republican Party of Alberta and the Wildrose Loyalty Coalition. Political newcomer Tara Sawyer of the UCP is poised to be the next MLA for Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills, staving off a threat from the Opposition and an invigorated separatist party. With all polls reporting, Sawyer had 61 per cent, or 9,363 of the 15,318 votes tallied. NDP candidate Bev Toews came in second place with 20 per cent of the vote, and Republican Party of Alberta leader Cam Davies was in third, with 18 per cent of the vote. Wildrose Loyalty Coalition candidate Bill Tufts was in a distant fourth place. Sawyer told supporters gathered at a hotel in Olds, which is 96 kilometres north of Calgary, she feels honoured voters recognized she was the right person for the job. She told reporters the intrigue with a separatist candidate shows how frustrated rural Albertans are with the federal government, and that it's time the Liberal government take Alberta's interests more seriously. Sawyer said citizens told her this while she was door knocking during the campaign. "What I kept telling them, and what they clearly recognized, is we didn't need a divisive party," Sawyer said. "We need to remain strong, and we already have a government that's working every day on all the issues that are frustrating them." The seat was vacated by former legislature Speaker and longtime UCP MLA Nathan Cooper, who resigned last month to become Alberta's representative in Washington, D.C. Cooper was at Sawyer's victory party in Olds on Monday night, and congratulated her with a hug. Republican Party leader Davies said he's undeterred by the byelection result. "There is a growing movement of conservatives who are not happy with the status quo and that movement is not going away anytime soon," Davies said. As Premier Smith prepares to launch an "Alberta Next" panel on Tuesday in Calgary, to gather ideas on how Alberta can bolster its sovereignty, Davies said the time for panels, studies, and recommendations is done. "Albertans want now more than ever action on the policies that matter most to them," he said. "And so we're going to fight for those issues." The NDP's result garnering 20 per cent of the votes is on par with the party's result in the 2023 provincial general election. In a statement, candidate Bev Toews said she saw progress in the conversations she had with rural residents. "The opportunity to stand up for Canada and against separatism was a highlight for me this campaign," she said. Nenshi's yearlong road to the legislature Alberta NDP members chose Nenshi to lead the NDP at a Calgary convention a year ago following Rachel Notley's resignation as leader. Nenshi, who served as mayor of Calgary from 2010 to 2021, won the leadership contest in a landslide. Since becoming leader, Nenshi has been without a seat in the legislature, saying he would wait to run until a vacancy in an Edmonton or Calgary riding became available. In his byelection victory speech Monday night, Nenshi thanked the voters of Edmonton-Strathcona for being welcoming and making him feel at home. "And I promise I will be your number one advocate," he said. Hinting at the projected result in the Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills byelection, Nenshi said if voters take anything from Monday's results, it should be Albertans' weak appetite for separation from Canada. Nenshi reiterated the NDP's dedication to publicly-funded and accessible health care, a robust public education system, workers' rights, affordability and community safety. A closer result in Ellerslie Political pundits said they'd be watching the race closely in Edmonton-Ellerslie as an indicator of how robust NDP support remains in Edmonton. If Monday's byelection results are made official, all seats in the City of Edmonton will remain in NDP hands. The NDP's Brar, a Punjabi-language broadcaster and "self-taught tech enthusiast," according to his campaign website, captured 51 per cent of the 8,511 byelection votes cast. He previously won a competitive NDP nomination contest against three other community leaders. UCP candidate and former Progressive Conservative MLA Naresh Bhardwaj, earned about 38 per cent of the votes. The result was a narrower margin of victory for the NDP, who won the riding by 25 percentage points in the 2023 provincial election. Brar's campaign did not respond to messages on Monday night. In a statement after his win, Brar said he would fight for better health care, education, community safety, and a south Edmonton hospital — a project cancelled by the government. "Tonight, we've sent a clear message to Danielle Smith and the UCP: our community is demanding better," his statement said. Manpreet Tiwana, the Alberta Liberal candidate, came in third and captured about five per cent of the vote. That party has not elected an MLA to the legislature since 2015. When the legislature rose in May, there were 46 UCP MLAs, 36 from the NDP, and two independents. The legislature is set to reconvene on the last week of October.
Globe and Mail
24-06-2025
- Politics
- Globe and Mail
Alberta NDP Leader Nenshi wins seat in one of three byelections
Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi has held Edmonton-Strathcona for the New Democrats in one of three provincial byelections. Unofficial results from Elections Alberta put him well ahead of the nearest competitor, United Conservative Party candidate Darby Crouch. The NDP was also leading in Edmonton-Ellerslie where the party's candidate, Gurtej Singh Brar, was ahead of United Conservative Party candidate Naresh Bhardwaj by over 500 votes, with 46 of 55 polls reporting. The United Conservatives' Tara Sawyer won Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills, where the third byelection was being held. Speaking to supporters at an Edmonton hotel, Nenshi said voters sent a clear message that the UCP 'doesn't have a plan for a better future, but Alberta's New Democrats do.' Nenshi has spent a year of sitting on the sidelines after winning the party's leadership race, and Edmonton-Strathcona was the seat held by former party leader and premier Rachel Notley.
CTV News
24-06-2025
- Politics
- CTV News
Alberta NDP Leader Nenshi wins seat in one of three byelections
Albertans are voting in three provincial byelections on Monday, including two in Edmonton. Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi has held Edmonton-Strathcona for the New Democrats in one of three provincial byelections. Unofficial results from Elections Alberta put him well ahead of the nearest competitor, United Conservative Party candidate Darby Crouch. Nenshi is running in one of three provincial byelections Monday as a candidate in Edmonton-Strathcona, where his predecessor, former premier Rachel Notley, last won 80 per cent of the vote. With 48 of 52 polls reporting at 10 p.m. Monday night, Nenshi had captured 6,036 votes while Crouch had garnered 1,068. In Edmonton-Ellerslie, NDP candidate Gurtej Singh Brar led United Conservative Party candidate Naresh Bhardwaj 2,421 votes to 1,754 with 50 of 55 polls reporting. In Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills with 46 of 60 polls reporting, the UCP's Tara Sawyer had claimed 7,320 votes by 10 p.m. while the NDP's Bev Toews had collected 2,445 and separatist Republican Party of Alberta Leader Cameron Davies had scored 2,029. Bill Tufts of the Wildrose Loyalty Coalition, with 146 votes, is also running in the rural central Alberta riding. The seat became vacant after former legislature speaker and longtime UCP legislature member Nathan Cooper resigned to take a post as Alberta's representative in Washington, D.C. Also running in Edmonton-Strathcona seat are Republican Ravina Chand, Samuel Petrov of the Alberta Party, Liberal Don Slater and Wildrose Loyalty Coalition candidate Jesse Stretch. Other candidates in Edmonton-Ellerslie include Caroline Currie of the Alberta Party, Pamela Henson from the Wildrose Loyalty Coalition, Fred Munn of the Republican Party and Liberal Manpreet Tiwana. The south-Edmonton riding had been represented by Rod Loyola under the NDP banner until he resigned to run in the federal election. With files from Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press
