August 18 byelection called in Battle River-Crowfoot
MP Damien Kurek resigned his seat so Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre could run for seat in House
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OTTAWA — Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is one step closer to re-entering the House of Commons.
On Monday, Prime Minister Mark Carney announced a byelection in the east-central Alberta riding of Battle River-Crowfoot — a seat won by fellow Tory Damien Kurek on election night but who stepped aside to allow his party’s leader a chance to return to the House.
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Poilievre lost his suburban Ottawa seat of Carleton in an election night upset to Liberal challenger Bruce Fanjoy, forcing him to lead his party from the public galleries.
Kurek, who represented the historically-safe Tory riding since 2019, commanded 82% of the vote in the May federal election.
In the wake of his defeat, Poilievre said he planned to spend the summer listening to voters and helping chart a new path forward for his party.
A rural constituency located between Red Deer and the Saskatchewan Border, towns within the riding include Stettler, Hanna, Drumheller and Camrose.
A 2012 riding redistricting created the riding, which has been a reliably-conservative riding for nearly a decade.
In a 1977 political scandal, Crowfoot MP “Cactus Jack” Horner crossed the aisle to join Pierre Trudeau’s cabinet, resulting in his defeat by a PC candidate in the 1979 federal election.
The byelection will be held Aug. 18.
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