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RDP Arts Centre

Federal election forum at Red Deer Polytechnic

Sep 8, 2021 | 10:20 AM

The Students’ Association at Red Deer Polytechnic has partnered with the Red Deer and District Chamber of Commerce to put on a federal election forum for the candidates running in both the Red Deer-Mountain View and Red Deer-Lacombe ridings.

The election forum takes place Sept. 9 at the Red Deer Polytechnic Arts Centre, from 5:30 p.m. until 7:30 p.m., with doors opening at 5:00 p.m. Mask use is mandatory and will be handed out in the entrance for those who do not have them.

The forum will be moderated by Students Association President, Savannah Snow.

The following is a list of the candidates who will be taking part in the forum, as well as a brief description of their backgrounds and areas of focus based on their publicly available information. Links to their individual and party websites and social media pages are also included.

Red Deer-Mountain View

Olumide Adewumi (Liberal) – a small business owner and entrepreneur, Olumide “Sporty” Adewumi has worked for more than 20 years in the oil and gas sector. According to his website, Adewumi says their Liberal team are the only ones with a real plan to grow the economy, protect people’s health, protect a clean environment, and make life better for families.

Earl Dreeshen (Conservative) – Incumbent Earl Dreeshen was born in Red Deer, and taught math at the Innisfail High School for 34 years until his retirement in June of 2008. He was first elected to office in 2008 as MP for the former federal riding of Red Deer. This is the second time he has been voted to represent Red Deer-Mountain View since the electoral map was redrawn prior to the 2015 election. He is also the father of MLA Devin Dreeshen (UCP), representative of the Innisfail-Sylvan Lake riding and Minister of Agriculture and Forestry.

Marie Grabowski (NDP-New Democratic Party) – A health care professional and labour activist, Grabowski grew up in the Hinton-Edson area before moving to Red Deer County. A college grad with a radio and television diploma specializing in community promotions, she eventually traded it in for a career in health care. Currently, she works in a microbiology lab where COVID-19 testing has been a key part of her job. She is worried about access to health care in rural areas, and also supports expanding health care coverage to include prescription drugs and mental health support.

Kelly Lorencz (PPC-People’s Party of Canada) – A former veteran of the Canadian Armed Forces, Lorencz now works in corrections, and lives outside of Innisfail on an acreage near Dixon Dam. On his Twitter account, Lorencz talks about how the rhetoric from Jason Kenney is divisive, for blaming the current spread of COVID on the unvaccinated, and that he stands for freedom of medical choice and freedom from coercion. He also says the PPC party takes a “COMMONSENSE” approach to gun control, and thinks firearms should be categorized based on function, not on looks or “arbitrary political whims.”

Jared Pilon (Libertarian) – with a focus on “getting government out of your way”, Pilon’s campaign focus includes parental authority, democratic rights, and fiscal responsibility. He says he’ll consult with various business sectors like oil and gas, agriculture, and the technology sector to develop new markets and add value. On his Facebook page, Pilon voices his mistrust of mask mandates for school kids, vaccine passports, and the overreach of government in general.

Mark Wilcox (Maverick Party) – growing up on an acreage outside of Vernon, B.C. as the son of a gunsmith/farmer and nurse, Wilcox moved to Carstairs in 2014 and works as a pilot for a commercial airline, as well as a training captain. Politically active since a teen, Wilcox has a long-held belief that the west is the “economic engine of Canada” and feels we are not being treated fairly by Ottawa. If elected as MP, Wilcox says he will work to implement constitutional changes to ensure fair federal representation, support House notions and policies that benefit his constituency, and “stand up for the west”.

Clayten Willington (Independent) – a former Quality Assurance Test Analyst for CGI and the Atlantic Lottery Corporation, Willington now owns and operates Red Stag Barbershop in Red Deer. A father of six, Willington says he’s against any COVID lockdowns, the carbon tax, mandatory vaccines, the Paris Agreement, and feels Canada should be doing more to stand up to “Communist China.”

Red Deer-Lacombe

Joan Barnes (Independent) – a real estate agent out of Sylvan Lake, Barnes says she can no longer sit back and be silent, as she “watch(s) CANADA fall into the wrong hands”. She said she is against lockdowns, the carbon tax, mandatory vaccines, the Paris Agreement, and Communism.

Blaine Calkins (Conservative) – Incumbent Blaine Calkins was first elected in 2006 as a Member of Parliament for the former federal riding of Wetaskiwin. This is the second time he has been voted to represent Red Deer-Lacombe since the electoral map was redrawn prior to the 2015 election. Calkins says his Conservatives plan includes trying to reduce cell phone and internet bills, secure raises for working Canadians, and giving police more resources to combat gangs, drugs and help make Canadian streets safer.

Matthew Watson (Libertarian) – self-described as a “prairie boy through and through”, Watson says people deserve a passionate representative who will listen to them. A family man with three children, Watson enjoys the outdoors, is an avid hunter, black belt martial artist and “boomerang enthusiast”.

Harry Joujan (Maverick Party) –  A native Albertan, Joujan grew up in B.C. and has worked in places like Inuvik in the NW.T. to rural regions all across the province. A father of three with six grandchildren, Joujan thinks the environment is a big issue to Canadians, and says things like the carbon tax does nothing to help. He says any progress made to make our industries more environmentally friendly is going to happen with the help of Canadian business and entrepreneurs.

Megan Lim– (PPC-Peoples Party) – a mother of two boys, Lim lives in Ponoka, and says she is passionate about ending what she calls, “our country’s counterproductive equalization payments.” She believes in the PCC’s principles of responsibility, freedom, fairness, and respect, and says she’s excited to bring her party’s’ “common sense” politics to Alberta.

The following candidates are registered to run in the Red Deer-Lacombe riding, but are not scheduled to be part of the election forum at RDP:

Tanya Heyden-Kaye (NDP-New Democratic Party)– Heyden-Kaye spoke with rdnewsNOW, and said although she is fully vaccinated, she is also immunocompromised and would be unable to participate in an in-person debate. She said she would have attended had their been a virtual option, and she doesn’t want to contribute to the spread of the Delta variant in our province, saying “hospitals are already stretched too thin.”

David Ondieki (Liberal)- Ondieki has so far not responded to our inquiries about why he will not be there.

The federal election is on Sept. 20. You can apply online to vote by mail before Sept. 14.

More information can be found here at Elections Canada.

Related: Federal election candidates finalized for local ridings