Voting for the leader and not the MLA
Posted Apr 29, 2015 6:57 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
It’s looking like Albertans will vote for a leader and not the MLA, when they head to the ballot box in less than a week.
Ballots will officially be counted on Tuesday in the provincial contest and one political expert says the practice of voting for the party and the person in charge is becoming more and more common.
Mount Royal Chair of Policy Studies Duane Bratt tells 660News the strategy to focus on the leader is seen a lot with long-standing parties that want to illustrate a change.
“You saw that back in the 1990s when it was Ralph’s team, same idea, so they want people to think it’s under new management, new party, new leader, forget about Redford and Stelmach and focus on Jim Prentice,” Bratt said.
“You also do it when you have a popular leader. You’re seeing it with the NDP with Rachel Notley or you’re doing it with a party that really wants to turn the page on previous governments,” he added.
Advance polling opens Wednesday morning.
