Calgary Heritage by-election runs Monday to fill vacant seat
Posted Jul 24, 2023 7:10 am.
Residents in Calgary’s south are set to go to the polls Monday, in a vote to fill a vacant seat in Canada’s parliament, after the Conservative MP left his post last year.
Conservative Bob Benzen, who was elected to represent the area in 2017, announced he would resign his seat in Calgary Heritage and return to private life at the end of last year.
Most of Calgary Heritage used to be part of the riding of Calgary Southwest, a seat held by former prime minister Stephen Harper until his retirement.
Political scientists says this is a “safe” Conservative seat.
Eight candidates are now battling for votes, including Shuvaloy Majumdar, a longtime Conservative staffer who won the party’s nomination in March.
Watch: Calgary Heritage by-election sees advance voter dip
Majumdar is a former policy adviser to Harper and former Conservative foreign minister John Baird. He currently works with Harper’s international consulting firm.
Elliot Weinstein, the owner and president of an indoor beach recreation facility called The Beach YYC, is the Liberal candidate. He received a visit at one of his fundraisers from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during the Calgary Stampede.
Gurmit Bhachu is the NDP candidate, while Dan Irving represents the Maverick Party. Ravenmoon Crocker is the Green Party candidate and Kelly Lorencz will carry the banner for the People’s Party of Canada.
When advanced voting closed, just 8,000 Calgarians had cast a ballot.
By the end of the 2021 vote, more than 50,000 people had voted.
The expectations of reaching that turnout are low for Monday’s vote, according to Mount Royal University political scientist Lori Williams.
-With files from Tate Laycraft
