Now that the dust has settled, the PC Party is likely to do some review after what was thought to be a slam-dunk campaign turned their party from a majority into a dim blip on the political radar in Alberta.
The PC went into the election with 72 seats, and came out with only 11.
The Tories will be working over the next while to figure out what went wrong in the campaign, but many say that the Tory budget and Prentice’s attitude could have been the issue.
The budget was thought to be easy on corporations, but much tougher on the middle class in Alberta, while many were rubbed the wrong way by comments made by Jim Prentice.
Many voters thought he was condescending to them and his opponents.
Experts say that voters finally had had enough.
“I’m not sure that they’re repenting of their vote,” says David Stewart with the University of Calgary. “I think it was a sense that they thought their neighbours would be the ones to keep the Conservatives in power, but I think there was a real appetite for political change in Alberta and people are probably generally satisfied with that outcome.”
Another thing that isn’t sitting well with voters is Prentice’s decision during his concession speech to quit politics.
That means another by election in Calgary-Foothills, the third in the past year for the riding.
Each of those by elections comes with a big price tag; at least $100,000 to $300,000.
