CALGARY -- The Liberal Party may have won a minority government, but Calgary went all blue as Conservatives swept the city.

That included the inner city riding of Calgary Centre, which went from Liberal to Conservative as Kent Hehr lost his seat to Greg Mclean.

Hehr, in an emotional speech, conceded that it was a tough night to be a Liberal politician in Calgary, (and Alberta, which went all Conservative except for Edmonton Strathcona, which was won by the NDP's Heather McPherson).

"The voters of Calgary Centre voted for change in our riding," Hehr said. "A tough election loss, but I know Greg (McLean) is going to do a super job as the MP for Calgary Centre."

Prior to meeting with the media, Hehr thanked his supporters.

"I've enjoyed every second that I've been a public servant," he said. "And I will always cherish it."

The winners in Calgary are:

  • Conservative Michell Rempel for Calgary Nose Hill.
  • Conservative Ron Liepert for Calgary Signal Hill.
  • Conservative Bob Benzen in Calgary Heritage.
  • Conservative Stephanie Kusie for Calgary Midnapore.
  • Conservative Len Webber in Calgary Confederation.
  • Conservative Pat Kelly in Calgary Rocky Ridge.
  • Conservative Tom Kmiec in Calgary Shepard.
  • Conservative Jasraj Hallan in Calgary Forest Lawn.
  • Conservative Greg McLean in Calgary Centre.
  • Conservative Jog Sahota in Calgary Skyview.
     

Unforgettable experience for new Canadians

Voting in the federal election was an unforgettable first for some new Canadians.

Alex Foster and his wife Kerry immigrated to Canada in January 2016 and have been Canadian citizens for four days. 

"Just in the nick of time, quite pleased on how it worked out,” said Foster.  “We’ve been looking forward to it, like I said nearly four years now.”

The Fosters almost missed out on the opportunity along with dozens of other newly minted Canadians after they were misinformed Friday about being allowed to vote in this election.

A statement from Immigration and Citizenship Canada called it an administrative error. 

“It has come to our attention that new citizens were incorrectly informed during their ceremony on Friday that they would need to wait two business days before being able to vote. This is incorrect,” read the statement. “The Department is calling and emailing all of the affected individuals to inform them they are able to vote.”

Four citizenship ceremonies took place on Monday, with all the new Canadian adults eligible to vote. 

“All individuals who become Canadian are immediately able to vote in elections taking place at any level of government. There is no wait period,” read the statement.

Meanwhile, a strong anti-Trudeau message continues in Alberta. Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau visited Calgary on Saturday in a final attempt to ramp up support in the west, although his visit did not focus on the riding of Calgary-Centre. 

Instead, Trudeau campaigned in Calgary-Skyview where Liberal candidate Nirmala Naidoo is running. About 1,500 supporters attended the 11 p.m. speech, which lasted for about 10 minutes at Magnolia Hall in northeast Calgary. 

A group of protesters gathered outside the rally and accused Trudeau of treason, turning his back on Alberta’s oil and gas industry and ignoring Calgary throughout his campaign. 

The majority of the leaders spent very little time in Alberta. Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer and Green Leader Elizabeth May spent one day each campaigning in Calgary and NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh did not campaign in Alberta.