Despite its unassuming name, Albert is an old riding with a fascinating history. It has swung from Liberal to Progressive Conservative and once went to the Confederation of Regions (now disbanded provincial party). In recent years it has given better numbers to the Greens than to the NDP, seen the PC receive three quarters of the popular vote, and recently the riding grew even larger.
Historically, it was always a tight race in Albert. In recent years, the personal popularity of Wayne Steeves (PC) has thrown off the balance between the meanstream parties. However, this year sees the departure of Steeves, the discontent of the province with the Alward Government, and the entry of Brian Keirstead. Keirstead is a real estate agent who doesn’t have the benefit Steeves’ impressive portfolio or community connections. Though he may enjoy the PC network set up by his predecessor.
The NDP haven’t provided any information or bio for candidate Kelly-Sue O’Connor on their site as yet. This isn’t surprising given their poor numbers in the riding. O’Connor’s LinkedIn account touts her status as a manger at MAC Cosmetics and founder of the Bore Music Festival.
Ira Wilbur (G) has worked in mental health, aquaculture, and information technology. He is pushing for job creation by moving the province towards clean, renewable energy. He proports that this will be a beneficial to both small and big buisness alike.
Terry Keating (L) is positioning himself to take over the seat in Albert over his perceived mishandling of government over a series of issues including tourism, fracking, and infrastructure. Keating says that the government has missed opportunities and prevented the region from living up to its full potential.
Bill Brewer (PANB) is trying to absorb some of the right wing vote that will undoubtedly be left in the wake of Steeves’ departure. Brewer is a retail manager and former journalist.
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