INNISFAIL – It was quite a night for Jason Heistad.
The long-time Innisfail town councillor was officially nominated on Feb. 6 by the NDP to run in the Innisfail-Sylvan Lake riding in the upcoming spring provincial election.
It was also his birthday. Heistad, who turned 52, was shocked and thrilled by local artist Karen Scarlett’s accordion rendition of Happy Birthday. His wife and daughters helped him cut a huge birthday cake.
At least 110 supporters from across the region packed the nomination meeting at the Innisfail Library/Learning Centre to give him an added boost.
Those supporters included Jaelene Tweedle, NDP candidate for Red Deer-North; Dr. Jesse Christiansen, family physician at the Innisfail Medical Clinic whose support featured a special video message, and Ian Oostindie, a Sylvan Lake town councillor and volunteer for the riding’s constituency association.
“That’s given me a great appreciation to understand Jason's work and also how important it is to be in a good relationship with the provincial government,” said Oostindie. “And also, to realize how important the provincial government is to everyone's community because the provincial government bankrolls so many projects for us.”
Heistad, who is currently executive secretary-treasurer of the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees, is in his fourth term as an Innisfail town councillor after leaving politics for eight years in 2013.
He has consistently been an active member of the community, specifically as a member of the town’s Welcoming & Inclusive Community Committee.
On Jan. 23 town council granted him a leave of absence until the end of May to focus on campaigning for the election, which is expected to be in May.
For the past three weeks he has been working and strategizing with his campaign team. They know it will be a tough fight against Dreeshen, who is currently re-energized after being put back into cabinet as the new provincial minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors.
“I'm going to tell people in the Innisfail-Sylvan Lake riding it's a two-horse race,” said Heistad. “I think this launch is really impressive. I'm good at connecting with people and just making sure they feel like they know they have somebody they can talk to, and somebody who’s willing to listen to them.
“It doesn't matter what party they have voted in the past,” he added. “I'm getting a lot of positive messages in the community that they are liking what they see in me.”
