Sundre and surrounding area residents interested in learning more about the Red Deer-Mountain View federal riding’s candidates will have an opportunity to hear them speak tomorrow evening during an election forum.
The Sundre and District Chamber of Commerce has, through an effort led by board director Jim Eklund, made arrangements to host the event at the Sundre Royal Canadian Legion Branch #223.
Chris Newton, who is also a director with the chamber, said the local legion has been booked for the evening of Wednesday, Oct. 2. The forum is scheduled to start at 7 p.m.
“Jim’s done a great job — he has done all of it,” said Newton.
When Newton spoke with the Round Up last Wednesday, he said four of the riding’s declared candidates had confirmed their intent to attend the forum.
They are Earl Dreeshen, the incumbent Conservative Party of Canada candidate who is seeking re-election; Conner Borle, who is running for the Green Party of Canada; Logan Garbanewski, who will be carrying the NDP banner; and Paul Mitchell, who will be representing the People’s Party of Canada.
“All four of the five parties have been confirmed,” said Newton.
Although the Liberal Party of Canada had yet to declare a candidate for the riding when he spoke with the Round Up, Newton said an invitation would be extended should someone be named before the Sept. 30 nomination deadline.
Before the end of last week, the Liberals announced Gary Tremblay as the riding's candidate. Tremblay told the Round Up Monday morning that due to tight scheduling and poor road conditions, he did not anticipate being able to participate.
Sundre councillor Richard Warnock will be moderating the forum, which in a largely traditional debate format will offer each candidate a chance to speak followed by an opportunity for questions and answers.
“It’s important that we hear from our candidates in our local community,” said Warnock, who spoke with the Round Up by phone last week while in Edmonton for the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association conference.
“Otherwise we go by what the media or social media says,” he said.
Warnock said he supports election forums, which are typically quite commonly hosted in larger centres. And since candidates don’t always have the time to accommodate smaller communities in their schedules, he was pleased to hear all of the declared candidates in the riding plan to attend.
But because of the relatively short notice, Warnock wondered what kind of public turnout there will be. Even so, he agreed to moderate the forum to ensure the opportunity was made available for residents in the Sundre area.
The chamber aims to support the community, said Newton, and the forum provides a chance to offer an important service to help people get more informed before they cast a ballot.
Newton encourages people to come out and learn more about the parties’ platforms before they vote on Oct. 21, and said he — from a small business owner’s perspective — looks forward to hearing what the candidates have to say.
Warnock shared a similar sentiment.
“Let’s come out and see what they have to say,” he said.
The chamber’s next event is the annual Sundre Business Awards, with online nominations currently being accepted through the organization’s website, www.sundrechamber.ca, by clicking on the “Chamber News” tab.
