MEDICINE HAT, AB — The provincial election is approaching, and political leaders have already been ‘unofficially’ campaigning across Alberta.
On Wednesday, Alberta Party leader Stephen Mandel was in Medicine Hat.
Mandel’s stop in Medicine Hat is part of a tour across the province to introduce Albertan’s to his party’s values and platforms.
“Any politician should make sure that everybody in the province is included,” says Mandel. “Southeastern Alberta is a gorgeous part of the province, so I would look forward if we were elected or not, I’d hope to come back here again because it really is one of the real gems of the province, the Medicine Hat area.”
His visit included a stop at the food bank before heading to a meet and greet at Travois Ale Works.
Jim Black, the Alberta Party candidate for Brooks-Medicine Hat, and Colette Smithers, the candidate for Cypress-Medicine Hat were also in attendance.
Mandel says he doesn’t support cutting services, he wants to ensure every Albertan has access to basic services like health care.
“Our job as a government is to make sure we supply services to Albertans, this isnt about cutting services, it’s about making sure that Albertans have good education, good health care, good social services, proper infrastructure.”
When it comes to local economies, Mandel supports less government interference.
“It isn’t the government’s role to interfere with things and make things bad and so if things are going well,” says Mandel. “That doesn’t mean we couldn’t increase the greenhouse growing business here, or we could grow opportunities in the hemp business here, or other things.”
Mandel also weighed in on the other two political parties.
He feels the NDP has been spending far too much, white the United Conservative Party wants to make too many cuts. He also feels those parties aren’t as deeply rooted in Alberta as his party.
“Our tagline is that we’re fiercely Albertan and because we are the only party that has its roots in Alberta, the other parties are really aligned, whether its the UCP with the federal Conservatives, the NDP with the NDP, Liberals to Liberals, we’re really about Alberta.”
The provincial election needs to be held before May 31.
