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Edmonton Journal - LEt's get out and vote

Let's exercise our wonderful right

The Edmonton Journal

Published: 2:03 am



Tomorrow is election day. Perhaps outside of the spiritual realm, the most important thing any of us can do this Sunday is decide how to exercise our precious right to influence Alberta's future course.



In 2004, significantly more than half of us chose to abstain, to leave the choice to others, to surrender some moral right to complain. Voter turnout hit a record low of 44.7 per cent. That was further down from 2001's embarrassing 52.8 per cent, 53.8 in 1997 and the almost respectable 60.2 per cent turnout in the hotly contested battle of 1993. We should do better this time around.



To inspire and motivate, here's a list of shame and glory, from the worst to the best in ridings in terms of voter turnout in 2004. We've all got work to do, but some parts of our fair province are electorally worse than others.



LOWEST TURNOUT: BOOMING FORT MCMURRAY



The worst participation rate was in the riding at the centre of the oilsands boom: Fort McMurray-Wood Buffalo. Only 26.4 per cent of voters went to the polls. That's barely one in four who were willing to offer an electoral opinion of the Conservatives' effort on their behalf. Cabinet minister Guy Boutilier won handily with 64 per cent of the votes, but he did it with only 3,903 ballots of a total of 25,578



potential voters. Second prize for low turnout is a tight contest. Only 29.6 per cent of Calgary-Montrose voters turned out, electing Conservative Hung Pham (now retired). In Calgary Cross, only 29.8 per cent of those eligible made it to a ballot box; Conservative Yvonne Fritz won with 3,770 votes out of a potential 29,000.



HIGHEST TURNOUT: TAFT'S EDMONTON-RIVERVIEW



First prize goes to voters in Liberal Leader Kevin Taft's riding, Edmonton-Riverview, where 62 per cent cast ballots. In fact, Taft won the highest number of votes of any candidate in the province --10,280, or 65.5 per cent of those cast.



Second prize goes to voters of Edmonton-Gold Bar, where 60 per cent went to the polls. Liberal Hugh MacDonald won with 8,798 votes, or 62 per cent of votes cast. In Calgary, the highest turnout was 52.4 per cent in Calgary-Elbow, where then-premier Ralph Klein won handily. A special notation goes to Conservative Frank Oberle in Peace River, who won his seat with just 2,884 votes, the lowest number of votes for a victory. And in case you're wondering about Edmonton's other party leader, the New Democrats' Brian Mason won in Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood with 6,054 votes, or 62 per cent of those cast. But the voter turnout was only 42.6 per cent, one of the lowest in the city.



THE BEST PARTICIPATION EVER? AUGUST 1935



To inspire you further, consider the all-time top provincial number -- an 81.8-per-cent turnout -- in the August 22, 1935 election. That election, in the midst of the Great Depression, was a historic turning point. The Social Credit Party of William Aberhart sideswiped the United Farmers of Alberta led by Richard Reid, premier for just one year. Interestingly, Reid's government was ready to introduce a form of medicare on a trial basis in the Camrose constituency, but the UFA defeat put an end to those plans. That election launched 36 years of Socred government.



IN THE PAST, MANY WEREN'T ALLOWED TO VOTE



Most of us can't imagine a time when we didn't have the right to vote. We take this basic democratic right for granted. But it wasn't always that way.



In the province's first election, in 1905, only men voted. (The Liberals swept 23 of 25 seats and A.C. Rutherford became the first premier.)



Meanwhile, Alberta's suffragettes, Nellie McClung, Henrietta Muir Edwards, Louise McKinney and Emily Murphy, were working hard on the campaign for the female franchise. On April 19, 1916, Alberta joined Manitoba and Saskatchewan as the first Canadian provinces to grant women the vote.



Canada's Inuit and status Indians didn't fare as well. They were only granted the right to vote federally in 1950 and 1960 respectively. And native people didn't vote provincially until 1967.



Teenagers are the latest to get the right to vote. In 1970, the voting age federally was lowered from 21 to 18, and provinces followed suit.



ELECTIONS USED TO BE COLOuRFUL



In the first election, ballots were colour-coded. The candidates' name did not appear on the ballot. Voters used coloured pencils to mark a red "X" for the Liberal candidate or a blue "X" for the Conservative, according to Alberta's online encyclopedia, AlbertaSource.ca. If there were more candidates, a yellow pencil was provided.



AND FINALLY, A VOTE OF THANKS



Let's conclude these pre-election thoughts with a vote of thanks to the 18 MLAs who retired this year after years of public service. We might single out:



- Athabasca-Wabasca MLA Mike Cardinal, Alberta's first Cree minister, who leaves after five terms. He presided over welfare reform in the mid-1990s.



- Denis Ducharme, the feisty MLA from Bonnyville-Cold Lake, who made his departing mark opposing an oilsands mine under Marie Lake.



- New Democrat Raj Pannu returns to private life after three terms as Edmonton-Strathcona MLA, including a stint as party leader. A former U of A professor, Pannu was known for his civil style and passionate work in opposition.



- Also in the Edmonton area, Conservative MLA Rob Lougheed (Strathcona) retires after three terms. A constant advocate for the disabled, Lougheed was chair of the Premier's Council on the Status of Persons with Disabilities.



- LeRoy Johnson (Wetaskiwin-Camrose) will remembered as a man ahead of his time. Five years ago, as head of the Alberta Alcohol and Drug Abuse Commission, he advocated a ban on smoking in public places. His Tory caucus mates said no back then, but changed their minds last fall.



© The Edmonton Journal 2008

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