A Medicine Hat assault charge against the Alberta NDP candidate has led to his withdrawal from the campaign trail. The assault charges were the result of an altercation on the campaign trail over the weekend. Candidate for the Alberta NDP platform Jason Soklofske had a physical confrontation with another individual while he was campaigning. The confrontation led to a charge of simple assault by the Medicine Hat police. The candidate had the grace to tender his resignation the same day and the resignation was accepted by his party. Many other politicians would have continued to campaign in spite of the charges against them in the hopes that voters would forgive the indiscretion. The actual actions taken by Soklofske and the exact nature of the confrontation is still not known yet.

The assault charge against Alberta NDP candidate Jason Soklofske by Medicine Hat police and his resignation means that the party will have to find a replacement. Cheryl Oates, the spokeswoman for Alberta NDP, said that a replacement candidate will be announced in the near future. A request for comment was made to Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley by a local media organization but this was declined. Staff Sgt. Chad Holt of the Medicine Hat police department also declined to comment on the incident or the charge. Jason Soklofske turned in his resignation and it was accepted but there is nothing to stop the candidate from running again in the future. Hopefully the candidate will learn from this mistake and it will lead him to be a better person and potential candidate in the future.