Jason Kenney joins two men sitting side by side, one reading a newspaper, the other nursing his cup of coffee at the A&W on Main Street in Slave Lake.
“So this is the local senate, here, the A&W?” Kenney jokes.
“Whichever A&W I go to in rural Alberta, there’s a lot of wisdom. A lot of political opinions going around there.”
One of the men, Dave Hardin, is originally from Saskatchewan. Kenney, who spent his childhood in Wilcox, Sask., asks the retired oil and gas worker if he is still a Roughriders fan.
Hardin says he is, and Kenney — also a Riders fan — laughs and reaches across the table to shake Hardin’s hand. “Of course you are. That’s hilarious.”
The exchange is textbook political campaigning but Hardin doesn’t seem to mind. He tells a reporter afterward that he came out to see Kenney, who was joined at the event by Pat Rehn, the UCP candidate in Lesser Slave Lake.
“I think she does a decent enough job,” Hardin says of Danielle Larivee, the incumbent NDP MLA, “but I’m looking at a change in government and I think that’s what we need right now.”
The A&W was the first public event on Kenney’s four-day pre-campaign tour of northern Alberta earlier this month. The location was classic small-town Alberta. Outside, pickup trucks were packed into the parking lot. Inside, seniors cradled mugs of hot coffee as Kenney and Rehn moved from table to table, shaking hands and making small talk.
The atmosphere was relaxed, even with a campaign videographer and photographer recording Kenney’s every move.
In an interview several hours later, Rehn said he has a “tough fight on his hands” against Larivee, the Children’s Services minister who “works very hard in this riding.”
I think that’s what happened with Danielle Larivee and the NDP is they’ve lost touch with reality.– Pat Rehn
The business owner and former teacher thinks his experience would better serve the region.
“I think I have a much better handle on promoting business, promoting the economy, jobs and just staying in touch with reality,” Rehn said.
“I think that’s what happened with Danielle Larivee and the NDP is they’ve lost touch with reality.”
Dave Hardin (left) laughs and shakes hands with fellow Saskatchewan Roughriders fan Jason Kenney during a meet and greet at the Main Street A&W in Slave Lake. (Manuel Carrillos/CBC )
Rehn contends the governing party has killed the economy and driven down revenues, while neglecting to cut spending. That has led to a high deficit and debt, he adds.
The day before Kenney and Rehn held court at the A&W, Larivee sat down for an interview at The Fix, a locally-owned coffee bar in downtown Slave Lake that serves up lattes and espressos to the Starbucks-free town.
“Historically there’s been a narrative that you know the conservatives are fiscally responsible,” Larivee said. “I think that’s interesting and not always backed up by by facts.”
Larivee said the government is moving towards a balanced budget with stable increases in spending. She said deficits under the NDP are in line with what the PCs had while they were in power.
If there is a big tent party in in the legislature right now, it would be ours.– Danielle Larivee
Larivee said the NDP has tried to find a balance between supporting the economy and supporting families by maintaining the services they need.
“If there is a big tent party in in the legislature right now, it would be ours,” she said. “We have very much a centrist perspective in terms of our policy.
“I think there continues to be a lot of misinformation about who we are as a party.”
As a New Democrat in a traditionally conservative area, Larivee faces a tough battle in her bid for a second term as the MLA for Lesser Slave Lake.
Voters have sent conservatives to the legislature since the constituency was created in 1971. Social Credit MLA Dennis Barton was the new constituency’s first representative.
Progressive Conservative Larry Shaben was MLA from 1975 to 1989. The MLA who took his place, Pearl Calahasen, was in office for 26 years prior to her defeat by Larivee in the last provincial election.
Larivee received 3,915 votes in 2015. Another 3,198 votes were cast for Wildrose candidate Darryl Boisson. Calahasen came third with 1,944 votes.
Camera-shy voters
The split of the conservative vote between the PC and Wildrose parties allowed an unprecedented number of NDP candidates to win seats in rural ridings, contributing to the party’s first Alberta government. The result also pushed the two conservative parties to merge into the UCP in 2017.
The riding includes the communities of Slave Lake, High Prairie and Wabasca. With 27,818 residents, Lesser Slave Lake has one of the lowest populations among Alberta’s 87 constituencies.
The last boundaries commission noted Lesser Slave Lake is the only constituency where the majority of residents are Indigenous.
Lesser Slave Lake UCP candidate Pat Rehn (right) talked to voters at a party meet and greet at the Main Street A&W in Lesser Slave Lake earlier this month. (Manuel Carrillos/CBC )
So far Rehn is Larivee’s only opponent though the Alberta Party is expected to field a candidate in Lesser Slave Lake.
Larivee says she’s heard people are happy with how she’s represented the community. She said the runway at the Slave Lake airport was upgraded during her time as MLA and the town got a new raw water intake.
High Prairie is getting a new campus of Northern Lights College and the government plans to expand the services at the local hospital, she said.
“You know, nobody ever takes for granted what the outcome is going to be in an election,” she said. “But I certainly feel that people have noticed the work that I’ve put in, and I’m thankful for them.”
Many people were shy about demonstrating that support when a CBC reporter and videographer followed Larivee and a team of volunteers while they knocked on doors.
No one wanted to go on camera. After talking to a man on his doorstep, Larivee said he expressed his support but preferred to keep his views to himself. She said he was a small business owner who “doesn’t want to get in the middle of politics with people.”
Larivee said that reticence didn’t surprise her.
“In a small town, people still feel very much so that your religion and your politics are more to be kept silent,” she said. “We all want to live together and work together.
“I think that everyone still keeps it close to their chest.”
Rehn won the UCP nomination against three other contestants. He said it got him out knocking on doors in the community so he’s ready for Premier Rachel Notley to call the election, which must be held between March 1 and May 31, under the provincial legislation.
“We’re ready to have an election and hopefully we’ll form the next government,” he said.