As many in our area, and across the country have heard by now, the MP for our region, Battle River-Crowfoot, Damien Kurek, has announced that he plans to resign as early as possible to allow the leader of the Conservative Party of Canada, Pierre Poilievre to run in an anticipated by-election in our constituency.
There have been many questions in regards to the resignation. MP Kurek was in Drumheller last week and provided some clarity on his and his family’s decision to resign. “Over the course of the election, we saw folks here, they voted for change. With the national results, it was an interesting national result because Conservatives made significant gains. It was the largest share of the vote since 1988, when there was a massive Conservative majority government. We saw an additional 20 t0 25 seats won in Parliament but still didn’t win government. Seeing Pierre Poilievre, who led the national conversation on so many issues that are dear and important to the people of Battle River-Crowfoot, this was one of those times in life where you have to put the talk of leadership and service into action. So, when my wife Danielle and I had a conversation a day or two after the election, ultimately we decided to make the offer to Pierre and Anna.” In Kurek’s conversations with Poilievre, he confirmed that the expectation that rural Alberta would still be fought for.
Kurek is confident that this decision was the right one to make. “Pierre Poilievre, I believe, not only needs a seat in Parliament but is the right guy to continue leading the Conservative Party to be the Leader of the Opposition, and who I still believe will be an incredible Prime Minister of this country. This is a practical way to help make sure that can happen.” He reassures constituents that he and his wife were not asked, pushed, or cajoled into this decision.
Kurek has fielded a number of questions from constituents about his decision but most have supported him with the decision. “Obviously, a lot of constituents have had questions, overwhelming support, not universal, but certainly overwhelming. People, I think, are excited that a national political leader will spend time in rural Alberta, in this region, get to know it, get to know its people, and the issues that are important to all of us.”
A number of voters have shared that yes, they may have voted Conservative, but voted more for the representative than the party, and this is not lost on Kurek. “I know that there’s been a lot of people that have said ‘we want you’. The good news is that I don’t plan to go anywhere. I do look forward to spending more time with my kids, some more time on the farm, but Pierre, in the aftermath of making the offer to resign, he’s asked that I stay as involved as I can be on the ground. I plan to run again, with Pierre’s support, in the next election. This is a step in the process to make sure that the right guy, to lead our country in the future, has his seat in Parliament. The trust and honour that it has been to now have been elected three times, I take that very, very seriously. I think that this decision will do nothing but benefit our region in the long term. It brings the issues that are important to me, the reasons why I ran for office, and the issues that the people of Battle River-Crowfoot emphasize to me on a daily basis, it allows us to move those issues forward.”
Kurek plans to stay involved with the Battle River-Crowfoot Constituency Association, and be as involved as he can be after his resignation. The earliest that Kurek can resign is 30 days after the results have been officially released, which will be on June 17th. Once that happens, there is no official date of the by-election but the hope is that it will happen sooner rather than later.
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