A majority of Alberta's 26 Tory MPs are quietly "leaning" in the April 23 provincial election in the direction of the Wildrose party, which is seeking to end the Progressive Conservative dynasty in the province, says Calgary MP Rob Anders.
"I think I can safely say that the majority of members of Parliament inside the Alberta caucus, that I'm aware of, are leaning Wildrose," said the MP for Calgary West, according to Monday's edition of the Hill Times, an Ottawa-based weekly political and public policy newspaper.
"There are still a few stragglers who are supporting the Progressive Conservatives, but they're more reluctant to make a public admission of that because they see the numbers and where things are heading."
Prime Minister Stephen Harper has told his MPs in Alberta, B.C. and Quebec to feel free to publicly endorse whichever candidates they choose, since all three provinces have parties on the centre-right competing for voters who back Harper federally, Immigration Minister Jason Kenney said last month.
But Harper has ordered them not to become involved in broader provincial campaigns, the minister said.
Kenney has been publicly neutral in the Alberta race, though Public Works Minister Rona Ambrose has confirmed she's supporting Doug Horner, Premier Alison Redford's deputy premier.
All 26 Alberta Tories, along with Peter Goldring who was elected as a Tory but now sits as an independent, were asked in an email survey last month by the Edmonton Journal and Calgary Herald if they would reveal their party preferences. Only Ambrose responded with a public endorsement.
Anders, first elected in 1997 at the age of 25, is a controversial MP who was recently removed from the House of Commons veterans affairs committee after insulting two Canadian veterans of the Afghanistan conflict who accused him of sleeping during a committee hearing.
He told the Hill Times he has two signs on his lawn supporting Wildrose candidates.
One backs Rob Solinger, who is seeking a seat in the provincial legislature. The other is for Vitor Marciano, who is running under the Wildrose banner in the province's concurrent election to select nominees for the federal Senate.
Anders, who was not immediately available for a telephone interview, told the Hill Times his decision is based on tax issues.
"There's a strong possibility of taxes going up under a re-elected Progressive Conservative government," he said.
"At the end of the day that's the number one thing that I ask any politician representing me to do — keep my taxes low."
It's not surprising that Alberta federal Conservatives would back Smith over Redford, according to Mount Royal University political scientist Duane Bratt.
The federal Tories come predominantly from the Reform-Canadian Alliance wing of the party, which dominated federal politics in Alberta before the 2003 merger between the Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative parties.
Redford is a long-time associate and supporter of Joe Clark, the former PC leader. Clark was always harshly critical of Manning, the driving force behind the creation of the Reform and Canadian Alliance parties.
Smith's campaign manager, Bratt noted, is former Manning policy adviser Tom Flanagan.
"The provincial battle between the PCs and Wildrose is a legacy of the federal battle between Reform and PCs," Bratt said in an email.
There is also a personal dynamic behind Anders's public stand.
"Alison Redford tried to take the Calgary-West federal CPC nomination away from Anders. It was nasty, but Anders won. So there is a personal history between Anders and Redford."
poneil@postmedia.com
http://www.edmontonjournal.com/news/Most+Alberta+Tory+leaning+Wildrose+Anders+says/6468435/story.html
