Once again posting some quick thoughts from an airport – this time from Calgary en route to Ottawa.
I am super proud of the effort put in by Michael Walters and his Alberta Party campaign team in Edmonton Rutherford.
While the result of yesterday’s election was a little surprising, the whole team can certainly hold their heads very high for running a truly excellent campaign.
Over the last six days I had a bird’s eye view of all the work and creativity that went into Mike’s run for office. It was astounding. There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that his campaign out hustled all the others, by far.
Had it not been an uneven playing field (i.e. running with a relatively new and unknown party), and had it not been for anxiety about the Wildrose Party forming government (where many potential voters decided to “play it safe” by endorsing a more traditional party/candidate), Mike would likely have been elected.
I know this because I went to literally hundreds of doors and heard how the people of Edmonton Rutherford spoke about him. They were genuinely impressed. Over and over I heard people say they liked him and wanted to vote for him. Unfortunately these folks also often expressed concern about “strategic voting”.
There were many moments during the last few days where I was super impressed with Mike – such as the all-candidate public forums where he was the most engaging speaker; on the door steps where he connected with perfect strangers; and at the campaign office where he continually gave thanks to his crack team of supporters; and finally how he expressed his appreciation for the fantastic support from his lovely wife Kara and their boys Isaac and Samson.
A class act all the way!
Hopefully his community will benefit from his continued work very soon.
A quick nod to all the candidates, and especially those who decided to throw their efforts behind the upstart Alberta Party.
Politics can change quickly. The future looks bright.
- time to fly!
A photo from Mike’s classy thank you speech late last night.
