Alberta votes: July byelections in Fort McMurray-Conklin, Innisfail-Sylvan Lake

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Voters in Fort McMurray-Conklin and Innisfail-Sylvan Lake will head to the polls on July 12 to fill seats left vacant by their former MLAs.

Advance polls begin Tuesday, July 3, and end Saturday, July 7.

Parties settled on their byelection candidates some time ago in anticipation of the writ drop. Here are the names on the ballot.

Fort McMurray-Conklin 

Voters in Fort McMurray-Conklin are replacing Brian Jean, a former United Conservative Party MLA. He was elected to the seat in 2015 when he was leader of the now-defunct Wildrose Party. Jean retired in March, citing a desire to spend time with his family and rebuild his home, destroyed in the 2016 wildfire. The longtime former MP was defeated by Kenney in his bid for leadership of the UCP.

Brian Deheer (Green Party)

Deheer ran for the federal seat of Fort McMurray-Cold Lake in 2015. He served on the Athabasca Watershed Council and Keepers of the Athabasca Watershed Society boards, and is a member of various other environmental groups. He’s a musician and music instructor.

Sid Fayad (Alberta Party)

Fayad was endorsed as the Alberta Party candidate the same day the writ dropped. Born in Lebanon, he moved to Alberta when he was two and to Fort McMurray in 2008. Members of his family helped open Canada’s first mosque in Edmonton in 1938. Fayad, an entrepreneur, has owned a range of businesses and now runs a granite company. He once appeared on Dragon’s Den after inventing a tongue-mounted toothbrush.

Laila Goodridge (UCP)

Goodridge ran in Grande Prairie-Wapiti under the Wildrose banner in the 2015 election. A longtime conservative volunteer, she helped with Jean’s failed UCP leadership bid. Goodridge was born and raised in the Wood Buffalo region, has served as an adviser to members of Parliament in Ottawa and holds a bachelor of arts, majoring in political science.

Jane Stroud (NDP)

Stroud is a three-term Fort McMurray councillor who has served on numerous committees, including rural, audit and land planning and development. She was also born and raised in Wood Buffalo. This is her first foray into provincial politics.

Innisfail-Sylvan Lake

Innisfail-Sylvan Lake UCP MLA Don McIntyre resigned in February after being charged sexual assault and sexual interference of a girl under 16. Like Jean, he was elected under the Wildrose banner.

Abigail Douglass (Alberta Party)

Involved with the Alberta Party since 2017, Douglass volunteered on Stephen Mandel’s successful leadership campaign. Born in Russia, she moved to a Penhold-area farm as a child. Douglass started the first student council at Gateway Christian School in Red Deer as a teen and served with the student association and Alberta Students’ Executive Council during university. She splits her time between Edmonton and Sylvan Lake and holds a bachelor of commerce degree.

Devin Dreeshen (UCP)

Dreeshen, the son of Red Deer-Mountain View MP Earl Dreeshen, is a fifth-generation local farm owner and longtime conservative party activist. He’s a director of the Western Canadian Wheat Growers Association and was a policy adviser to agriculture minister Gerry Ritz from 2008 to 2015. He now owns a consulting business advising agricultural stakeholders on trade issues. 

Nicole Mooney (NDP)

Mooney lives in Sylvan Lake and is an English teacher at St. Joseph’s High School in Red Deer. She also serves as the communications and political engagement officer with Alberta Teachers’ Association Local 80. Mooney became actively involved with the NDP a year ago at the urging of a colleague. She helped start a non-profit in Rocky Mountain House to fundraise for a local spray park.

egraney@postmedia.com

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Editor’s note: This story has been edited removing Randy Thorsteinson as a candidate.