Liberals win nationally, but make no gains in Edmonton

Mark Carney may have grown up in Edmonton and was a goalie on the St. Francis Xavier hockey team, but he couldn’t backstop the Liberals to a big gain in the Alberta capital.

While the Liberal Party won the most seats across Canada on election night, they didn’t make a breakthrough in Edmonton.

The Liberals came into Monday’s election with one seat in the city, Edmonton Centre. They ended the night holding that riding, but couldn’t add to that solitary triumph.

Article content

Mayor Amarjeet Sohi failed to add to the Liberal seat count, as he was soundly beaten by Conservative Jagsharan Singh Mahal in Edmonton Southeast. At his post-election party, Sohi said he also won’t run again for the mayor’s chair. His political career is coming to an end.

“I made it very clear when I made this decision that stepping up to serve Edmonton in this unprecedented time and stand up for the community, against tariffs, against U.S. threats to our sovereignty, that I’m taking that on with full understanding and full commitment and very transparency, that I will not be running for mayor again, and I will not be running for mayor again,” said Sohi. “I will look for opportunities, continue to serve and maintain in various volunteer opportunities that become available.

Article content

Edmonton’s lone voice in the Liberal caucus will belong to Eleanor Olszewski, the former president of the party’s Alberta chapter. The party shuffled her out of Strathcona and into Edmonton Centre after the election writ was dropped. She replaced former cabinet minister Randy Boissonnault, the Liberal incumbent who abruptly pulled himself out of the race.

Olszewski beat Conservative Sayid Ahmed, who skipped the Edmonton Centre candidates forum hosted by the Wîhkwêntôwin Community League and another candidates’ event at the Victoria School of the Arts. He refused to do media interviews and was regularly attacked by Olszewski and NDP candidate Trisha Estabrooks for not being visible in the riding.

Olszewski said she hasn’t really processed what it’s going to be like to be the only Edmonton MP in the Liberal fold.

Article content

Article content

“You know, the most exciting thing for me is just being a member of Mark Carney’s team, because I really believe that he has a bold and pragmatic vision for the future of this country, and I know that he wants wants to protect ourselves and grow our economy and make sure that our families and workers and seniors and students are taken care of, and I just can’t wait to roll up my sleeves and get to work.”
Carney visited Edmonton on Sunday to give an 11th-hour boost to the Liberal slate in the city.

“Are we going to come together, as Edmontonians, as Albertans, as Canadians, to unite in a common purpose?” Carney said on the eve of the election, reminding voters of his deep roots in the city.

It didn’t produce results.

Seven of nine seats go blue

Article content

The Conservatives won seven of the nine races in Edmonton and swept the suburbs. And, the NDP was decimated.

Edmonton Strathcona MP Heather McPherson boldly predicted that not only would she and Edmonton Griesbach’s Blake Desjarlais hold their seats for the NDP, the party would gain Edmonton Centre, as well. She was proven wrong, as Desjarlais was beaten handily by Conservative Kerry Diotte, and Estabrooks ran a distant third in the city’s core. As vote-counting went into the night across Canada, the NDP looked likely to lose its official party status, and leader Jagmeet Singh announced he’d be stepping down.

“We’re actually not getting a whole bunch of undecideds,” Diotte said, entering the final weekend of the campaign. “We’re hearing a lot of people at the doors say ‘yes, it’s time for a change.’”

Article content

McPherson said her party would rebuild.

“What we’re going to do is continue to do what we can,” she said at the NDP’s election night party at La Cite Francophone.  “So, if that means that there’s less than 12 of us, then we’ll continue to we’ll continue to fight, we’ll continue to push… Our voice within parliament is vital. You know, I don’t think Canadians want a two-party system. I don’t think we want an American-style political system. We need a New Democratic Party in this country, Canadians deserve a New Democratic Party, and we will be fighting for it, and we will be working very hard every single day to make sure that happens.”

But, with votes still to count, the Liberals were in a minority government position as of late Monday night. Even with a handful of seats, the NDP could be in a position to prop up a Liberal minority, just as the 25-member NDP caucus did in the previous parliamentary term.”

Article content

“I told people from the very beginning, my job in this community is to show up,” Desjarlais said when he was asked by reporters what he’d do if he lost to Diotte. “That’s what it is. I’ve always shown up for these folks. We’re talking relatives of mine, people who have helped me, people who have helped others. I am going to continue to do that work regardless if I’m a member of parliament (or not). I’m deeply committed to this community. I’m deeply committed to the people of Treaty Six and Edmonton, and making sure the outcomes of our community are better met.”

Billy Morin, the former chief of Enoch Cree First Nation, won in a landslide in Edmonton Northwest; he was a star candidate in the Conservative fold, and he delivered in a new riding that was one of three added to Alberta for the 2025 vote.

Article content

Edmonton Winners

Edmonton Centre: Eleanor Olszewski, Liberal Party

Edmonton Gateway: Tim Uppal, Conservative Party

Edmonton Griesbach: Kerry Diotte, Conservative Party

Edmonton Manning: Ziad Aboultaif, Conservative Party

Edmonton Northwest: Billy Morin, Conservative Party

Edmonton Riverbend: Matt Jeneroux, Conservative Party

Edmonton Southeast: Jagsharan Singh Mahal, Conservative Party

Edmonton Strathcona: Heather McPherson, NDP

Edmonton West: Kelly McCauley, Conservative Party

Bookmark our website and support our journalism: Don’t miss the news you need to know — add EdmontonJournal.com and EdmontonSun.com to your bookmarks and sign up for our newsletters here.

You can also support our journalism by becoming a digital subscriber. Subscribers gain unlimited access to The Edmonton Journal, Edmonton Sun, National Post and 13 other Canadian news sites. Support us by subscribing today: The Edmonton Journal | The Edmonton Sun.

Article content