Electoral Boundary Commission to Visit Hat, Brooks Next Month
Hatters and residents from across southeastern Alberta will be able to have their say about new provincial electoral boundaries next month as part of a commission’s task in re-jig ridings. And there’ll be a familiar name chairing that commission with Medicine Hat’s King’s Bench Justice Dallas Miller being appointed to the position.
The last electoral boundary commission split Medicine Hat in half for the first time since the electoral boundary was founded in the 19th century as a territorial division followed by it being one of the province’s first seats in 1905.
The geographic size of the Medicine Hat riding had shrunk over the years from covering the entire southeastern corner of the province. In 2017, two-thirds of the city was a single urban riding with areas south of the Trans-Canada Highway part of a riding including Cypress County.
The city was split into two blended urban-rural ridings for the 2019 provincial general election with the north end of the city being incorporated into the Brooks-Medicine Hat riding while more of the city was incorporated into the Cypress-Medicine Hat district.
Two new seats will be added to the Alberta legislature’s current 87 for the next election scheduled for 2027. That, along with provincial legislation requiring a review of districts every eight to ten years, requires forming a commission to review electoral boundaries.
In addition to Miller, Brooks native John Evans has been appointed to the commission along with former Alberta Party leader Greg Clark. Retired University of Alberta professor Julian Martin and former Sylvan Lake mayor Susan Samson will round out the five-member commission.
Brooks will host the commission on June 12 at the Heritage Inn with Medicine Hat’s hearings will be the following day at the TownePlace Suites.
Lethbridge’s hearings will be held on May 29 with Drumheller’s being held on June 9.
Hearings will be held across the rest of the province over the course of June.
Upper map of the Brooks-Medicine Hat riding with the lower map representing the current Cypress-Medicine Hat provincial seat. (Photos courtesy of Elections Alberta)