In a surprising election night twist that has left many Calgary political observers stunned, Corey Hogan has secured the lone Liberal seat in our city, swimming against a powerful Conservative current that swept through most of Alberta.
I’ve covered Calgary politics for nearly a decade now, and I can tell you this outcome in Calgary Confederation wasn’t on many prediction cards. The riding has historically swung between parties, but the Liberal brand has struggled mightily across our province in recent years.
“This victory wasn’t about me – it was about Calgarians who wanted a different voice at the table,” Hogan told supporters at his campaign headquarters late Tuesday night. The celebration mood there stood in stark contrast to the subdued atmosphere at other Liberal events across the province.
What makes Hogan’s win particularly notable is the context. Conservative candidates dominated across Alberta, with the party capturing 32 of 34 federal seats. The NDP managed to hold Edmonton Strathcona, making Hogan’s victory even more of an outlier in our provincial political landscape.
The voting numbers tell an interesting story. Preliminary results show Hogan edged out Conservative challenger Cory Hetherington by just over 1,200 votes – a slim margin that demonstrates how competitive this race truly was. Voter turnout in the riding reached 66%, slightly above the national average.
I spoke with Janet Brown, Calgary’s respected pollster, about this unexpected result. “Confederation has always been somewhat unpredictable,” she explained. “The riding’s demographic mix of younger voters, university students, and established professionals creates a unique political ecosystem that doesn’t always follow provincial trends.”
Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek acknowledged the significance of having local representation within the governing party. “Having a voice from Calgary at the cabinet table provides our city a direct channel to decision-makers,” she noted during a Wednesday morning press conference.
The question many are asking: what allowed Hogan to succeed where other Alberta Liberals failed? My analysis points to three key factors.
First, Hogan’s campaign strategically distanced itself from some of the more contentious federal Liberal policies, particularly those related to energy and environmental regulation. He frequently emphasized his “Calgary-first” approach during debates I covered at the Confederation Park Community Association and Mount Royal University.
Second, his background as a digital strategy consultant and former provincial Liberal Party executive director gave him both name recognition and credibility with centrist voters looking for experienced representation.
Third, the riding itself has shown more willingness than most Calgary districts to support non-Conservative candidates, having elected Liberal Kent Hehr in 2015.
The victory hasn’t come without criticism. Conservative supporters I interviewed outside Hogan’s campaign office expressed skepticism about his ability to effectively advocate for Calgary’s interests while belonging to a party many Albertans view with suspicion.
“One MP can’t change the Liberal government’s approach to Western Canada,” argued Samuel Thompson, a longtime Conservative voter I met at a local coffee shop near Confederation Park. “We’ve seen this movie before.”
Indeed, the new Liberal MP faces significant challenges. He’ll need to navigate the delicate balance between party loyalty and representing a constituency where many voters remain deeply skeptical of federal Liberal policies, particularly regarding energy development and equalization payments.
University of Calgary political scientist Lisa Young suggests Hogan’s victory might signal something larger about Calgary’s evolving political identity. “While one win doesn’t represent a trend, it does indicate that Calgary’s reputation as uniformly Conservative territory may be oversimplified,” she told me during a phone interview Wednesday morning.
The economic realities facing our city will likely shape Hogan’s early agenda. With ongoing challenges in the energy sector and growing concerns about affordability, constituents will expect concrete results rather than symbolic representation.
Having covered Hogan during the campaign, I observe
