Grande Prairie

Grande Prairie is a vast northwestern Alberta riding that encompasses the western half of the Peace River Country, stretching from the city of Grande Prairie to the border with the Northwest Territories. The city of Grande Prairie, home to more than 65,000 people, is the riding's dominant population centre and the commercial capital of the Peace region. Beyond the city, the riding takes in a sparsely populated landscape of boreal forest, farmland, and resource-extraction territory, including communities along the Alaska Highway corridor.

Candidates

Chris Warkentin (Conservative) is the incumbent, first elected in 2006 and re-elected in every subsequent election. Born and raised on the family farm near DeBolt east of Grande Prairie, Warkentin attended Peace River Bible Institute and studied business and marketing at Grande Prairie Regional College before operating a custom home-building company. In Parliament, he has served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Public Works and Government Services and chaired the Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Committee.

Maureen McLeod (Liberal) has held numerous elected positions within the Liberal Party of Canada and was acclaimed as the riding's Liberal candidate. Her campaign focused on protecting agricultural producers during the Canada-US trade dispute, supporting workers through upskilling programs, and directing capital funding to regional colleges such as Northwestern Polytechnic.

Jennifer Villebrun (NDP) is a Métis community leader, lawyer, and teacher at a local Catholic school in the Grande Prairie area. A lifelong resident of the region, Villebrun has advocated for social justice, economic development, and Indigenous community empowerment.

Shawn McLean (People's Party), Donovan Eckstrom (Parti Rhinocéros Party), and Elliot McDavid (Independent) also stood as candidates in the riding.

About the Riding

Grande Prairie sits at the intersection of Highway 43—part of the CANAMEX trade corridor—and the Bighorn Highway, roughly 460 kilometres northwest of Edmonton. The city serves as the service, healthcare, and retail hub for the broader Peace region, drawing residents from a catchment area that extends well beyond the riding's boundaries. The surrounding terrain is gently rolling aspen parkland in the south and transitions to boreal forest in the north.

The local economy is driven by oil and gas extraction, forestry, and agriculture. The Peace region contains significant conventional oil and gas reserves, and Grande Prairie has long served as a staging ground for exploration and drilling operations. Forestry is a major employer, with large tracts of timber south of the city and processing facilities including a major kraft pulp mill. Agriculture—particularly grain, canola, and cattle—is the economic backbone of the rural areas surrounding the city.

In 2025, the US trade dispute was a central concern for a riding whose resource-based economy depends heavily on cross-border exports. Agricultural producers faced tariff uncertainty on canola and grain shipments, while energy workers confronted questions about pipeline access and market diversification. Healthcare access in remote northern communities, recruitment and retention of physicians, and the high cost of living in a resource-dependent economy were persistent issues across the riding.