Cypress—Medicine Hat

Cypress—Medicine Hat is located in the southeastern corner of Alberta, encompassing the southern portion of the City of Medicine Hat, all of Cypress County, and stretching east to the Saskatchewan border. The riding takes in the towns of Redcliff and Irvine, as well as vast stretches of prairie rangeland. The area has a long tradition of conservative representation, and incumbent MLA Drew Barnes had held the seat since first being elected under the Wildrose banner in 2012. He was seeking his third term in 2019, now running under the United Conservative Party.

Candidates

Drew Barnes (United Conservative) — Barnes was born in Moosomin, Saskatchewan, and became a realtor in Medicine Hat, serving as president of the Medicine Hat Real Estate Board. He was first elected in 2012, defeating Progressive Conservative incumbent Leonard Mitzel, and was re-elected in 2015. He supported the Unite the Right campaign that led to the formation of the UCP.

Peter Mueller (NDP) — Mueller spent 33 years as a teacher in Medicine Hat, primarily in social studies, and also taught at Medicine Hat College. He was known locally for his regular columns in The Medicine Hat News. This was his first run for elected office.

Colette Smithers (Alberta Party) — Smithers was a Medicine Hat entrepreneur who ran Dream Achievers, a business offering personal and virtual assistance to small businesses. She had run for a seat on Medicine Hat city council in 2017 and was an active volunteer with poverty and homelessness initiatives in the community.

Terry Blacquier (Alberta Advantage) — Blacquier ran as the Alberta Advantage Party candidate. He had worked in the oil and gas industry for 30 years and was running for elected office for the first time.

Anwar Kamaran (Liberal) — Kamaran ran as the Alberta Liberal candidate. Originally from Iraq, he came to Canada in 1996 and owned several businesses in the region, including a gas station and a trucking company.

Local Issues

The economy was the dominant concern in Cypress—Medicine Hat heading into the 2019 election. The riding’s twin economic pillars — natural gas production in Cypress County and the agricultural sector centred on cattle ranching and irrigation farming — were both under pressure. Low natural gas prices had reduced drilling activity and employment in the area, while the carbon tax increased operating costs for both energy producers and farmers. The failure to secure new pipeline capacity to move Alberta oil and gas to international markets was a persistent frustration.

Healthcare was also a significant local issue. Medicine Hat Regional Hospital had completed an expansion in 2018, adding an expanded emergency department, diagnostic services, and a heliport, but residents in the riding’s more remote rural areas continued to face challenges accessing timely medical care.

Medicine Hat had also seen significant demographic change, with new immigrants becoming an important source of population growth. Settlement services, housing, and integration supports were growing needs in the community, reflecting Medicine Hat’s evolution from a homogeneous prairie city into a more diverse urban centre.