Alberta MP Damien Kurek stepping down for Poilievre to run in byelection

OTTAWA — Seatless Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre will run in an Alberta byelection as Conservative MP Damien Kurek “temporarily” steps aside. In a press release, Kurek, the Battle River—Crowfoot MP-elect, said he was relinquishing his seat for Poilievre because it’s “what’s best for Canada” and the riding. Kurek was first elected in the Alberta riding in 2019. Poilievre lost his Ottawa-area seat to a Liberal challenger by more than 4,000 votes in Monday’s election. “The people of Battle River—Crowfoot will be represented well by Pierre for the remainder of this Parliamentary session, and I will keep working with our incredible local team to do everything I can to remain the strong voice for you as I support him in the process, and then run again here in Battle River—Crowfoot in the next general election,” Kurek said in a statement. At a press conference in Ottawa on Friday, Prime Minister Mark Carney said he would call a byelection as soon as possible and that the government would play “no games” with Poilievre’s quest to win a seat. The prime minister could theoretically wait six months after an MP resigns before calling a byelection, which would keep Poilievre out of the House Commons until nearly the end of the year, but Carney said that wasn’t on the table. “I’ve already indicated to Mr. Poilievre that if it’s the decision of him and the Conservative Party to trigger… a byelection, I will ensure that it happens as soon as possible. No games, nothing,” Carney said Friday. Poilievre has been unusually quiet since his party failed in its bid to form government and he surprisingly lost his seat on Monday. He has not made a public appearance nor posted anything on social media since his concession speech early Tuesday morning. The fact Kurek intends to run again in Battle River—Crowfoot suggests Poilievre may intend to run again in his longtime Ottawa-area riding of Carleton in the next general election. More to come . National Post cnardi@postmedia.com Get more deep-dive National Post political coverage and analysis in your inbox with the Political Hack newsletter, where Ottawa bureau chief Stuart Thomson and political analyst Tasha Kheiriddin get at what’s really going on behind the scenes on Parliament Hill every Wednesday and Friday, exclusively for subscribers. Sign up here. Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our politics newsletter, First Reading, here.