KEVIN SORENSON
CONSERVATIVE PARTY OF CANADA
(INCUMBENT)
Age: 52
Occupation: Farmer and auctioneer
Residence: Killam
Family: Married with son and daughter
Kevin Sorenson was first elected in the Crowfoot riding in 2000 and is in his fifth election campaign. In Ottawa, the veteran legislator is the chairman of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security.
The two main issues are leadership and the economy, said Sorenson, who won more than 82 per cent of the popular vote in the last election, the best showing in the country.
“Undoubtebly, the first issue is the economy,” he said. “When we go to the door. (People say) Why are we having an election? Why is the Opposition doing this? And why are they doing this now? Do they not understand we are just coming out of this recession?”
Sorenson said his party is determined to to keep taxes down so the country is positioned to recover from the economic downturn. “We’re not going to be increasing taxes on any kind of business that is creating jobs. I think our budget shows that.”
Through its measures, the government created an economic climate that allowed 480,000 new jobs to be created. “We want to make certain that people have a good job and an opportunity to work and to contribute.”
The budget contained many tax incentives for Canadians.
“Someone said to me, ‘You know what, Ottawa needs to spend less so we have more.’ I couldn’t have said it better myself.”
The government’s economic efforts have not only been focused at home.
“As far as the economy is concerned we are going to continue to do what we’ve done, which is (to create) an unprecedented amount of free trade agreements.” Agreements to make it easier for Canadian goods to find foreign markets have been signed or are being worked on with a long list of nations worldwide.
“Canada is a trading nation. And new markets have always been a priority for our government.
“In 13 years, the Liberals worked on three free trade agreements. In five years, we’ve finalized 13.
“We’ve had a record of remarkable accomplishments in enhancing trade with other nations and we’re fully committed to continuing that.”
Leadership is also a big issue on the minds of voters, he said. “People have a choice between Stephen Harper, they have a choice between a Conservative government, or they have a choice with the unknown.”
It is unclear whether Canadians could be faced with a coalition if another party emerges as leader. Equally unclear is what role the Bloc Québécois or NDP might play or what would happen if Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff loses and decides to step down, he said.
“Those issues are very real here in Crowfoot, as I imagine they are in the rest of rural Alberta.”