Mike Lake is currently the Conservative MP for Edmonton-Mill Woods-Beaumont.
Edmonton MP Mike Lake plans to shift ridings under the new electoral map, ending behind-the-scenes jockeying between a trio of incumbent Conservative MPs for a single new riding.
The battle for Edmonton-Wetaskiwin was an early example of unrest triggered by the redrawing of the federal electoral map, which saw 30 new seats added and existing boundaries redrawn to account for shifting population totals.
Mr. Lake is currently MP for Edmonton-Mill Woods-Beaumont, roughly a quarter of which was lobbed off into the new Edmonton-Wetaskiwin riding under a new map introduced for the 2015 election. However, the new riding overlapped heavily with the ridings of two of Mr. Lake's fellow MPs, James Rajotte and Blaine Calkins. It meant all three were said to be eyeing the same riding, though none said so publicly.
Mr. Lake confirmed his intention to run in Edmonton-Wetaskiwin in an interview Tuesday.
"I live in that riding and I grew up in that riding," Mr. Lake said, declining comment on whether any other MPs were considering the same riding. "Put it this way, I wouldn't be announcing I'm running out there without having cleared it up with everybody just to make sure we're all on the same page."
He said he did not expect another incumbent MP to run in the riding. Mr. Calkins, the current MP for Wetaskiwin and Alberta Conservative caucus chair, had declined comment on any turf battle and then announced in November that he'll run in Red Deer-Wolf Creek, which includes part of his current riding.
Mr. Rajotte – first elected in 2000, currently the MP for Edmonton-Leduc and chair of the finance committee – hasn't said yet where he'll run. Much of his current riding now forms the new riding of Edmonton Riverbend, which no incumbent has declared an intention to run in.
The new map can trigger a domino effect among candidates, particularly since the Conservatives protected incumbents from nomination challenges before the 2011 election. In his own case, Mr. Lake's move leaves the new riding of Edmonton-Mill Woods, which will be formed entirely out of Mr. Lake's current riding, empty. He won the nomination in the riding's current boundaries by beating Tim Uppal, now the MP for Edmonton Sherwood Park, which is also being heavily redrawn. Mr. Uppal hasn't said if he'll stay in Sherwood Park or slide down to Mill Woods.
The new ridings are expected trigger some messy nomination fights for the governing Conservatives, who are trying to avoid MPs running against one another. Alberta MP Jim Hillyer ruffled party feathers by initially saying he'd challenge fellow incumbent LaVar Payne, before recanting and saying he'd stick in his redrawn riding. Ontario MP Eve Adams has publicly announced her intention to move ridings entirely, from Mississauga to Oakville North-Burlington.
Conservative nomination races are expected to heat up before the summer in many ridings.
Josh Wingrove is a parliamentary reporter in Ottawa.