NDP leader Rachel Notley hits two last campaign stops on the way home for election day
After spending some time in Calgary over the weekend, NDP leader Rachel Notley wrapped up her campaign today with two rallies on the way home to Edmonton ahead of election day.
Notley focused on pushing home some of her key campaign promises for health care and education, while calling out UCP leader Danielle Smith for being "unreliable."
The first stop was Red Deer.
“This is a historic election in Alberta and the decisions that Albertans make tomorrow are going to have huge, huge implications for our province's future and I am confident!” Notely told the crowd.
Despite the latest polling data showing a slight edge to the UCP, Notley and her supporters were optimistic.
“I’m feeling more confident than I ever have," said Red Deer resident Grace Page. "I’ve talked to lots of people that have said they’ve never voted NDP before, but this election it just seems like such an obvious choice to them as well.”
Another NDP supporter, Kayley Holmes, said she's feeling nervous about Monday's results.
“I have incredible anxiety about it just because I feel like so much is hanging in the balance in regards to what the outcome is going to be. I have never hoped for anything so hard in life,” Holmes said.
Being a teacher in Red Deer, Holmes said Notley has been her only choice from day one.
“Obviously I’m worried about things like class size, school funding, EA’s and the curriculum, certainly in terms of social studies," she added. "We need a modernized progressive curriculum.”
Further up the QEII for her last campaign stop, Notley spoke to a packed room at the Polish Hall Banquet and Conference Centre near Kingsway Garden Mall.
“You’re concerned about the cost of living and the state of public health care, well me too. You want more jobs and a more resilient economy with no income tax increases and no sales tax, well me too,” she told the crowd.
Turning up the heat, the NDP leader also took the opportunity to call out Premier Danielle Smith several times.
“She’s all over the map," Notley said. "You never know what she’s going to say next.
"Her staff have had to reign her in so much they may as well have stuck her inside the Talus balls.”
UCP leader Danielle Smith ended her campaign with a rally in Calgary on Thursday. She did not make herself available to reporters on Sunday.
Polls open on election day at 9 a.m. and close at 8 p.m.
More information on voting in Alberta can be found on the Elections Alberta website.
With files from the Canadian Press
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

McCarthy becomes the first U.S. speaker ever to be ousted from the job in a House vote
U.S. House Speaker Kevin McCarthy was voted out of the job Tuesday in an extraordinary showdown, a first in U.S. history that was forced by a contingent of hard-right conservatives and threw the House and its Republican leadership into chaos.
DEVELOPING CN experiencing network-wide system failure; Via, GO and other trains affected
Canadian National Railway Co. is experiencing a network-wide system failure that is affecting Via, GO and other trains in Ontario.
Parks Canada reveals additional details about deadly bear attack in Banff
The couple and dog mauled and killed by a grizzly bear in the backcountry of Banff National Park late last week did everything right, Parks Canada says.
Poilievre defends Truth and Reconciliation Day post, calls criticism 'appalling politicization'
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is defending the caption on photos he posted to social media on the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation after Liberal cabinet minister Marc Miller accused him of misidentifying Inuit people as Algonquin.
A bus crash near Italian city of Venice kills at least 21 people, including Ukrainian tourists
A bus carrying foreign tourists including Ukrainians crashed near the Italian city of Venice when it fell from an elevated street Tuesday, killing at least 21 people and injuring 18 others, authorities said.
Liberal Greg Fergus makes history, elected first Black House Speaker
Liberal MP Greg Fergus is Canada's new House of Commons Speaker, following a secret ranked ballot election on Tuesday. It is a day for the political history books as Fergus, once a parliamentary page, becomes the first Black Canadian to hold the prestigious role.
After a four-week campaign, Manitobans to decide on Tories' bid for a third term
Manitobans are to make history today as they cast final ballots in an election that has followed four weeks of promises, debates and controversial advertisements.
MK-ULTRA mind-control experiments: Quebec high court says U.S. has immunity in Canada
The United States government cannot be sued in Canada for its alleged role in infamous brainwashing experiments at a Montreal psychiatric hospital, Quebec's Court of Appeal ruled this week.
New York judge issues limited gag order after Trump sends disparaging post about court clerk
A New York judge sternly imposed a limited gag order in Donald Trump's civil business fraud trial Tuesday after the former president disparaged a key court staffer.