NDP's Desjarlais holds lead over Conservative Diotte in narrow Edmonton-Griesbach battle
New Democrat candidate Blake Desjarlais holds a narrow lead over incumbent Kerry Diotte in Edmonton-Griesbach after the initial count Monday night, but the race remains too close to call according to CTV News projections.
With 231 out of 232 polls reporting early Tuesday morning, Desjarlais led by just over 1,000 votes.
The Canadian Press called the race for Desjarlais earlier Monday night.
Desjarlais declined to speak to media Tuesday morning but posted to Twitter later in the day thanking his campaign team and stating that he was "deeply honoured by the confidence that the voters of Edmonton Griesbach have shown in me."
Diotte declined comment to CTV News on Tuesday morning.
- Federal election 2021: Results for all 34 Alberta ridings, 2 races too close to call
- 3 Edmonton ridings to watch on election night
Liberal candidate Habiba Mohamud will finish third, followed by the People Party of Canada’s Thomas Matty.
The final vote tally will be determined later Tuesday or early Wednesday as Elections Canada counts 1,746 remaining mail-in ballots.
Diotte won the riding when it was first contested in 2015 and then again in 2019 when he received more than 51 per cent of the vote.
The former Edmonton city councillor and newspaper columnist had served as the Tories' deputy critic for national revenue and public procurement.
Desjarlais, 27, was seeking to reverse a trend that saw voting support for the NDP fall over the last two elections: from 34 per cent of votes in 2015, down to 25 per cent in 2019.
If elected he would become Alberta’s only Indigenous MP and is also believed to be Canada's first openly two-spirited MP .
A Desjarlais win would be the result of a focused effort from the party, says Mount Royal University political scientist Duane Bratt.
"Greisbach has never been in play before," he said. " It was a combination of recruiting a star NDP candidate with the full cooperation of both the federal NDP and the provincial NDP and they don’t often get along."
Federal party leader Jagmeet Singh visited the riding twice during the campaign and a number of provincial NDP representatives, including Opposition leader and former premier Rachel Notely, campaigned there as well.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Trend Line Anger, pessimism towards federal government reach six-year high: Nanos survey
Most Canadians in March reported feeling angry or pessimistic towards the federal government than at any point in the last six years, according to a survey by Nanos Research.
BREAKING Police make arrests in grandparent scam that defrauded victims out of $739K
An interprovincial investigation into an 'emergency grandparents scam' that targeted seniors across Canada has led to the arrest of 14 suspects, Ontario Provincial Police say.
Motion to allow keffiyehs at Ontario legislature fails
A motion to reverse a ban on the keffiyeh within Queen’s Park failed to receive unanimous consent Thursday just moments after Ontario Premier Doug Ford reiterated his view that prohibiting the garment in the House is divisive.
B.C. child killer's lawyer walks out of review hearing
The lawyer representing child-killer Allan Schoenborn walked out of his client's annual review hearing Wednesday – abruptly ending proceedings marked by tense exchanges and several outbursts.
How to avoid the trap of becoming 'house poor'
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
Calgary man charged with manslaughter in death of toddler
Calgary police say Winston Campbell, 45, has been charged in the death of a two-year-old girl in 2022.
'Wild, wild west.' Families say organs of deceased Alabama inmates have been removed without their consent
The state Department of Corrections and the University of Alabama at Birmingham face disturbing allegations from the families of five inmates whose organs were removed and reportedly kept without consent, according to a series of lawsuits.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
Juror dismissed from Trump hush money trial as prosecutors seek to hold former president in contempt
A juror in Donald Trump's hush money trial was dismissed Thursday after expressing doubt about her ability to be fair and impartial, and the status of a second New Yorker picked for the panel was in limbo amid concerns that some of his answers in court may not have been accurate.