# West Yellowhead

West Yellowhead is a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. The district is one of 87 current ridings mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta using the first past the post method of voting.
The district in its early history was a swing riding, changing party hands often. More recently, support has gone to electing candidates from the Progressive Conservatives, who have held the district with sizable majorities since 1997. The current representative is UCP Martin Long who was first elected in the 2019 provincial election.

## Geography

West Yellowhead is a predominantly rural riding located in northwest and west-central Alberta. The landscape includes the Rocky Mountains of Jasper National Park, their foothills, and large expanses of boreal forest, some of which has been cleared for agriculture.
There are no cities in the riding. The only urban municipalities within its boundaries are three large towns: Edson, Hinton, and Whitecourt. Other population centres include Jasper, incorporated as a specialized municipality, and Grande Cache, a former town that became a hamlet in 2019.
West Yellowhead also includes the entirety of three rural municipalities (Improvement District No. 12, Improvement District No. 25, and Yellowhead County) and parts of two others (the Municipal District of Greenview No. 16 and Woodlands County).
No First Nation band governments are based in the riding. However, the riding does includes three reserves (Alexis Cardinal River Indian Reserve 234, Alexis Elk River Indian Reserve 233, and Alexis Whitecourt Indian Reserve 232) that are associated with the Alexis Nakota Sioux Nation, a signatory of Treaty 6. The unrecognized Aseniwuche Winewak Nation also has several settlements in the riding, in the Grande Cache area.
West Yellowhead borders seven other electoral districts: Grande Prairie-Wapiti and Central Peace-Notley to the north, Athabasca-Barrhead-Westlock to the northeast, Lac Ste. Anne-Parkland and Drayton Valley-Devon to the east, and Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre and Banff-Kananaskis to the south. The riding's western boundary is the Alberta-British Columbia border.

## History

The district was created in the 1986 boundary redistribution from most of the old Edson electoral district. Since it was created, the district has remained almost unchanged. The 2010 boundary redistribution did not change the riding from 2003.

### Boundary history

81 West Yellowhead 2003 boundaries :
| Bordering districts ||||
| North | East | West | South |
| Grande Prairie-Smoky and Grande Prairie-Wapiti | Drayton Valley-Calmar and Whitecourt-Ste. Anne | British Columbia boundary | Rocky Mountain House |
| riding map goes here | riding map goes here | | |
| Legal description from the Statutes of Alberta 2003, Electoral Divisions Act. ||||
| Starting at the intersection of the west boundary of the Province and the north boundary of Twp. 58; then 1. east along the north boundary to the left bank of the Smoky River; 2. downstream along the left bank to its most westerly intersection with the north boundary of Twp. 62; 3. east along the north boundary to the east boundary of Rge. 25 W5; 4. south along the east boundary to the right bank of the Berland River; 5. downstream along the right bank of the Berland River to the right bank of the Athabasca River; 6. downstream along the right bank of the Athabasca River to the east boundary of Rge. 19 W5; 7. south along the east boundary to the north boundary of Twp. 58; 8. east along the north boundary to the east boundary of Rge. 18 W5; 9. south along the east boundary to the north boundary of Twp. 57; 10. east along the north boundary to the east boundary of Rge. 16 W5; 11. south along the east boundary to the north boundary of Twp. 47; 12. east along the north boundary to the east boundary of Rge. 15 W5; 13. south along the east boundary to the north boundary of Twp. 44; 14. west along the north boundary to the east boundary of Rge. 19 W5; 15. south along the east boundary to the north boundary of Twp. 43; 16. west along the north boundary to the right bank of the Brazeau River; 17. upstream along the right bank to the Jasper National Park boundary; 18. in a generally southwesterly direction along the park boundary to the Alberta-British Columbia boundary; 19. in a generally northwesterly direction along the boundary to the starting point. ||||
| Note: ||||
85 West Yellowhead 2010 boundaries :
| Bordering districts ||||
| North | East | West | South |
| Grande Prairie-Smoky and Grande Prairie-Wapiti | Drayton Valley-Devon and Whitecourt-Ste. Anne | British Columbia boundary | Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre |
| Legal description from the Statutes of Alberta 2010, Electoral Divisions Act. ||||
| Legal description from the Statutes of Alberta 2003, Electoral Divisions Act. ||||
| Note: The district remained unchanged in 2010. ||||

### Electoral history

Members of the Legislative Assembly for West Yellowhead :
| Assembly | Years | Member | Party |
| See: Edson 1913-1986 |||||
| 21st | 1986–1989 | Ian Reid | Progressive Conservative |
| 22nd | 1989–1993 | Jerry Doyle | New Democrat |
| 23rd | 1993–1997 | Duco Van Binsbergen | Liberal |
| 24th | 1997–2001 | Ivan Strang | Progressive Conservative |
| 25th | 2001–2004 | Ivan Strang | Progressive Conservative |
| 26th | 2004–2008 | Ivan Strang | Progressive Conservative |
| 27th | 2008–2012 | Robin Campbell | Progressive Conservative |
| 28th | 2012–2015 | Robin Campbell | Progressive Conservative |
| 29th | 2015–2019 | Eric Rosendahl | New Democrat |
| 30th | 2019–2023 | Martin Long | United Conservative |
| 31st | 2023– | Martin Long | United Conservative |
The electoral district was created in the 1986 general election. The first election held that year saw a tight race between incumbent Progressive Conservative MLA Ian Reid who had previously represented the Edson electoral district and New Democrat candidate Phil Oakes. Reid barely hung onto win to pick up the new district for his party.
The 1989 election would see Reid defeated by New Democrat candidate Jerry Doyle in another close race. Doyle would only last a single term in office as he was defeated by Liberal candidate Duco Van Binsbergen in the 1993 general election.
The Progressive Conservatives would regain the seat in the 1997 general election as candidate Ivan Strang defeated Van Binsbergen. Strang was re-elected in the 2001 election with a solid majority. He won a third term in the 2004 general election taking less than half the popular vote but winning a comfortable plurality over the opposition candidates which polled an evenly dived vote. He would retire from office in 2008.
Progressive Conservative Robin Campbell was elected in 2008 and re-elected in 2012. Campbell lost to Eric Rosendahl of the New Democratic Party when the NDP were voted into government on May 4, 2015.

## Legislative election results
### 2023

vte2023 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | United Conservative | Martin Long | 14,456 | 71.80 | +3.48 |
| | New Democratic | Fred Kreiner | 5,679 | 28.20 | +7.72 |
| Total | Total | Total | 20,135 | 99.23 | – |
| Rejected and declined | Rejected and declined | Rejected and declined | 156 | 0.77 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 20,291 | 55.37 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 36,648 |
| | United Conservative hold | United Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | -2.12 |
| Source(s) Source: Elections Alberta |||||||

### 2019

vte2019 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | United Conservative | Martin Long | 16,381 | 68.31% | 7.23% |
| | New Democratic | Paula Cackett | 4,912 | 20.48% | -18.44% |
| | Alberta Party | Kristie Gomuwka | 2,073 | 8.65% | – |
| | Alberta Advantage | Paul Lupyczuk | 261 | 1.09% | – |
| | Alberta Independence | Travis Poirier | 229 | 0.96% | – |
| | Independent | David Pearce | 123 | 0.51% | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 23,979 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 111 | 50 | 9 |
| Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | 35,546 | 67.80% | 21.51% |
| | United Conservative gain from New Democratic | United Conservative gain from New Democratic | Swing | Swing | 20.61% |
| Source(s) Source: "87 - West Yellowhead, 2019 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Alberta. Chief Electoral Officer (2019). 2019 General Election. A Report of the Chief Electoral Officer. Volume II (PDF) (Report). Vol. 2. Edmonton, Alta.: Elections Alberta. pp. 427–433. ISBN 978-1-988620-12-1. Retrieved April 7, 2021. |||||||

### 2015

vte2015 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Eric Rosendahl | 4,135 | 38.92% | 30.84% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robin Campbell | 3,433 | 32.32% | -12.27% |
| | Wildrose | Stuart Taylor | 3,055 | 28.76% | 1.48% |
| Total | Total | Total | 10,623 | –turnout | 23,063 | 46.29% |
| | New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative | New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative | Swing | Swing | -5.35% |
| Source(s) Source: "85 - West Yellowhead, 2015 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Chief Electoral Officer (2016). 2015 General Election. A Report of the Chief Electoral Officer (PDF) (Report). Edmonton, Alta.: Elections Alberta. |||||||

### 2012

vte2012 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robin Campbell | 4,393 | 44.59% | -9.24% |
| | Wildrose Alliance | Stuart Taylor | 2,688 | 27.28% | 23.11% |
| | Alberta Party | Glenn Taylor | 1,668 | 16.93% | – |
| | New Democratic | Barry Madsen | 797 | 8.09% | -5.40% |
| | Liberal | Michael Martyna | 307 | 3.12% | -21.61% |
| Total | Total | Total | 9,853 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 51 | 25 | 5 |
| Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | 20,919 | 47.37% | 9.62% |
| | Progressive Conservative hold | Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | -5.90% |
| Source(s) Source: "85 - West Yellowhead, 2012 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Chief Electoral Officer (2012). The Report of the Chief Electoral Officer on the 2011 Provincial Enumeration and Monday, April 23, 2012 Provincial General Election of the Twenty-eighth Legislative Assembly (PDF) (Report). Edmonton, Alta.: Elections Alberta. Archived (PDF) from the original on May 6, 2021. Retrieved April 7, 2021. |||||||

### 2008

vte2008 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robin Campbell | 4,206 | 53.83% | 8.10% |
| | Liberal | Lisa Higgerty | 1,932 | 24.72% | 4.43% |
| | New Democratic | Ken Kuzminski | 1,054 | 13.49% | -8.09% |
| | Wildrose Alliance | Earle Cunningham | 326 | 4.17% | -4.05% |
| | Green | Scott Pickett | 296 | 3.79% | -0.39% |
| Total | Total | Total | 7,814 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 26 | 5 | 1 |
| Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | 20,770 | 37.75% | -8.76% |
| | Progressive Conservative hold | Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | 2.48% |
| Source(s) Source: "81 - West Yellowhead, 2008 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Chief Electoral Officer (2008). The Report on the March 3, 2008 Provincial General Election of the Twenty-Seventh Legislative Assembly (Report). Edmonton, Alta.: Elections Alberta. pp. 558–563. Retrieved April 7, 2021. |||||||

### 2004

2004 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Ivan J. Strang | 3,753 | 45.72% | -13.42% |
| | New Democratic | Barry Madsen | 1,771 | 21.58% | 13.36% |
| | Liberal | Rob Jolly | 1,666 | 20.30% | -12.34% |
| | Alberta Alliance | Earle Cunningham | 675 | 8.22% | – |
| | Green | Monika Schaefer | 343 | 4.18% | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 8,208 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 27 | 16 | 1 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 17,706 | 46.52% | -4.82% |
| | Progressive Conservative hold | Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | -1.18% |
| Source(s) Source: "00 - West Yellowhead, 2004 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Alberta. Chief Electoral Officer (2005). Report of the Chief Electoral Officer on the General Enumeration and General Election of the Twenty-sixth Legislative Assembly (Report). Edmonton: Alberta Legislative Assembly, Office of the Chief Electoral Officer. |||||||

### 2001

2001 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Ivan J. Strang | 5,763 | 59.14% | 17.10% |
| | Liberal | Lyle Benson | 3,180 | 32.64% | -2.84% |
| | New Democratic | Noel Lapierre | 801 | 8.22% | -11.69% |
| Total | Total | Total | 9,744 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 6 | 27 | 1 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 18,995 | 51.33% | -4.57% |
| | Progressive Conservative hold | Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | 9.97% |
| Source(s) Source: "West Yellowhead Official Results 2001 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Alberta. Chief Electoral Officer (2001). The report of the Chief Electoral Officer on the 2000 provincial confirmation process and Monday, March 12, 2001, Provincial General Election of the twenty-fifth Legislative Assembly. Edmonton: Alberta Legislative Assembly, Office of the Chief Electoral Officer. |||||||

### 1997

1997 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Ivan J. Strang | 4,498 | 42.05% | 9.77% |
| | Liberal | Duco Van Binsbergen | 3,795 | 35.47% | -1.60% |
| | New Democratic | Glenn Taylor | 2,130 | 19.91% | -3.43% |
| | Social Credit | John Ahlstrom | 275 | 2.57% | -3.49% |
| Total | Total | Total | 10,698 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 19 | 19 | 3 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 19,176 | 55.90% | 0.46% |
| | Progressive Conservative gain from Liberal | Progressive Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | Swing | 0.89% |
| Source(s) Source: "West Yellowhead Official Results 1997 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Alberta. Chief Electoral Officer (1997). Report of the Chief Electoral Officer, November, 1996 general enumeration and Tuesday, March 11, 1997 general election Twenty-fourth Legislative Assembly. Edmonton: Alberta Legislative Assembly, Office of the Chief Electoral Officer. |||||||

### 1993

1993 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Duco Van Binsbergen | 3,562 | 37.07% | 24.01% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Fiona Fowler Cleary | 3,101 | 32.28% | -4.56% |
| | New Democratic | Jerry J. Doyle | 2,243 | 23.35% | -23.91% |
| | Social Credit | Garry M. Klewchuk | 582 | 6.06% | – |
| | Greens | Mario Houle | 120 | 1.25% | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 9,608 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 21 | – | – |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 17,367 | 55.44% | 3.29% |
| | Liberal gain from New Democratic | Liberal gain from New Democratic | Swing | Swing | -2.81% |
| Source(s) Source: "West Yellowhead Official Results 1993 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020. |||||||

### 1989

1989 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Jerry J. Doyle | 3,989 | 47.26% | 5.22% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Ian Reid | 3,109 | 36.83% | -8.03% |
| | Liberal | Sharron Johnstone | 1,103 | 13.07% | 2.59% |
| | Independent | Harvey Ball | 240 | 2.84% | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 8,441 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 25 | – | – |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 16,234 | 52.15% | 6.96% |
| | New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative | New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative | Swing | Swing | 3.80% |
| Source(s) Source: "West Yellowhead Official Results 1989 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020. |||||||

### 1986

1986 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Ian Reid | 3,207 | 44.87% | – |
| | New Democratic | Phil Oakes | 3,005 | 42.04% | – |
| | Liberal | Laurie Switzer | 749 | 10.48% | – |
| | Western Canada Concept | Lorraine Oberg | 187 | 2.62% | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 7,148 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 21 | – | – |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 15,863 | 45.19% | – |
| | Progressive Conservative pickup new district. | Progressive Conservative pickup new district. | Progressive Conservative pickup new district. | Progressive Conservative pickup new district. | Progressive Conservative pickup new district. | Progressive Conservative pickup new district. | Progressive Conservative pickup new district. |
| Source(s) Source: "West Yellowhead Official Results 1986 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020. |||||||

## Senate nominee election results
### 2004

| 2004 Senate nominee election results: West Yellowhead | 2004 Senate nominee election results: West Yellowhead | 2004 Senate nominee election results: West Yellowhead | 2004 Senate nominee election results: West Yellowhead | 2004 Senate nominee election results: West Yellowhead | Turnout 46.49% | Turnout 46.49% |
| Affiliation | Affiliation | Candidate | Votes | % votes | % ballots | Rank |
| | Progressive Conservative | Cliff Breitkreuz | 4,004 | 20.24% | 59.57% | 3 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Betty Unger | 2,758 | 13.94% | 41.03% | 2 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Bert Brown | 2,125 | 10.74% | 31.61% | 1 |
| | Independent | Link Byfield | 2,025 | 10.23% | 30.13% | 4 |
| | Progressive Conservative | David Usherwood | 1,628 | 8.23% | 24.22% | 6 |
| | Alberta Alliance | Michael Roth | 1,540 | 7.78% | 22.91% | 7 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Jim Silye | 1,506 | 7.61% | 22.40% | 5 |
| | Alberta Alliance | Gary Horan | 1,434 | 7.25% | 21.33% | 10 |
| | Alberta Alliance | Vance Gough | 1,415 | 7.15% | 21.05% | 8 |
| | Independent | Tom Sindlinger | 1,352 | 6.83% | 20.11% | 9 |
| Total votes | Total votes | Total votes | 19,787 | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Total ballots | Total ballots | Total ballots | 6,722 | 2.94 votes per ballot | 2.94 votes per ballot | 2.94 votes per ballot |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 1,510 | 1,510 | 1,510 | 1,510 |
Voters had the option of selecting four candidates on the ballot

### 2012
## Student vote results
### 2004

* Participating schools
* Crescent Valley School
* Ecole Mountain View School
* Gerard Redmond Community Catholic School
* Harry Collinge High School
* Holy Redeemer Catholic Jr/Sr High School
* Parkland Composite High School
* Pine Grove Middle School
* Yellowhead Koinonia Christian School
On November 19, 2004, a student vote was conducted at participating Alberta schools to parallel the 2004 Alberta general election results. The vote was designed to educate students and simulate the electoral process for persons who have not yet reached the legal majority. The vote was conducted in 80 of the 83 provincial electoral districts with students voting for actual election candidates. Schools with a large student body that reside in another electoral district had the option to vote for candidates outside of the electoral district then where they were physically located.
2004 Alberta student vote results :
| Affiliation | Affiliation | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Progressive Conservative | Ivan Strang | 593 | 32.91% |
| | NDP | Barry Madsen | 448 | 24.86% |
| | Liberal | Rob Jolly | 341 | 18.92% |
| | Alberta Alliance | Earle Cunningham | 271 | 15.04% |
| | Green | Monika Schaefer | 149 | 8.27% |
| Total | Total | Total | 1,802 | 100% |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 62 | 62 |

### 2012

2012 Alberta student vote results :
| Affiliation | Affiliation | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Alberta Party | Glenn Taylor | 224 | 34.30% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robin Campbell | 221 | 33.84% |
| | Wildrose | Stuart Taylor | 102 | 15.62% |
| | NDP | Barry Madsen | 57 | 8.73% |
| | Liberal | Michael Martyna | 49 | 7.50% |
| Total | Total | Total | 653 | 100% |