Alberta Liberals choose David Khan as next leader
原始发布日期： 2017-06-05 发布者：虫子字变大 字变小
 CALGARY — The newly elected leader of the Alberta Liberal Party says he will focus on "rebuilding" and "re-energizing" the party. David Khan won the leadership Sunday evening with 54.8 per cent of the vote, defeating his sole opponent, Kerry Cundal. There were 1,671 total votes and 10 abstentions. "It's been a whirlwind, it's been a really busy past two months, but I'm so excited about the energy in this room," Khan told a room of supporters at Hotel Arts in Calgary. "There are so many Liberals, old and new, that are part of our party now and I'm really excited about moving liberalism forward in Alberta." Khan served as the Alberta Liberals' executive vice-president before entering the race. He ran as a candidate in Calgary-Buffalo in the 2015 provincial election and as a byelection candidate in Calgary-West in 2014. His immediate focus is to unite Liberals in Alberta and become "a real force in the next provincial election," said Khan. "Make no mistake, it is not Liberal ideas, it is not Liberal values and it's not even the Liberal name that has held our party back. We need to stay true to ourselves and who we are and what we stand for," he said. "There's new people, there's new energy, and we need a new vision and need to move this province forward for the benefit of all." The only Liberal to be elected in the 2015 general election was Calgary-Mountain View MLA David Swann. Khan hopes to dramatically improve on that result. "That was a change election, that was an anomaly. That's not the support that we have going forward," he said. Khan said organizing, fundraising and electing more Liberals are the most crucial areas that need improvement. Financial reports for the first quarter posted on the Elections Alberta website in April showed the Alberta Liberals and its constituency associations raised $47,959 for the period. For comparison, the governing NDP took in $373,060. "History isn't why we are here today," Khan said. "We are here for the future, and it looks promising for Liberals and all Albertans." |