Grande Prairie’s incumbent Conservative MP Chris Warkentin says he is running for the “future generations” in the 2025 Federal Election.
Warkentin was first elected as a Member of Parliament in 2006 in the Peace River riding, and since then, has served in a number of capacities in Ottawa as an MP.
“It is a privilege for me to serve as your member of parliament, I have for the last number of years, and it is my privilege to be here as the conservative candidate, looking for your support yet again,” he says.
Family
According to Warkentin, family is most important when it’s time to consider running again. He says before any election, he and his wife contemplate whether the sacrifice is worth the cost.
“We talk about if or not it’s important we continue down this road, for me, it’s a privilege for me to serve and I love the job so much, but I know that it’s a personal sacrifice for my wife and my children, so these discussions are important to me, my family is important to me,” he says.
Nearly 20 years in Ottawa later, Warkentin says he sees his service as a “necessity” to keep the Peace Country a viable place to live for generations to come.
“We talked about the necessity to ensure that our children, and all the children of the Peace Country, the grand children that we may some day have, might be able to still call this home, and enjoy the opportunities we enjoy.”
Peace Country roots
Reflecting on his ancestors, Warkentin says the Peace Country was not always the agricultural hub it is today.
“I think back over 100 years ago to where my great grand parents arrived to the Peace Country via rail,” he says. “They were fleeing the Ukraine, where the communists were taking over, where they saw no opportunity for the generations that follow.”
“They left a country where they were told stories of a place where the top soil was six feet deep, where you could grow the most beautiful crops in the world, and they landed in a forest of poplars.”
The longtime Tory says hard work and determination from generations gone by is the reason Peace Country residents of today can enjoy the bounty of the land, so now, that responsibility falls on them.
“They pressed forward, they believed they could build a better future for themselves and for the generations that followed,” he says. “The generations that followed have done better, successively generation after generation, life has become better, and one has built the foundation that the next has built off of.”
“I’ve been blessed to now be a great grandchild that stands here, and now wonders if my children will have the same opportunities that I had.”
Cost of living
Warkentin points to the rising costs of basics like housing and groceries as evidence of a need for change after ten years of Liberal government.
“As we look around, we know there’s been an uncontrolled increase in the cost of living, we’ve seen rents and mortgage costs double over the last ten years,” he says. “We’ve seen grocery prices skyrocket- just today there was a new report indicating that we’re seeing food inflation at a 50-year high.”
He adds that as inflationary pressures continue to pose threats like higher taxes on Canadians, it is important to think of the future generations on election day.
“We see a limited opportunity because of the decisions of the Liberal government to fight against the industries that are so important to our community,” he says. “As we see the escalation of taxes and red tape, the opportunities seem even that much more difficult, so I’m running for the future generations.”
