Photo: Unknown author Unknown author · Public domainPonoka—Didsbury, which takes in Didsbury, is held by Blaine Calkins (Conservative Party of Canada)
From Alberta come 37 MPs, 33 of them with the Conservative Party of Canada. Statistics Canada lists Didsbury as a town. In Alberta, councils aren’t on any open list we can use, so Didsbury’s mayor isn’t named. No provincial riding is named for Didsbury: the only boundary file for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta forbids commercial reuse.
Three governments, and who does what
Didsbury, a town in Alberta, shares the work with the province and Ottawa.
Local services, by-laws and property tax.
Schools, health care, highways, municipal law.
assembly.ab.ca ↗Passports, pensions, EI, defence, immigration.
ourcommons.ca ↗Who to ask
Green: municipal. Gold: provincial. Grey: federal.
No county or regional government sits above Didsbury’s council; Division No. 6 is only a census division, a unit for statistics.
From the council table to Ottawa
Every elected tier that speaks for Didsbury, from the most recent elections.
- 1Didsbury councilTown
- 2Legislative Assembly of Alberta–
- 3House of CommonsPonoka—Didsbury
Party colours are neutral on purpose: they tell parties apart and aren’t the parties’ own. MPs: Wikidata (CC0), 45th Parliament statements, read 7 November 2026; ridings: 2023 Representation Order, Statistics Canada
When Didsbury votes
The last and next general elections at each level; a by-election can come in between.
| Election | Last | Next |
|---|---|---|
| Didsbury council | 20 October 2025 | 15 October 2029 |
| Legislative Assembly of Alberta | 29 May 2023 | – |
| House of Commons | 28 April 2025 | – |
The council elected on 20 October 2025 serves until 15 October 2029, when Didsbury council is chosen again. The Local Authorities Election Act sets the day: the third Monday in October every four years. Voters last chose the Legislative Assembly of Alberta on 29 May 2023 and the House of Commons on 28 April 2025. Why not 2025? Elections Canada publishes those counts under non-commercial terms, and its open data stop at the 2021 election.
Election dates: the legislatures, MMAH and MAMH
The Legislative Assembly of Alberta: riding not placed
Provinces and territories run schools, health care and municipal law; each riding elects one MLA.
Find your MLA on the legislature’s site
assembly.ab.ca ↗Legislatures: their own member pages
Blaine Calkins represents Ponoka—Didsbury in Ottawa
Each riding elects one MP to the House of Commons; the general election of 28 April 2025 chose the 45th Parliament.
Ponoka—Didsbury · Conservative Party of Canada · first elected 2006
en.wikipedia.org ↗- Conservative Party of Canada33
- Liberal Party of Canada3
- New Democratic Party1
As Wikidata records them.
The MP’s record
Blaine Calkins has sat in the Commons since 2006, now for the 7th Parliament. Elections Canada’s transposition of the 2021 vote onto today’s Ponoka—Didsbury puts the Conservative Party of Canada first at 68%; Blaine Calkins held it for the party in 2025.
MPs: Wikidata (CC0), 45th Parliament statements, read 7 November 2026; ridings: 2023 Representation Order, Statistics Canada · MPs’ records: Wikidata (CC0), positions held and party memberships, read 8 November 2026
Red Deer—Mountain View returned Earl Dreeshen (Conservative Party of Canada) in 2021
Results in Red Deer—Mountain View, the riding Didsbury belonged to on the 2013 map used in 2019 and 2021; since 2025 it votes in Ponoka—Didsbury.
That put it among the safest seats in the country: 15 of 338 ridings had wider leads. At 70%, more of Red Deer—Mountain View voted in 2021 than Canada as a whole (63%). Red Deer—Mountain View elected Earl Dreeshen (Conservative Party of Canada) in 2021: 64% of the vote, a lead of 31,854 over Marie Grabowski (New Democratic Party). Earl Dreeshen already held it after the 2019 election, won with 80%.
All 7 candidates in Red Deer—Mountain View, 2021
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Earl Dreeshen | Conservative Party of Canada | 40,680 | 64.3% |
| Marie Grabowski | New Democratic Party | 8,826 | 13.9% |
| Kelly Lorencz | People's Party of Canada | 7,581 | 12.0% |
| Olumide Adewumi | Liberal Party of Canada | 4,084 | 6.5% |
| Mark Wilcox | Maverick Party | 1,640 | 2.6% |
| Clayten Willington | Independent | 298 | 0.5% |
| Jared Pilon | Libertarian Party of Canada | 211 | 0.3% |
Federal results: Elections Canada, 43rd and 44th general elections and the 44th’s transposition to the 2023 ridings, via open.canada.ca. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada
Didsbury council spends less per resident than most
The 2024 financial return: spending by service and revenue by source, per resident, compared only with Alberta’s municipalities.
Spending per resident by service, 2024
What pays for it
Shares of revenue, town and province.
Didsbury council’s borrowing is light: $1.5M long term, $290 a resident where the median is $745. Property taxes and payments in lieu brought in 35% of revenue, against 44% across the province’s returns. Water, sewers and waste takes the biggest share, 26%, or $669 per resident. At $2,592 for every resident in 2024, Didsbury council sits below the $3,457 median of Alberta’s municipalities. Full-time staff number 44, about 8.5 to every thousand residents.
Spending per resident nearby
Every service line, 2024
| Service | 2024 | Per resident | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Water, sewers and waste | $3.5M | $669 | 26% |
| Recreation and culture | $3M | $583 | 23% |
| Roads and transit | $2.6M | $503 | 19% |
| Police, fire and protection | $1.9M | $363 | 14% |
| General government | $1.4M | $261 | 10% |
| Planning and development | $647K | $125 | 5% |
| Social services and child care | $456K | $88 | 3% |
Money: municipal financial and statistical data 2024, Alberta Municipal Affairs. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Alberta. Residents: Statistics Canada, 2025 estimate.
Having a say in how Didsbury is run
Check or update the federal list.
elections.ca ↗Every MP lists an office.
ourcommons.ca ↗Ridings, registration and voting dates.
elections.ab.ca ↗What this data can and can’t tell you
- Council money. Alberta’s 2024 municipal financial returns, per resident with Statistics Canada’s 2025 population estimate.
- Election results. Ridings changed in 2023: the 2019 and 2021 results are on the old map, and the 2021 vote on today’s map is Elections Canada’s own estimate from polling divisions.
- Who holds each seat. MPs come from Wikidata’s records of the 45th Parliament, which can lag a resignation or a by-election by some days.
- Not on this page. No party tally for the council, which the open lists don’t record, and no band councils.
- Which riding. Each place is put in its ridings by where its 2021 Census residents live; a riding holding 5% or more of them is listed.
Questions about how Didsbury is run
Who is the MP for Didsbury?
Ponoka—Didsbury’s MP, Blaine Calkins of the Conservative Party of Canada, represents Didsbury.
Which party won Didsbury in the 2021 federal election?
Red Deer—Mountain View went to Earl Dreeshen (Conservative Party of Canada) in 2021. Since 2025, Blaine Calkins has been the MP for Ponoka—Didsbury.
Who is the MLA for Didsbury?
The Legislative Assembly of Alberta lists each MLA with the riding they hold; this page can’t place Didsbury in one.
Who heads the council in Didsbury?
Didsbury is a town; its own website or the province’s municipal directory names the head of council.
How much does Didsbury council spend?
Didsbury council spent $13.4M in 2024 for about 5,185 residents; its largest service line was water, sewers and waste, at $3.5M.
Sources: MPs: Wikidata (CC0), 45th Parliament statements, read 7 November 2026; ridings: 2023 Representation Order, Statistics Canada · Money: municipal financial and statistical data 2024, Alberta Municipal Affairs. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Alberta. Residents: Statistics Canada, 2025 estimate. · Next municipal election: the province’s municipal election act · Municipality types: Statistics Canada census subdivisions · Federal results: Elections Canada, 43rd and 44th general elections and the 44th’s transposition to the 2023 ridings, via open.canada.ca. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Canada · MPs’ records: Wikidata (CC0), positions held and party memberships, read 8 November 2026. Under the Statistics Canada Open Licence.
Adapted from Statistics Canada (Census of Population 2021, population estimates 2025, 2021 census boundaries) under the Statistics Canada Open Licence; this does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada. Neighbourhood names in some cities © OpenStreetMap contributors (ODbL).