Photo: Ribbet32 · CC BY-SA 4.0Red Deer County straddles 2 federal ridings, from Ponoka—Didsbury to Red Deer
50% of Red Deer County residents have Blaine Calkins as their MP; most of the rest have Burton Bailey. The Legislative Assembly of Alberta’s riding map carries non-commercial terms, so Red Deer County isn’t placed in a riding here. Statistics Canada lists Red Deer County as a municipal district. Mayors and councillors in Alberta aren’t on any open list, so Red Deer County’s council goes unnamed here.
What stands out in how Red Deer County is governed
Split between ridings
The riding line runs through Red Deer County: Ponoka—Didsbury has 50% of its residents, Red Deer most of the other 50%. Member of Parliament ↓
High spending per resident
In 2024, 66% of Alberta’s municipalities spent less per resident than Red Deer County council. Council money ↓
Compared with the province’s municipalities of 1,000+ residents (2021 Census; MAMH, MMAH and Statistics Canada).
Three governments, and who does what
Red Deer County, a municipal district 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.
There is no county government over Red Deer County; Division No. 8 is a census division, not a council.
From the council table to Ottawa
Every elected tier that speaks for Red Deer County, from the most recent elections.
- 1Red Deer County councilMunicipal district
- 2Legislative Assembly of Alberta–
- 3House of CommonsPonoka—Didsbury · 50%
- 4House of CommonsRed Deer · 50%
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 Red Deer County votes
The last and next general elections at each level; a by-election can come in between.
| Election | Last | Next |
|---|---|---|
| Red Deer County council | 20 October 2025 | 15 October 2029 |
| Legislative Assembly of Alberta | 29 May 2023 | – |
| House of Commons | 28 April 2025 | – |
Elections Canada’s open records end with the 2021 election; its 2025 results are under terms that rule out commercial use. Parliament was last elected on 28 April 2025, and the Legislative Assembly of Alberta on 29 May 2023. The council elected on 20 October 2025 serves until 15 October 2029, when Red Deer County council is chosen again. That date comes from the Local Authorities Election Act, which sets the third Monday in October every four years.
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
Red Deer County has 2 MPs
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 · 50%
en.wikipedia.org ↗Red Deer · Conservative Party of Canada · 50%
en.wikipedia.org ↗- Conservative Party of Canada33
- Liberal Party of Canada3
- New Democratic Party1
As Wikidata records them.
Of the 37 MPs from Alberta, 33 are with the Conservative Party of Canada, Blaine Calkins among them.
The MP’s record
The current Parliament is Blaine Calkins’ 7th, counting from a first win in 2006. On today’s boundaries, the 2021 vote in Ponoka—Didsbury would have gone to the Conservative Party of Canada with 68%, and Blaine Calkins kept it for them 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 Red Deer County belonged to on the 2013 map used in 2019 and 2021; since 2025 it votes in Ponoka—Didsbury. It held 86% of Red Deer County’s residents.
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%). Earl Dreeshen (Conservative Party of Canada) took Red Deer—Mountain View in 2021 with 64% of the vote, 31,854 votes ahead of Marie Grabowski (New Democratic Party). 80% had elected Earl Dreeshen there in 2019.
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
Red Deer County council spends more 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.
Red Deer County council carried $21.1M of long-term debt, $956 per resident against a typical $745. Property taxes and payments in lieu brought in 56% of revenue, against 44% across the province’s returns. At 58% of spending ($2,348 a resident), roads and transit leads the budget. Each resident’s share of Red Deer County council’s 2024 spending came to $4,015, where the middle of Alberta’s municipalities sat at $3,457. Full-time staff number 105, about 4.8 to every thousand residents.
Spending per resident nearby
Every service line, 2024
| Service | 2024 | Per resident | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Roads and transit | $51.8M | $2,348 | 58% |
| General government | $11.1M | $502 | 13% |
| Water, sewers and waste | $7.8M | $351 | 9% |
| Planning and development | $6.7M | $303 | 8% |
| Police, fire and protection | $5.8M | $262 | 7% |
| Recreation and culture | $4.6M | $208 | 5% |
| Social services and child care | $887K | $40 | 1% |
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 Red Deer County 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
- Which riding. Where residents of the 2021 Census live decides the riding; any riding with 5% of them or more is named.
- Not on this page. Band councils, and which party runs the council: the open lists carry no party, and most councils have none.
- 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.
- Election results. Elections Canada redrew the ridings in 2023 and re-tallied the 2021 ballots onto the new map from polling divisions; that estimate, and the official 2019 and 2021 counts on the old map, are what you see.
- Council money. Alberta’s 2024 municipal financial returns, per resident with Statistics Canada’s 2025 population estimate.
Questions about how Red Deer County is run
Who is the MP for Red Deer County?
Red Deer County has more than one: Blaine Calkins (Conservative Party of Canada) for Ponoka—Didsbury, and Burton Bailey for Red Deer.
Which party won Red Deer County in the 2021 federal election?
In 2021 it was Earl Dreeshen (Conservative Party of Canada), in Red Deer—Mountain View; Ponoka—Didsbury has elected Blaine Calkins since.
Who is the MLA for Red Deer County?
Use the Legislative Assembly of Alberta’s own list: every MLA is there by riding, though Red Deer County isn’t placed in one here.
Who heads the council in Red Deer County?
The head of Red Deer County’s council isn’t named here; as a municipal district, it publishes its council itself.
How much does Red Deer County council spend?
In 2024, Red Deer County council spent $88.6M in all, for some 22,076 residents, of which $51.8M went on roads and transit, the biggest line.
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).