CALGARY - On the eve of the Alberta election, the suspense is higher than it's been in decades. In this tight race, each vote is going to count and the decision could still go either way.
Premier Alison Redford reminded Albertans one last time on Sunday that the future of the province's economy and its reputation on the world stage are at stake as they head to the polls Monday to elect a new leader.
Meanwhile her main rival, Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith, told her cheering supporters in Calgary Sunday afternoon that Alberta will only have to endure one more day of Progressive Conservative rule. She's predicting she'll be speaking with other premiers about ways to "transform the way Canada works."
"We are going to have a very constructive conversation about the role the federal government should play in areas of provincial jurisdiction. I think this is one of the areas that has been problematic for the country for the last 40 years, is that we've seen continual centralization," Smith said.
While Redford struck a positive tone throughout much of the day, she took a shot at Smith, who has drawn criticism for questioning the science behind climate change. The PC leader insisted that's just one of the reasons why the Wildrose would not the party to represent Alberta on a federal or international level.
"I don't understand what that looks like if the person that's trying to grow those markets and talk to people around the world about what environmental sustainability looks like denies climate change," the PC leader said. "I don't know what that does to the Albertan economy. I don't know what that does in terms of, generally, the economic development of our country."
Smith, who hopes to make history by giving an end to the 40-year-old Tory dynasty, visited a Sikh temple Sunday morning before speaking to about 400 cheering supporters where her campaign team was introduced.
With the crowd chanting "One More Day", "One More Day", Smith launched a tirade against Redford and the Conservatives:
"Her campaign has been a non-stop mudslinging machine never missing an opportunity to stoop even lower with personal smears and broadside attacks," Smith said to cheers from the audience.
"Our rallies, as you can see, just keep getting bigger and bigger despite the increasingly vicious attacks and fearmongering by the Redford PCs and their proxies...Our Wildrose wave just keeps on rising and it just goes to show you can't scare Albertans by recycling attack lines written by the Ottawa Liberals."
Some are afraid of that rising Wildrose wave, though - so much so that they're planning to vote in a way they normally wouldn't have considered before.
Melissa Centofanti said she normally votes NDP, but the ascent of the right-wing Wildrose party compelled her to vote Tory for the first time.
"I know there's going to be moments where it will be difficult, but it's too important. The environment is too important. We are going to regret it if we don't take care of things now, and I really feel like the other candidates are irrelevant in Alberta because oil is such a big part of our economy," said the 42-year-old mother.
Alberta is home to the world's third-largest oil reserves and is a major producer of natural gas. Redford said her party has the experience and policies necessary to ensure Alberta can grow its export market reach and be a player on the world stage.
Since becoming premier after scoring an unlikely victory in the Progressive Conservative leadership race last fall, she has spent much of her tenure so far touting a Canadian energy strategy and lobbying south of the border in favour of the controversial Keystone XL Alberta-to-Texas oil pipeline.
As for which right wing party the NDP would rather see governing the province, Mason says he doesn't know if either is prepared to work with his party on preventing the spread of private clinics, which he spoke out against on Sunday.
And despite talk of Liberal support bleeding to the PCs, Raj Sherman, who spent Sunday campaigning in his Edmonton-Meadowlark riding, remains upbeat about his party's chances.
"We are truly a centrist party, pragmatic party that is also socially responsible and fiscally responsible. And hey, for us, with the splits that are happening on the far right that's going to work out great."
Political observers are warning that with so many undecided or strategic voters and the question of voter turnout, there still could be surprises come Monday night.
The only certainty seems to be that this election is the most closely watched in decades on both a provincial and national scale.
© The Canadian Press, 2012