A longtime Lloydminster resident and current general manager of the Lloydminster Exhibition association has announced her candidacy for the United Conservative Party (UCP) nomination.
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Jackie Tomayer made her intentions to run for the Vermilion-Lloydminster-Wainwright riding known in a March 30 Facebook video. Sitting down to speak with the Meridian Source, her message was clear.
“That rural isn’t forgotten and that our people aren’t left behind,” she said.
She says she’s committed to rural and wants to see the province continue progressing.
“I think that Alberta could be the most prosperous province in Canada,” said Tomayer. “Making sure that our economy is driving on all different fronts is very important to me.
“Rural is incredibly important to the people that live in Alberta and we feed the world.”
Issues like healthcare and the economy are at the forefront of her messaging.
“We just need to keep that moving forward,” she said. “Attracting doctors to rural, making sure that everyone in our rural constituencies and rural ridings have access to adequate healthcare and doctors.”
Her hope is that people wouldn’t have to travel to big centres to receive specialty care.
Working closely with Alberta’s agricultural scene, she recognizes the part it plays in the provincial economy.
“Our agriculture, we have great lamb and swine number. Agriculture, right now, is moving at the speed of light,” Tomayer said, pointing to ongoing innovations in the industry.
Entering the realm of politics has always been a goal for her.
“This has always been a dream of mine, to represent our community,” she said. “All my work leading up to this has given me a really good path to get there.”
She’s been involved in the community, most recently serving as the president of the Lloydminster Chamber of Commerce.
“I volunteered for many different volunteer organization and (have) always been involved in the community,” said Tomayer. “Any role that I’ve stepped into, I’ve had some sort of leadership aspect to them.”
When it came time to get involved in politics, the decision of what party to represent was easy.
“I’ve always been a Conservative fan,” she said. “It’s always rung true to my beliefs of Conservative spending and letting people make their own decisions about what’s best for their life.”
“We give people the opportunity to rise and they do.”
Her family has deep local roots as her father owned a restaurant and an ice-making business.
“Growing up, I learned very early on to work really hard,” she said, explaining she had to bag all the ice their machines were producing.
She says this work ethic is something she’ll use when representing the riding.
“I’m going to work really, really hard and there will be nobody that will work harder,” said Tomayer. “I’m going to listen. I’m going to do my darndest to do what’s right for our riding and the people here.”
She recognizes that without a seat at the table, it’s hard to have a voice.
“You have to be willing to sit down at the table and that’s part of why I am running. You don’t get a say unless you’re at the table,” she said.
Tomayer says it’s the people of the riding that have kept her here to raise her family.
“We have the best people and the best entrepreneurs here, the best people in all the different industries, agriculture, oil, retail, film and movies,” she said.
She saw first-hand the impact of local business being sold to a bigger company when she was with the Meridian Booster.
“Being sold to a big Quebec company, sending all of our stuff over to India and how that hurt our local economy,” said Tomayer. “I was there when the press shut down.”
As she hits the campaign trail, she looks forward to meeting people in the riding and listening.
“My cellphone will always be on; my door will always be open.”
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