Riding profile: Tight race expected between Sohi and Mahal in Edmonton Southeast

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Federal and municipal politics are crossing paths once again in the city’s southeast in Canada’s 2025 election.

Amarjeet Sohi, on unpaid leave from his role as Edmonton’s mayor, is again making a run at federal politics as the Liberal candidate against Conservative candidate and lawyer Jagsharan Singh Mahal in the Edmonton Southeast riding.

The riding is again expected to be a tight race between the Grits and the Tories with 338 Canada projecting a “toss-up” by April 28, mirroring the popularity battle of both party leaders in the polls.

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While the Edmonton Southeast riding is new this year, the politics and dynamics are not. Voters will again contend with whether the Liberal candidate’s recent municipal political experience helps or hurts their desirability, versus a Conservative.

Liberals and city council

The Liberals have been drawing candidates from Edmonton city council to represent this part of the city for a decade.

Then a two-term city councillor in 2015, Sohi took an unpaid leave of absence from city hall to run for the Liberals after boundaries were re-drawn creating the new riding of Edmonton Mill Woods. He faced Conservative candidate Tim Uppal in a tight race winning 41.2 per cent — just 92 ballots ahead.

But Sohi lost re-election in 2019, with Uppal winning with a much wider margin.

Uppal’s challenger in 2021 came again from Edmonton city hall. Then Ward 8 councillor Ben Henderson took an unpaid leave of absence to run for the Liberals in Edmonton Mill Woods. Uppal, again, bested his Liberal opponent.

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But Uppal isn’t a threat to Sohi this time. Uppal is running in Edmonton Gateway this election, putting Sohi against Conservative newcomer Mahal.

Sohi thinks he’s the right person for the job, seeing his exit from council to federal politics again as a way for him to support Edmontonians.

“I feel a sense of obligation, the responsibility, that I have to do what is necessary for Edmonton,” he said in an earlier interview with Postmedia. “Whether it’s as a council member, MP, or federal minister, or mayor, I have accomplished big things for our Edmonton and I am committed to continue to do that if I am elected to this position.”

Sohi is promising to advocate for federal investment in the Edmonton region’s potential in hydrogen and artificial intelligence if he wins.

“I want to be at the table when we are working together, crafting a plan to build the best economy we can build in the G7.”

From lawyer to lawmaker?

Mahal, a self-described family man, has been a lawyer for more than 12 years.

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He sees his connections to the community and knowledge of local issues as an advantage, and said the transition from lawyer to law-maker as a Conservative MP is a natural one.

“I get to know their issues first-hand, plus I have legal experience,” he said in a recent interview. “I believe that gives me an edge over any other candidate.”

Affordability, crime, and support for small businesses are some of the major issues he sees in the riding. Along with Conservative platform promises to reform the bail release system, Mahal would advocate for more support for Downtown which is “like a vacuum” after 4 p.m., and work with the municipal government hoping to get a reduction in commercial property taxes.

“I would advocate for a strong local economies, injecting more money into local businesses,” he said.

“There are young Canadians, Indian diaspora or in general, who are struggling with affordability, with the rising cost. Crime is rampant right now so we need to address those issues.”

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Six candidates

Four other names are on the ballot for Edmonton Southeast — Harpreet Grewal for the NDP, Martin Schuetza for the People’s Party, Corinne Benson for the Communist Party of Canada, and independent candidate Gurleen Chandi.

Health care is a priority for NDP candidate Grewal, a licensed practical nurse. She wants to see more conditions on federal payouts for provincial health care.

“It should be spent on health care and it should be spent to make it more accessible, not less accessible,” she said in an earlier interview.

“I’m concerned as a nurse and as a citizen, and that’s why I decided to run. I feel like someone has to do it, why can’t it be me?”

lboothby@postmedia.clom

@laurby

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