Lethbridge - Government

Government

Eight aldermen and a mayor make up the Lethbridge City Council. City voters elect a new government every three years. The last election was October 18, 2010, with a vacancy on council filled on February 1, 2011. Lethbridge does not have a ward system, so the mayor and all aldermen are elected at large. The 2009–2011 operating budget of the City of Lethbridge was C$250–278 million, more than half of which came from property tax. One Member of Parliament (MP) representing Lethbridge sits in the House of Commons in Ottawa, and two members of Alberta's legislative assembly (MLAs), representing Lethbridge-East (PC) and Lethbridge-West (PC), sit in the legislative assembly in Edmonton.

Traditionally, political leanings in Lethbridge have been right-wing. Federally, from 1917 to 1930, Lethbridge voters switched between various federal parties, but from 1935 to 1957, they voted Social Credit in each election. Progressive Conservatives held office from 1958 until 1993, when the Reform Party of Canada was formed. The Reform party and its various subsequent incarnations have dominated the polls since.

The Alberta government through Alberta Health Services administers public health services. Chinook Health oversees facilities in southwestern Alberta, such as the Chinook Regional Hospital and St. Michael's Health Centre.