Mark Carney has deep roots in both the province and the eternally challenged Alberta branch of the Liberals

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Federal Liberal party candidates in Alberta, usually marching dutifully to their doom, might be joined by one Mark Carney in the upcoming election.

Soon-to-be Prime Minister Carney was raised in Edmonton and has many local connections.

There’s plenty of talk in Alberta Liberal circles about Carney running there. Former party president Darryl Raymaker, for one, thinks it’s a great idea.

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If Carney won, he would be the first ever Liberal prime minister to be elected from an Alberta constituency: a thought to drive Alberta conservatives mad.

To make it happen, of course, Carney would have to win both the seat and the general election.

Polls suggest both are possible. My guess is that he’d take an Edmonton seat handily, and probably carry several Alberta candidates into office with him.

Alberta could supply the seats that bring the Liberals victory in a close election. That would be another spectacular first.

Sneer if you must, but don’t laugh. While typically averse to Liberals, Alberta is not immune.

Calgary elected three Liberal MPs in the first Justin Trudeau victory in 2015.

Sentiment has since turned fiercely anti-Liberal. By moving policy toward the centre, Carney could tamp down the hostility that rose during Trudeau’s time.

But his big advantage is those Edmonton roots.

Carney’s a local boy who went on to Harvard, Oxford, the Bank of Canada, the Bank of England and soon the Prime Minister’s Office.

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