Riding Profile:

This new southeast Calgary riding is bordered on the west and south by the Bow River, on the east by the city limits and on the north by Glenmore Trail. The riding was created in the 2004 redistribution by splitting Calgary-Shaw, the eastern two-thirds of which are now Calgary-Hays.

Calgary-Hays contains Alberta's third-highest average household income - $103,608 a year - and the least amount of money coming from government transfer payments, at three per cent. About one in 20 residents are low income. The biggest employers are professional services and retail trade. About 48 per cent of residents were born in Alberta, while 14 per cent are immigrants.

Political History:

This riding's predecessor, Calgary-Shaw, has voted Conservative since it was formed in 1986. The incumbent there, Cindy Ady, won office in 2001 with 20,306 votes - more than five times that of Liberal Jim McPherson. Calgary-Shaw has a tradition of decisive Tory majorities: in 1993 and 1997 Jon Havelock easily beat Liberals Bill Walker and Sharon Howe. Before Havelock, Jim Dinning occupied this seat, holding several cabinet portfolios.

In 2001, voter turnout was 51 per cent.