Conservatives could face tough competition in Edmonton during the next federal election, with new ridings and boundaries and a longtime incumbent stepping down.

Edmonton-St. Albert incumbent Brent Rathgeber has a steep hill to climb taking on his former party as an independent.

Rathgeber left the Conservative Party last summer after Prime Minister Stephen Harper's caucus failed to support his private member's bill to increase transparency of public service employee salaries.

At the time, Rathgeber blasted his colleagues for voting along the party line, saying they resembled "trained seals."

The Independent MP now faces financing restrictions. Elections Canada lets political parties fundraise year round and bank surpluses from one election to the next, while independents can only raise money during campaign time.

"The irony is whoever gets the Conservative nomination in St. Albert-Edmonton, because we left a pretty healthy surplus after the last election, will be running to unseat me using money that I raised," Rathgeber said. "That's one of the strange and cruel ironies in life, I suppose."

He hopes Conservative Party scandals surrounding the federal Senate and former Alberta premier Alison Redford have opened voters' eyes to the disadvantages of party politics.

"What I'm hoping for in St. Albert-Edmonton is for there to be enough disaffected, small-C conservatives that will support an independent conservative candidate," Rathgeber said.

He said he sees a Liberal surge coming in Alberta, with the party showing stronger in recent polls, but doesn't believe it will be strong enough to win any seats. It could, however, split the anti-Conservative vote and work out in favour of the ruling party, he said.

The NDP is making its presence known in Edmonton, with leader Thomas Mulcair visiting the city last week for the nomination of Edmonton-Centre candidate Lewis Cardinal.

Cardinal, an educator and aboriginal activist, finished a distant second to Conservative MP Laurie Hawn in 2011. The riding could be up for grabs in 2015, with Hawn stepping aside.

Edmonton-Strathcona NDP MP Linda Duncan, the only opposition member with a federal seat in Alberta, said she put "great pressure" on her party to put Cardinal forth as its first nomination.

Duncan said she is excited about the new northside Edmonton-Griesbach riding, where the NDP initially had as many as nine people vying for nomination. It's been whittled down to three, with an RCMP officer, a police officer and an educator vying for the spot.

"Given the change in those boundaries, we're highly optimistic," Duncan said.

Former Ward 11 councillor and mayoral candidate Kerry Diotte will seek Conservative nomination in Griesbach, which is one of six new ridings across Alberta.

Edmonton-East Conservative MP Peter Goldring said he hasn't decided whether to run again in 2015 but if he does, he may switch ridings to Griesbach or Edmonton-Centre.

Hawn admitted his vacant riding will be more competitive with all new players, but said he's confident the Conservatives still have a stronghold on Alberta.

"I'm just looking forward to watching it from the outside this time," Hawn said.

kevin.maimann@sunmedia.ca

BOUNDARIES REDRAWN

Redrawn boundaries and an extra riding could shake things up in Edmonton for the 2015 federal election.

The Federal Boundaries Commission drew new boundaries in 2012 after the Conservatives added 30 seats to give Alberta, B.C. and Ontario more representation in the House of Commons.

Edmonton gained one additional riding, Edmonton-Griesbach, in the shakeup. The new riding encompasses much of Edmonton-East and some of Edmonton-St. Albert.

Other ridings have been altered and renamed.

Edmonton-Mill Woods-Beaumont MP Mike Lake said he intends to run in the new Edmonton-Wetaskiwin riding, which will replace Edmonton-Leduc but encompass multiple communities including Leduc, Beaumont, Devon, Calmar and Pigeon Lake.

Current Edmonton-Leduc MP James Rajotte Ñ who has represented the area since 2004 Ñ says he will run in Edmonton-Riverbend.

Edmonton-Sherwood Park MP Tim Uppal will run for the Conservative nomination in the revamped Edmonton-Mill Woods riding, leaving the new Sherwood Park-Fort Saskatchewan district up for grabs.

Garnett Genuis, who has worked in the Prime Minister's Office, announced his intent to run in that district as a Conservative. 0Edmonton-Spruce Grove, currently represented by MP Rona Ambrose, will make up the new Edmonton-Callingwood riding.

Each of Alberta's 34 electoral districts holds more than 100,000 people.

The federal election is scheduled for Oct. 19, 2015.