‘I didn’t get into politics for my pension,’ says Conservative MP who stepped down so Poilievre can run for a seat

Former Alberta MP Damien Kurek talks about his decision to give up his seat so Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre can run for it in a byelection.

Newly former Conservative MP Damien Kurek says he’s “feeling good” after resigning his seat in the House of Commons, and insists the move was a way to “practically serve” not just the riding, “but also our country.”

Kurek officially resigned his seat on Tuesday — the first day he was able to do so, according to parliamentary procedure — to pave the way for Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre to try to win back a seat in the House.

Poilievre, who has been Conservative leader since 2022, lost the Ottawa-area riding he’d held for two decades to political rookie Bruce Fanjoy in the April election.

Kurek was just four months shy of hitting six years of service as an elected member of Parliament, the eligibility threshold for a pension.

“I didn’t get into politics for my pension,” Kurek told CTV Power Play Vassy Kapelos in an interview Wednesday, when asked whether the party has offered to compensate him for the financial loss he’s incurring by stepping down.

“I got into politics to serve the communities I grew up in, played sports in as a kid, and have continued to, prior to running for office, volunteered in, as somebody passionate about politics,” Kurek said. “So, this was a practical way that I could give back to the region that I love and care about so much, and look forward to being able to see Pierre (Poilievre) be that passionate representative of this region in Parliament.”

Before getting into politics, Kurek worked as a farmer. He was first elected to the rural Alberta riding of Battle River–Crowfoot in 2019. He won the 2025 election with nearly 83 per cent of the vote.

He announced his intention to step down just days after the election, but had to wait until Tuesday to make it official.

Kurek told Kapelos that he viewed it as a practical way to better serve the riding and the country, and that in the seven weeks since, his “confidence in that decision has simply grown.”

Kurek added he made the decision with his wife, and that it was not a request from Poilievre or the party.

“It wasn’t pressured, wasn’t forced, wasn’t asked,” he said.

“When one talks about leadership, one has those rare opportunities in life where you can put that talk of service into action,” Kurek also said. “And that’s simply what this was.”

Shortly after the election, Prime Minister Mark Carney pledged there will be “no games,” and that he’ll call a by-election call as soon as possible. That means the earliest the residents of Battle River–Crowfoot could head back to the polls, according to Elections Canada Rules, is early August.

Kurek said while he’s looking forward to spending more time at his family’s farm, resigning his seat doesn’t mean he’s retiring from politics completely, and he plans to run again in the riding in the next general election.

When asked by Kapelos whether that sends a bad message to voters in the riding that Poilievre is only running there to secure a seat in Parliament and not to best represent their interests, Kurek said: “The people of Battle River–Crowfoot have made it clear that they’re on site with our Conservative vision.”

“There’s been a massive swell of support, of people saying, ‘Look, this is a tremendous opportunity,’ a chance for rural Canada to have a future prime minister represent them, to be able to put into the national spotlight the concerns that are so very, very present here,” he added.

When pressed on whether the move is democratic or political, considering people in the riding overwhelmingly voted for him and not Poilievre, and that the latter plans to only represent the riding for one session of Parliament, Kurek said: “They voted for our Conservative vision, led by Pierre Poilievre.”

“I’m confident, Vassy, that that is the vision, and what I think is unfortunate is that there are so many that would try to make politics about simply themselves,” Kurek added. “And when it came to the opportunity to put country before self, that’s the decision that (my wife) and I made.”

Poilievre will face a leadership review at his party’s convention in January, as per its constitution.

Without a seat in the House of Commons, he has been unable to participate in question period during this Parliament. Andrew Scheer is serving as Official Opposition leader in the interim.

You can watch Damien Kurek’s full interview on CTV Power Play with Vassy Kapelos in the video player at the top of this article.

With files from CTV News’ Brennan MacDonald