Deborah Drever's social media posts touch off Twitter chatter

The social media profile of Deborah Drever, the NDP MLA-elect in Calgary-Bow, fired up chatter on Twitter today as pictures and posts from her Facebook and Twitter accounts began to surface.

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Drever's Twitter and Facebook accounts have since disappeared, but photos of the 26-year-old were included in hundreds of tweets during the election Tuesday and the day after.

The images included Drever with her middle finger in front of the Canadian flag, standing next to a T-shirt with a marijuana leaf and partying with friends in her bathing suit.  

The Mount Royal University student defeated Progressive Conservative candidate Byron Wilson in the PC stronghold of Calgary-Bow by 450 votes.

Tweets about Drever's antic-filled photos have run the gamut, from advising that premier-designate Rachel Notley should boot Drever from caucus, to questioning why Drever didn't make her social media accounts private while running in the provincial election.

Many also mused why candidates weren't better screened before getting their name on the ballot. Some tweeters were a little more forgiving, suggesting she be given a chance.

Doug Lacombe, a social media and digital marketer with Communicatto, chalks this up to someone just being a "cheeky kid."

"We're looking at a kid's behaviour," said Lacombe. "It's not criminal to be acting gregarious as a young person."

Having said that, though, Lacombe said it doesn't give Drever or the NDP a free pass.

"It looks like a failure of the NDP to vet their candidates," he said.

Still, Lacombe concludes about Drever's situation. "What's the big deal?"

He'd advise her to "dig in" and defend herself and say, "'Look, this is normal behaviour for someone my age. But now I have a new responsibility and I take that seriously.'"

The CBC contacted Drever's campaign manager Ron Hamelin for an interview, but he said that Drever was not available because she would be in meetings all day.