Political career

Shariff was elected to his first term in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta

Legislative Assembly of Alberta

The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is one of two components of the Legislature of Alberta, the other being the Queen, represented by the Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta. The Alberta legislature meets in the Alberta Legislature Building in the provincial capital, Edmonton...

 in a hotly contested by-election in Calgary McCall

Calgary McCall

Calgary McCall is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada.Calgary McCall was created in 1971 and was formed out of the north half of Calgary East. Social Credit held this riding from its creation in 1971 to 1975, then the Progressive Conservatives from 1975...

 on April 20, 1995 defeating Liberal Jeet Shergill and future New Democratic Party

New Democratic Party

The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...

 president Anne McGrath

Anne McGrath

Anne McGrath was the Chief of Staff to Jack Layton, the late leader of the New Democratic Party of Canada. As Chief of Staff to Jack Layton , she is credited with professionalizing caucus operations and co-designing Layton’s historic breakthrough to Official Opposition status...

 by just a few hundred votes.

He won his second term in office a couple years later in the 1997 Alberta general election

Alberta general election, 1997

The Alberta general election of 1997 was the twenty-fourth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 11, 1997 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....

. Shariff won a more comfortable plurality defeating two other candidates. He won his third term in office with a moderate increase in plurality during the 2001 Alberta general election

Alberta general election, 2001

The Alberta general election of 2001 was the twenty-fifth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 12, 2001 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....

. Shariff was nearly defeated in the 2004 Alberta general election

Alberta general election, 2004

The Alberta general election of 2004 was the twenty-sixth general election for the province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on November 22, 2004 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....

 by Liberal Darshan King, the election was one of the closest in the Calgary region.

In his final bid for office Shariff was defeated in the 2008 Alberta general election. The election was a virtual rematch of 2004 with almost all candidates being the same. Kang defeated Shariff by 98 votes after returns in the advanced polls showed he had won overwhelming victories. Kang's numbers increased upon the official recount to 118 votes. Shariff and the Progressive Conservatives have challenged the vote in court claiming that the results of the advanced polling and special ballots was tainted.

During his four terms as in office he has served as a backbencher for the Progressive Conservatives

Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta

The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta...

.