Alberta farmers in this conservative stronghold feel conflicted as Battle River

Harvey Nahirniak walks toward his paddock of cattle, his tall rubber boots caked with rich, black soil.

Cows, dusted with mud, huff in the afternoon heat. His beloved workhorses stand in the sun like statues while the farm's fat, white guardian dog, Marvin, pants in the shade.

Nahirniak's expertise lies in crops and cattle. His family has farmed the same stretch of land in the sleepy hamlet of Round Hill, Alta., for generations.

Election signs, many conservative blue, dot the roadsides of the rolling hills that surround his property in the heart of the Battle River-Crowfoot riding, where a byelection is underway.

While at first reluctant to talk politics, Nahirniak has come to some strong conclusions about the unusual federal race now underway within the vast federal district he calls