Alberta Politics: Signals unintelligence: Danielle Smith’s latest fumbles suggest her government struggles with ineptitude

It’s hardly reassuring to learn Alberta’s new Danielle Smith Government is apparently so inept it didn’t know that it needed a minister to oversee the administration of the province’s labour laws.  Alberta Federation of Labour President Gil McGowan (Photo: David J. Climenhaga). Leastways, that’s what the government wants us to

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Alberta Politics: Whoever decided to pay Deena Hinshaw a 63% COVID bonus did no favours for the former cabinet ministers running to replace Jason Kenney

Who made the decision to give Deena Hinshaw, Alberta’s already controversial chief medical officer of health, that eye-popping $227,911 cash bonus for 2021? It was not a good announcement for UCP leadership candidate Travis Toews (Photo: Alberta Newsroom/Flickr). Whoever it was, when they primed that ticking time bomb, they did

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Alberta Politics: Another poll shows Daniel Smith leading UCP leadership race – and Rachel Notley’s NDP ahead province-wide

Another day, another Alberta political poll, this time from Leger. UCP leadership candidate Danielle Smith in a video she made doing damage control for her controversial remarks about cancer (Photo: Danielle Smith/Twitter). This one, like last week’s Mainstreet Research poll, shows Rachel Notley’s New Democrats in the lead, although not

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Alberta Politics: Danielle Smith, campaigning to lead the United Conservative Party, sounds crazy – but is she crazy like a Trump?

Former Wildrose Party leader Danielle Smith, campaigning to replace Jason Kenney as leader of the United Conservative Party, apparently thinks we should “Uber-fy public services,” let teachers set up their own one-room multi-grade school houses in their homes, and declare everyone aboard charter plane loads of anti-vaxx Albertans to be

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Alberta Politics: If the UCP’s Leela Aheer still has political ambitions, she’ll likely need a new political party to pursue them

If Leela Aheer hopes to continue her career in Alberta provincial politics, she’ll probably need to find a new political party.  Well, sure, the United Conservative Party MLA who lately has become a frequent and vocal critic of Premier Jason Kenney could theoretically still win the United Conservative Party nomination

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Alberta Politics: Despite a few dissenting voices, unsettling new nomination-stacking law shows Jason Kenney firmly in control of party and caucus

Presumably the risk remains small that deep-pocketed United Conservative Party activists will ever buy party memberships in the names of hundreds of random Albertans, funnel the funds to the party, and use the new “members’” stolen identities to vote for nomination candidates who meet the approval of the party’s leader.

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Alberta Politics: UCP Government imploding? Sexual harassment scandal hits Premier’s Office hours after supposed referendum victory

Premier Jason Kenney had less than 24 hours to savour his dubious victory in Alberta’s anti-equalization referendum before a serious scandal involving accusations of sexual-harassment, heavy drinking in the office, and the firing of a victim hit the headlines. It’s not clear if the revelation a former ministerial chief of

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Alberta Politics: Two defiant UCP ministers tell Jason Kenney to apologize for breaking COVID-19 restrictions at Sky Palace patio party

The good ship United Conservative Party, the vessel carrying Alberta Premier Jason Kenney’s ambitions, sprang a couple more leaks yesterday.  This time it was two female members of the UCP cabinet who dared to criticize the boozy pandemic patio party last Tuesday on the roof of Edmonton’s notorious Sky Palace,

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daveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: Rick Strankman ousted by Nate Horner in Drumheller-Stettler, UCP dumps Dale Johnson in Lac Ste. Anne-Parkland

Photo: Rick Strankman and Jason Kenney (source: Facebook) Rick Strankman is the first incumbent MLA to lose his party’s nomination in this election cycle as he went down to defeat at the hands of Pollockville rancher and political family scion Nate Horner in last weekend’s United Conservative Party nomination contest

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daveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: Sarah Hoffman secures NDP nomination in Edmonton-Glenora, MLA Dave Hanson fends off two challengers in Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul

Minster of Health and Deputy Premier Sarah Hoffman has been nominated as the New Democratic Party candidate in Edmonton-Glenora for the next election. Hoffman was first elected as MLA for this district in 2015 with 68 percent of the vote, unseating two-term Progressive Conservative MLA Heather Klimchuk. She previously served

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daveberta.ca – Alberta Politics: Janis Irwin running for NDP nomination in Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood, Daniel Williams wins UCP contest in Peace River

Photo: More than 200 people packed into the Bellevue Community Hall tonight to support Janis Irwin’s bid for the NDP nomination in Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood. Janis Irwin launched her campaign for the New Democratic Party nomination in Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood this evening at the Bellevue Community Hall. Irwin is a community advocate and educator, and she

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Alberta Politics: Didn’t care or didn’t know? UCP MLAs endorse author of offensive social media posts for nomination

Well, that certainly didn’t take long! Mere hours after AlbertaPolitics.ca published its semi-satirical, semi-serious “Jimmy the Geek” Vegas odds piece about the potential for bozo eruptions among the current members of the United Conservative Party Legislative Caucus than, well, some of the bozos erupted. Yesterday’s AlbertaPolitics.ca post assigned Rick Strankman,

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Alberta Politics: Freedom Conservative Party’s Derek Fildebrandt demonstrates his talent for getting up his opponents’ noses

Derek Fildebrandt, the self-described “Alberta redneck” who now leads the minuscule Freedom Conservative Party, has a talent for getting up his opponents’ noses. This has served the university-educated Ottawa native extremely well in his tireless quest to earn himself a place in the headlines, and it worked for him again

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