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Sixth Annual Politicians in Cowboy Hats
For a brief history of Stampede fashion, you can read the 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009 and 2010 round-ups. Although Rick Hansen served as Stampede Parade Grand Marshal, all eyes were on Will and Kate this year. I do find it somewhat perplexing how many of the same people who lambasted Ignatieff for his time outside […]
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This Week in Alberta – Liberal Leadership
After a look at the PC leadership contenders last week, I turn to the Liberal field. The last three Liberal leaders have all come from within caucus, so any conversation about the next leader should start there. Despite initially musing about running for the Liberal or Alberta Party leadership, Laurie Blakeman is this contest’s first […]
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This Week in Alberta: A Quick Glance at the PC Leadership Race
With Stelmach’s announcement that he will stay on as Premier until this fall, there’s plenty of time for his would-be-successors to put together campaign teams and sign up Albertans. Still, the field is starting to take shape – here’s a quick overview of the likely candidates: The PCs have two declared candidates – Ted “The […]
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A Beginner’s Guide to Alberta Politics, or, "What the @$#! is going on in Alberta?"
Like an oil reserve, Alberta politics tends to lie dormant for thousands of years, only to gush to the surface without warning. And when it does, it’s usually messy. Like the last two weeks. For those of you lucky enough to not follow Alberta politics, it must have all seemed rather perplexing. A caucus coup […]
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Swann Song
There used to be a time when you could tune out Alberta politics for a decade and not miss much. Now, every day brings a new bombshell. The latest comes from the Alberta Liberals, with David Swann resigning before even fighting his first election as leader. Although the news is surprising, it likely shouldn’t be […]
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The Baffling Rise and Fall of Ed Stelmach
The only thing more surprising than Ed Stelmach’s ascension to the Premier’s seat was his departure from it. In effect, “surprising” would probably be the best way to sum up Stelmach’s time as premier. Or “baffling“. Or “incomprehensible“. After all, the most boring politician the world has ever known gave Alberta five absolutely thrilling years […]
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Stelmach Resigning
I did not see this coming: CALGARY — A high-ranking source says Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach will announce Tuesday he will resign as premier after the legislature session and won’t run in the next election. Stelmach has called a news conference for Tuesday afternoon, and a source said he’ll announce the decision then. “This will […]
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This Week in Alberta – Behind the Numbers
It turns out the polling presentation made to the PC campaign committee at their AGM last weekend has been left on a public server. Oops. Mind you, given the numbers are fairly flattering to Stelmach and don’t reveal much about PC strategy or messaging, I suspect this may have been a somewhat intentional “accident”. Still, […]
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Provincial Uprising
Angus Reid has updated their Premier approval numbers from November and it’s not rosy – only 2 of the 10 Premiers crack the 30% approval barrier. And suddenly, Stephen Harper’s underwhelming poll numbers start looking a lot more whelming by comparison. The man has struggled of late and may spend his life chasing an unobtainable […]
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This Week in Alberta – The Toboggan Ride Ends
Environics released a new poll yesterday, similar to their numbers from October: PC – 34% (nc)WRA – 30% (+2%)ALP – 23% (+3%)NDP – 10% (+1%)Green – 2% (-6%) So no real changes – my suspicion is the now-deregistered Greens were prompted as an option on the October survey but weren’t in this one. This is, […]