The Alberta NDP raised more cash than the United Conservative Party in the final quarter of 2021, according to financial documents released today by Elections Alberta.
According to the returns, the NDP raised $2,090,873.53 and the UCP raised $1,200,823.71 between October 1, 2021 and December 31, 2021.
This marks the fifth consecutive quarter that Rachel Notley’s NDP have out-fundraised Jason Kenney‘s UCP.
The NDP also crushed the UCP in annual fundraising in 2021, with Notley’s party raising a whopping $6,151,163.93 compared to $3,796,905.23 for Kenney’s party. This is the largest total amount that the NDP has raised in a year in Alberta.
The lacklustre fundraising returns for the governing UCP will likely be something that Kenney’s opponents hone in on as the party’s approaches its April 9 leadership review meeting in Red Deer.
The Pro-Life Political Association, run by anti-abortion activists who took over and renamed the Social Credit Party in 2016, placed third in fundraising for the second quarter in a row. The party is being used as a vehicle for anti-abortion political activism which can legally issue tax-receipts for donations. It is unclear whether the party will actually run candidates in the next provincial election.
The Alberta Party, now led by former City of Brooks Mayor Barry Morishita, saw a significant increase in their fundraising compared to previous quarters last year.
Despite doing well in most polls over the past year and benefiting from a handful of member defections from the UCP, the separatist Wildrose Independence Party had an unimpressive fundraising year. The party placed fifth in fundraising in 2021. Party leader Paul Hinman, a former Wildrose MLA, is running in soon to be called by-election in Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche.
Here is what all of Alberta’s registered political parties raised in the fourth quarter of 2021:
Alberta NDP: $2,090,873.53
United Conservative Party: $1,200,823.71
Pro-Life Political Association: $121,503.00
Alberta Party: $121,108.54
Wildrose Independence: $68,114.29
Alberta Liberal Party: $43,105.32
Green Party: $6,889.50
Independence Party of Alberta: $3,319.00
Communist Party: $100.00
The Alberta Advantage Party and the Reform Party did not report any funds raised in this quarter.
Here are the total annual fundraising totals for 2021:
Alberta NDP: $6,151,163.93
United Conservative Party: $3,796,905.23
Pro-Life Political Association: $338,342.92
Alberta Party: $239,260.46
Wildrose Independence: $184,190.74
Alberta Liberal Party: $114,398.00
Green Party: $15,232.50
Independence Party of Alberta: $7,633.25
Alberta Advantage Party: $1,190.00
Communist Party: $300.00
Reform Party: $0
More soon…
4 replies on “Notley’s NDP crushes Kenney’s UCP in fundraising… again.”
I suspect at this point, it is mostly just a confirmation of how things stand. It must be very frustrating for the UCP which as a pro business, free enterprise party should have a big natural advantage at raising money, to continue to trail significantly the NDP. So, it is really not a good sign for the UCP for how things may go in the next election, if they do not make big changes soon.
It is interesting there are four parties in the hundred thousand to three hundred thousand range for the year. While they are far behind the top two, they are not completely out of the picture. They may struggle to get a share of the popular vote, but at least can raise some money to get their name and message out.
I would have expected a bigger fundraising haul from the Wildrose Independence Party considering that they are polling in double digits in recent polls.
For the first time ever, the Alberta NDP will be able to run a fully funded campaign both centrally and at the constituency level. There are bigger question marks about whether the UCP will be able to do the same.
[…] the Alberta NDP despite his current deplorable approval rating and the problematic news yesterday the New Democrats had crushed the UCP at fund-raising in the fourth quarter of […]
Let’s not overstate the significance of the PLPA’s fundraising numbers. They’re an entire order of magnitude lower than the UCP, which is itself only raising roughly half of what the NDP is doing.
These numbers clearly illustrate two facts about the current state of Alberta politics: (1) it is now, from the point of view of credibility & the likelihood of winning seats, a two-party scenario with the UCP squaring off against the NDP, and (2) the Alberta Liberal Party, which was Government from the province’s creation in 1905 until 1919, and was the Official Opposition for most of the PC era, is now a moribund shell of its former self. The only viable solutions for the Liberals to remain relevant now are to either dissolve & sign ANDP cards, or seek some sort of merger or takeover with the Alberta Party — as the junior partner.