Category: David Swann

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Calgary-Glenmore Danielle Smith David Swann Diane Colley-Urquhart Ed Stelmach Ron Stevens

ron stevens departs. calgary-glenmore by-election imminent.

Alberta’s Deputy Premier and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Ron Stevens resigned from Cabinet and the Legislature this afternoon.

First elected in 1997, Stevens replaced Dianne Mirosh as the MLA for Calgary-Glenmore. Stevens served in the cabinets of both Premiers Ralph Klein and Ed Stelmach. Since Stelmach became Premier in 2006, Stevens has served as the PCs designated heavy hitter in Calgary. Taxpayer’s Federation Director Scott Hennig reports that Stevens is eligible to collect an estimated $451,000 in transition allowance.

Stevens’ departure leaves a big hole to be filled in the PC cabinet as Calgary’s senior Cabinet Minister position now falls to Health Minister Ron Liepert. While I wouldn’t be surprised to see Parliamentary Assistant and Calgary-Foothills MLA Len Webber invited to join Cabinet, it may take Stelmach some time to find a Calgary Lieutenant as well-connected to Calgary’s corporate elites as Stevens. A former PC insider has informed me that Treasury Board President Lloyd Snelgrove will take over Stevens now former role as acting-Premier in Stelmach’s absence.

A by-election has yet to be called in Calgary-Glenmore, but I’ve already heard rumours that Alderman Diane Colley-Urquhart may seek the PC nomination. This by-election could also serve as a springboard for Danielle Smith’s potential campaign for the Wild Rose Alliance leadership.

In 2008, five Liberal MLAs were elected in Calgary, including their new leader, David Swann. Will their March 2008 electoral gains help the Liberals attract a viable local candidate? In 1963, Bill Dickie was elected as the Liberal MLA for Calgary-Glenmore and was re-elected as a Liberal in 1967 before joining Peter Lougheed‘s PCs in 1969 (the Liberals would not elect another MLA in Calgary until Sheldon Chumir was elected in Calgary-Buffalo in 1986).

Calgary-Glenmore Past-Election Results

2008
Ron Stevens, PC 6,436 (51%)
Avalon Roberts, Lib 4,213 (33%)
Ryan Sadler, WRA 1,025 (8%)
Arden Bonokoski, G 550 (4%)
Holly Heffernan, NDP 477 (4%)
Total: 12,701

2004
Ron Stevens, PC 6,263 (50%)
Avalon Roberts, Lib 4,364 (35%)
Ernest McCutchon, AA 571 (5%)
Holly Heffernan, NDP 553 (4%)
Evan Sklarski, Grn 532 (4%)
Larry Heather, SC 127 (1%)
Total: 12,410

2001
Ron Stevens, PC 9,678 (68%)
Michael Broadhurst, Lib 3,708 (26%)
James Kohut, Grn 467 (3%)
Jennifer Stewart, NDP 441 (3%)
Total: 14,294

1997
Ron Stevens, PC 8,247 (58%)
Wayne Stewart, Lib 4,919 (35%)
Vernan Cook, SC 583 (4%)
Grace Johner, NDP 435 (3%)
Total: 14,184

SEE ALSO: Ken Chapman: Deputy Premier Stevens throws in the Towel and Calgary Grit: This Week in Alberta: Aloha Ron

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Brian Mason Dave Taylor David Swann Ed Stelmach Ken Kowalski Ted Morton

bill 44, evolution, & hyper-partisanship in alberta.

When the controversy over Bill 44 and evolution erupted earlier this week, I wasn’t sure whether it was just a continuation of NDP leader Brian Mason’s weekly outrage, the result of a clumsy communications strategy, or actually a real issue. Turns out, it’s all of the above.

Although I have a hard time believing that Education Minister Dave Hancock has an agenda to undermine Alberta’s science curriculum, I wouldn’t be surprised to hear that certain MLAs in the governing caucus do. In March 2008, Albertans re-elected the Progressive Conservatives with a large 72-MLA caucus, with a number of socially conservative ideologues in their ranks.

While it’s likely that the outrage over Bill 44 is largely the result of a poor communications strategy (including Premier Ed Stelmach bringing up the evolution example himself), the genesis of the controversial amendments are politically suspect. Are the controversial sections of Bill 44 simply concessions that Hancock needed to make in order to appease his social conservative caucus-mates? The governing PC caucus consists of nearly all the MLAs in the Legislature, and because of this many legislative concessions and debates occur in closed-door Caucus meetings, rather than in public debate on the floor elected Assembly. This isn’t the first time in recent memory that social conservative politics made headlines by influencing government policy (earlier this month, the PC caucus decided to de-list transgendered medical operations).

Three years ago, now-Sustainable Resource Development Minister Ted Morton introduced a Private Member’s Bill that would have banned any mention of homosexuality from Alberta’s educational curriculum. The longest-serving PC MLA, Speaker Ken Kowalski proudly placed “While human beings can create laws, the laws of God must take precedence” as the first bullet point in a campaign advertisement during the March 2008 election.

When an apology isn’t enough.

Liberal MLA Dave Taylor used some pretty tasteless language in the Legislature this week. While it was only a matter of time before a heckler like Taylor said something that he would regret, he accepted responsibility for his comments and publicly apologized on the Assembly floor the next day. However, it appears that Taylor’s public apology wasn’t enough for some members of the Legislature.

Seconds after Taylor’s public apology, Premier Stelmach presented a letter to the Legislature shaming the opposition MLA and Liberal leader David Swann. The letter was posted on the Premier’s official website shortly after that. It appears that Stelmach saw Taylor’s screw-up as an opportunity to make an example of the vocal critic, but no MLA, including Stelmach, has a track record to boast moral superiority in the Legislature. While it may have been posted during a fit of hyper-partisanship, there is no reason that this letter needed to be posted on the Premier’s official website after Taylor apologized.

Once again, we see more of the same old politics, and more of the same old games.

A couple weeks ago, a Calgary journalist suggested to me that ‘at some point, we’re going to have to start treating political ideologues like religious nutcases.’ Maybe we have reached that point.

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Brian Mason Bridget Pastoor Danielle Smith David Swann Ed Stelmach Paul Hinman Ron Liepert Wild Rose Alliance

week in review: wildrose to northumberland clog dancing.

– Guards at Government House barred Official Opposition leader David Swann, NDP Leader Brian Mason, and Lethbridge-East MLA Bridget Pastoor from attending an announcement by Health Minister Ron Liepert this week. The Edmonton Journal’s Trish Audette reports that Premier Ed Stelmach will be having a chat with Cabinet Ministers next week about that incident.

– David Climenhaga is speculating that Canadian Federation of Independent Business Director Danielle Smith could be the next leader of the Wildrose Alliance. Current leader and former MLA Paul Hinman has announced his intentions to leave the position in June.

– Aaron Braaten has written an insightful post on the recent AIMCo. investment in Precision Drilling.

– MLA Bridget Pastoor waded into the Edmonton City Centre Airport debate this week. While most of the debate to this point has depended on anecdotal evidence supporting the closing or continued operation of the airport, the City of Edmonton is expected to release a comprehensive report in June.

– Northumberland fact of the week: traditions include clog dancing.

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Brian Mason Broyce Jacobs David Swann Grant Notley Jeff Callaway Jim Gurnett Libby Davies Mo Elsalhy Paul Hinman Randy Thorsteinson Tony Sansota

all eyes on the opposition.

– On April 25, the Alberta Liberal Party will be holding its first Annual General Meeting since David Swann became leader in December 2008. After recently announcing the laying off of their two remaining party staff members, I’ve been informed that the Liberals financial situation stabilized in the short-term when a number of donors opened their pockets when the news became public.

With current President Grant Dunlop stepping down, I’ve heard that two three candidates, Calgary Liberal Tony Sansotta, former Edmonton-McClung MLA Mo Elsalhy, and current Party Secretary Carrol Jaques [see: an email from Jaques to supporters] are intending to stand for the position. I’ve also heard that some members of the party executive are pushing time at the AGM to hold a discussion on changing the Liberal Party name.

– Alberta NDP leader Brian Mason was joined by Vancouver-East MP Libby Davies at that party’s revitalization conference this weekend in Grande Prairie. While the Grande Prairie Herald-Tribune reported only a dozen attendees, I was told by a conference attendee that there were nearly 30 attendees later in the afternoon (which still leaves the NDP with a lot of work to do).

The NDP haven’t elected an MLA in the region for 25 years. Former NDP leader Grant Notley represented Spirit River-Fairview from 1971 to 1984, and Jim Gurnett was elected in a by-election following Notley’s death in 1984 (Gurnett was later defeated by PC Glen Clegg in 1986). In 2008, NDP candidates Adele Boucher Rymhs and Nathan Macklin increased their party’s support in Peace River and Dunvegan-Central Peace.

– Paul Hinman has announced that he will be stepping down as leader of the Wildrose Alliance. Hinman defeated PC MLA Broyce Jacobs to become the Alberta Alliance MLA for Cardston-Taber-Warner in 2004. Hinman was elected party leader in 2005 when Randy Thorsteinson stepped down. With the merger of the Alliance and Wildrose Party in 2008, he became leader of the Wildrose Alliance. Hinman was defeated in 2008 by Jacobs. According to Party President Jeff Callaway, members are also eyeing a name change.

– Meanwhile, the Alberta Greens may face de-registration by Elections Alberta for financial reasons…

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Alberta Budget 2009 David Swann Greenpeace Iris Evans Lindsay Blackett Lindsey Telfer Mike Hudema Neil Waugh Paul Hinman Photo Post Rachel Notley Sierra Club Ted Morton

photo post: alberta budget 2009.

Finance Minister Iris Evans.

Official Opposition Liberal leader David Swann.

Edmonton-Strathcona NDP MLA Rachel Notley.

Wildrose Alliance leader Paul Hinman.


Lindsey Telfer from the Sierra Club and Mike Hudema from Greenpeace.

Edmonton Mayor Stephen Mandel.

Culture Minister Lindsay Blackett.

My favorite: Sustainable Resource Development Minister Ted Morton and daveberta.ca fan Neil Waugh.
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Alberta Liberals Darshan Kang Dave Taylor David Swann Ed Gibbons Karen Leibovici Kent Hehr Kevin Taft Linda Sloan Mo Elsalhy Nancy MacBeth Rick Miller

what’s eating the alberta liberals?

The first sentence of a recent letter sent out by Liberal Leader David Swann sums up the state of Alberta’s Official Opposition Party:

“We need your help to keep the ALP office operating at a reasonable level, and ready to serve Albertans.”

Over a year after the last election, the Alberta Liberals are struggling to pay their bills. It’s hard to understand why a political organization that earned 251,158 votes in the last election would have such a hard time paying off their 8-year debt, now sitting at around $400,000. The once $1 million debt-load was largely the product of the 2001 election campaign under former leader Nancy MacBeth. The Liberals went from 16 to 7 seats in that election, including a loss by MacBeth in Edmonton-McClung.

Two leaders and four years later, Edmonton-Riverview MLA Kevin Taft led the Liberals to reclaim a majority of seats in Edmonton and gain a three-seat beachhead in Calgary. While PC leader Ralph Klein was unceremoniously shown the door in 2006, the Liberals had high hopes. Ed Stelmach was selected as PC leader, and the Liberals raised $1 million in 2007 and won the by-election in Klein’s abandoned Calgary-Elbow constituency. As the 2008 election approached, most people predicted the PCs would be re-elected, but with a reduced majority government.

On March 3, 2008, the PCs got their vote out, and everyone else stayed home. Well, that’s not really what happened, but it’s almost true. The PCs surged from 63 to 72 seats, unseating Liberals, New Democrats, and Wildrosers across Alberta, but voter turnout dropped to record low levels. With only around 90% of Albertans registered to vote, the pathetic turnout likely sat under 40% of eligible voters (including 22 out of 83 ridings which had less than 40% turnout).

While the Liberals dropped to 9 MLAs in 2008 by losing seats in Edmonton and facing decreasing support in rural Alberta, they did manage to increase their seat and vote total in Calgary by electing two new MLAs. The election of Kent Hehr in Calgary-Buffalo and Darshan Kang in Calgary-McCall shifted the power base in the Liberal caucus to southern Alberta for the first time in recent memory (five MLAs from Calgary, three from Edmonton, and one from Lethbridge). In the contest to replace Taft, two Calgary MLAs quickly became frontrunners.

In December 2008, Calgary-Mountain View MLA David Swann won a first-ballot victory against fellow Calgary MLA Dave Taylor and former Edmonton MLA Mo Elsalhy to become the first Liberal leader from Calgary since Nick Taylor campaigned in that city during the 1970s (Nick Taylor was eventually elected MLA in the Westlock-Sturgeon and Redwater ridings north of Edmonton from 1986 to 1996).

Following his victory, Swann appointed Elsalhy to lead a committee tasked with proposing recommendations to renew the Liberal Party. Joining Elsalhy on the committee are Norma Block of Drayton Valley, Barry Cavanaugh and Stephanie Laskoski of Edmonton, Jade Boldt and Peter Willott of Calgary, and Zack Moline of Lethbridge. The committee has launched a website to jump start some discussion, and in a recent email, Elsalhy announced the launch of a survey for ALP members and non-members asking what Alberta’s Liberal Party can do to renew itself. At the Legislature, Swann has brought in former MLA Rick Miller as Chief of Staff, and Calgary Federal Liberal organizer Neil Mackie as Communications Director.

Can the Alberta Liberals renew by creating momentum, attracting new members, and paying down their financial debt? What will it take for the Swann Liberals to attract new strong candidates, as well as re-attracting the many former Liberal MLAs who have moved on to other levels of government (Edmonton City Councillors Linda Sloan, Karen Leibovici, and Ed Gibbons come to mind).

The Alberta Liberals are in a rough spot, financially and organizationally, and though it may be easy to criticize Swann’s choice to focus on open consultations rather than implement a pre-made strategy, consultation and dialogue are his style. At this point in the game, the Liberals have very little to lose, so my recommendations to them are to be bold, challenge their status quo, and turn things on their head, because if the current fundraising trends continue, the Alberta Liberal Party may not be in the position to do so after the next election.

Coming Wednesday: Tiny Perfect Alberta NDP
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Dave Taylor David Heyman David Swann Eric Lowther Ivrnet/Vincero Karen Kryczka Larry Johnsrude Neil Mackie Rick Miller Wendy Andrews

david swann names neil mackie as official opposition communications director.

After recently naming Rick Miller as the new Official Opposition Chief of Staff, David Swann today named Neil Mackie as the Communications Director, replacing former Director Larry Johnsrude.

Mackie comes from Calgary with some interesting (and perhaps mixed) partisan roots.

Having served as President of the Calgary-Southwest Federal Liberal Association, Mackie ran unsuccessfully against former Calgary-West PC MLA Karen Kryczka in the 2007 Board of Education election, and is listed as having supported Michael Ignatieff during the 2006 Federal Liberal leadership race.

Mackie will be leaving his position as President of the Calgary-based Vincero Communications, a subsidiary of Ivrnet Inc. In the recent past, Ivrnet/Vincero have done political polling for Calgary-Currie MLA Dave Taylor during his unsuccessful Liberal leadership bid, and former Edmonton-Riverview PC candidate Wendy Andrews during her run against former Liberal leader Kevin Taft in March 2008. I’m told that while working with the company, Mackie also handled polling in up to 53 PC held ridings during the 2008 election, and in Calgary-Buffalo for the campaign of Liberal Kent Hehr.

Well-known politicos with Ivrnet/Vincero connections include its current Vice-President, former Calgary-Centre Reform Party MP Eric Lowther, and former Calgary Herald reporter David Heyman. Heyman was employed as Director of Communications for Ivrnet/Vincero before becoming Calgary Communications Manager for Premier Ed Stelmach.

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Alberta Liberals David Swann Judy Wilson Kevin Taft Larry Johnsrude Troy Wason

judy wilson leaves alberta liberal caucus. former mla rick miller new chief of staff.

Following the recent trend of staff departures at the Alberta Legislative Assembly that have included Larry Johnsrude and Troy Wason, Official Opposition Chief of Staff Judy Wilson is now the departing the Dome.

After serving as Director of Operations at Government House for 13 years, Judy Wilson joined the Official Opposition caucus in 2007 as Chief of Staff under former leader Kevin Taft, and remained in her position after David Swann was selected as leader of the Liberal Party in December 2008. Wilson will be succeeded by Rick Miller, who served as the MLA for Edmonton-Rutherford and Finance Critic from 2004 to 2008.

Media Release

March 3, 2009

Alberta Liberal caucus sees change in Chief of Staff

Edmonton – Judy Wilson, Chief of Staff of the Alberta Liberal Caucus will be leaving her position, effective Friday March 6, 2009. Rick Miller, former MLA for Edmonton-Rutherford, will be stepping into that role.

“Our caucus has a new leader, and he has decided to take a new direction,” said Wilson. “I wish Rick all the best in his new role.

“I’m looking forward to new challenges and opportunities, and to having time to focus on other projects that are important to me – like the Student Refugee program at the U of A, and my Rotary club. I’ll have more time to devote to coaching my daughter’s soccer team,” says Wilson.

“I have appreciated working with Judy and all that she has contributed to our Caucus in her nearly 2 years here”, says Dr. David Swann, Leader.

Rick Miller will assume his new role effective Monday, March 9, 2009.

“I see this as an opportunity to contribute to democracy in this province, which has always been important to me,” said Miller.

“I feel very fortunate to be able to come into an organization where a strong, solid foundation has been built, thanks to the commitment and talents of Judy Wilson. I’ve known Judy for many years – we are in the same Rotary Club and worked together in caucus when I was an MLA. I have tremendous respect for the skills that she brings to any endeavour in her future,” concluded Miller.

-30-

One of the first challenges faced by Miller will be to boost the moral and provide internal direction in Alberta’s Official Opposition caucus, which fell to 9 elected MLAs in 2008. Miller will also face the challenge of plugging leaks that have contributed to a rumour mill of anonymous gossip emanating from the Liberal Caucus over the past couple months. Many of the anonymous rumours surrounded Wilson’s participation in conversations being held by various groups of Albertans dissatisfied with the state of democracy in this province (including myself and Jason Morris from Gauntlet.ca).

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David Swann Larry Johnsrude

johnsrude moving on.

News out of the Annex this morning is that Official Opposition Communications Director Larry Johnsrude‘s contract is not being renewed under new Liberal leader David Swann. Though it’s normal to see changes in key staff when a new leader takes the helm, I wouldn’t blame Johnsrude for wanting to move on. Handling communications for a rag-tag 9 MLA Opposition caucus likely isn’t the most rewarding job when the competition is a 72 MLA behemoth with a massive communications budget.

Johnsrude left the Edmonton Journal to join the Official Opposition caucus in 2007 after working for 30 years in the newspaper business.

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Alberta Liberals Alex MacDonald David Swann Laurence Decore

state of the liberal party ‘brand’ in alberta.

Two news articles caught my eye this weekend:

– Jeremy Loome had an interesting column in the Edmonton Sun this weekend on the state of the Liberal Party brand in Alberta.

Loome raised an excellent point about former Liberal leader and Edmonton Mayor Laurence Decore. As much as many die-hard Liberals continue to believe that Decore is an example of how their party has been successful in Alberta, many of them seem to have a hard time recollecting that even Decore wasn’t able to lead the Liberals to victory against the PCs. I understand that many long-time Liberals feel a personal connection to the Liberal Party of 1993, but it’s not hard to argue that the electoral gains made that year had more to do with Decore’s personal brand and his political connections than any party label.

– Decore-era Liberal Alex MacDonald was quoted in the Calgary Herald this weekend arguing that the Alberta Liberal Party is now in a better position than it was when Decore became its leader in 1988.

Having no personal experience with the Liberal Party of 1988, I can’t say that this isn’t the truth, but the political environment that exists today makes it difficult for me to believe that the Liberal Party of 2009 could attract the high profile leadership material like Decore.

MacDonald continued to argue that “[w]ith the right leader, and with the right strategy, and with enough support from people around the leader and in the party, it’s very possible for a great deal of momentum to be created from a base of not very much.“

‘If everything were different, things would be different’ is a hard argument to counter.

I have a lot of personal respect for current Liberal leader David Swann, but the cultural state of that political party has led me to step away from the Liberal Party and focus my energies elsewhere. With the recent news that the Liberals will be abandoning their 124th Street Edmonton Headquarters because of financial reasons, I am having an even more difficult time being convinced that the Liberal Party of 2012 will be in a position to present itself as the viable alternative that it did in 1993.

Clarification: I received an email from the Alberta Liberal Party this afternoon:

At this time there has been no decision made on the state of the “124th street headquarters,” our lease is coming up and we are in discussions with the landlord and looking at other options as well for less space for less money. We might end up moving as you state or we might not, no decision has been made.

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Alberta Oil Sands Dave Taylor David Swann Doug Horner Ed Stelmach Iris Evans Kent Hehr Raj Sherman Ted Morton

winter 2008 pre-session primer.

With the Second Session of the 27th Alberta Legislature set to begin next week, here are a couple things that will be on my radar:

Throne Speech: Having attended five out of the past six Speeches from the Throne, I’m having a difficult time raising my expectations this year. No matter what is read, PC MLAs will roar, Opposition Liberals and NDP will oppose, but in the end, everyone will still love Norman Kwong.

Provincial Budget: Expected in March/April, this will be the first provincial deficit budget that Alberta has seen in over a decade. After sending out mixed signals, it looks like dipping into the Sustainability Fund will provide short-term protection to Premier Ed Stelmach and Finance Minister Iris Evans from being lynched by the rabid fiscal conservatives in the PC caucus. Are the days of the Deep Six long gone?

Health Care: Health Minister Ron Liepert will be in the spotlight over restructuring, layoffs, and the daily delisting and (un)delisting of services. Focus will be on Liepert, but I will be keeping an eye on his Parliamentary Deputy, Edmonton-Meadowlark MLA Raj Sherman, says or doesn’t say on the issue of privatization during this session.

New Official Opposition Leader: Calgary-Mountain View MLA David Swann will lead the Official Opposition into his first Legislative Session as leader. Can he lead the rag-tag Liberal Caucus as a cohesive unit? Pay attention to what Calgary-Currie MLA Dave Taylor does in this session.

Oil-bama: Stelmach has invited President Barack Obama to visit Alberta’s Oil Sands, but this isn’t about oil, this is all about Climate Change. The PCs are clearly concerned that Obama’s Climate Change agenda could force the traditional oil industry to clean up its act. It’s a market, and if the consumers (the United States) change their standards, it’s up to the producer (the oil companies) to either adapt or perish. It’s not hard to see what direction the energy market is moving towards when large energy companies, such as BP, continue to move resources into renewable energy projects in the United States. Albertans have a unique opportunity to become leaders in innovation in new cleaner energy markets, but as long as our leaders continue to focus on the old economy, we risk being left behind.

Land-Use Framework: Sustainable Resource Development Minister Ted Morton has the job of navigating his proposed land-use framework through the minefield that is the Alberta Legislature, and more specifically, the PC caucus. This is a very important step for Alberta, so critical debate and public attention towards this issue will be important.

Respect: Swann wants to tone down the rhetoric and dramatics in the Legislative Assembly, but it will take more than nice wishes to change an entrenched political culture. Without a joint statement between Swann and Stelmach, it is likely that it won’t become anything more than a nice idea. Bets on how long it take for Stelmach to accuse Swann of being a communist?

Post-Secondary Learning Amendment Act: Advanced Ed & Tech Minister Doug Horner will introduce amendments to the PSL Act that will pave the way for Mount Royal College and Grant MacEwan College to become Mount Royal University and Grant MacEwan University. Last week, representatives from the AUCC were spotted at Mount Royal assessing the transition.

Bill 201. Calgary-Buffalo MLA Kent Hehr will be introducing Bill 201: Traffic Safety (Seizure of Vehicles Containing Illegally Held Firearms) Act.

Lobbyist Registry. After years of promising to create a Provincial Lobbyist Registry, is there a chance that we might actually see some concrete movement this spring? (fingers crossed…)

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Dave Taylor David Swann Ed Stelmach Hugh MacDonald Kevin Taft

david swann meets ed stelmach, and faces challenges from inside the liberal caucus.

Liberal Opposition leader David Swann and PC Premier Ed Stelmach met yesterday to discuss niceties and the upcoming provincial budget. This is a positive step for both party leaders, and I hope that for Albertans sake, some semblance of civility can be preserved between the two men.

Swann’s challenge will be to balance the ‘spirit of cooperation’ while actually providing an effective opposition to the governing PCs in the Legislature (and this is probably as difficult as it sounds). It remains to be seen if the toxically partisan environment in the Legislative Assembly will allow any civility between the two party leaders to survive when the Legislature begins sitting in February. Up until the Fall 2008 Session of the Legislature, the tension between Stelmach and former Liberal leader Kevin Taft had gotten so heated that Stelmach would frequently accuse Taft of being a Red Menace.

He must also be weary of not taking a route too close to the one taken by former Liberal leader Ken Nicol. When replacing defeated leader Nancy MacBeth in 2001, then-Lethbridge-East MLA Nicol’s quiet and polite tone made it easy for the Klein PCs to railroad over the Legislative opposition and the Raj Pannu-led NDP to garner much of the media attention, leaving the newly reduced Liberal caucus (7 MLAs elected in 2001, down from 18 in 1997) in their weakest position in over a decade.

While striking a conciliatory tone with Premier Stelmach may be a productive start, Swann is likely aware of the challenges he faces within his caucus.

Managing Edmonton-Gold Bar MLA Hugh MacDonald and Calgary-Currie MLA Dave Taylor are likely going to be key challenges in keeping the rag-tag caucus together. MacDonald, who appears to have become almost obsessed with unearthing PC scandals, has fine-tuned the exercise of crying wolf, diluting the opposition Liberals’ position on many issues. As Swann’s former leadership challenger, Taylor holds some forceful opinions on the direction of the opposition and the Liberal Party which clash with some of Swann’s ideas (not that I believe a different name will solve the Liberal Party’s organizational and psychological problems, but more on that later).

If Swann is to lead an effective opposition in the Legislature, his caucus will need to reign in wild card Hugh MacDonald, while managing Dave Taylor’s recently bruised ego.

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Alberta Liberals Alberta Oil Sands Dave Taylor David Swann Mo Elsalhy

can david swann change politics in alberta?

Alberta Liberals may have selected a new leader this weekend, but they still face the same serious challenges as they did a week ago. New Official Opposition leader David Swann, and competitors Dave Taylor and Mo Elsalhy were only able to convince 6,000 Albertans to participate in the vote, which raises some serious questions about the viability of the Liberal organization in Alberta. As leader, Swann will need to engage the +250,000 Albertans who supported the Liberals in the last election, while trying to reverse his party’s downward slide in popular support over the past 15 years.

The latter is a challenge not uniquely faced by Swann and the party he now leads. As voter turnout continues to slide across the board, it is clear that there is a serious disconnect between the average Alberta citizen and the political organizations and politicians representing them in the Legislature. This poses a serious threat not only to all of our political parties, but also to the existence of democratic vibrancy, a humbling reality that is lost on many of our current elected representatives.

The serious question also needs to be asked whether the Liberals are politically, organizationally, and financially past the point of saving. I have serious questions about the future potential of that party, which was only able to draw around 120 delegates to its recent annual convention. As I’ve written before, as none of our political parties have been able to successfully engage Albertans, it may be time to look outside the traditional party establishment (others have thoughts on this as well).

Though partisan opponents have already begun to label Swann as an ‘out of touch academic,’ I have a hard-time believing that most Albertans would categorize a family doctor as an academic. This type of behavior dilutes the political dialogue, and is the exact type of lowest-common denominator partisanship that keeps citizens away from political involvement in droves.

In the end, Swann may prove not to be the great leader who leads the Liberals to victory in Alberta, but he is certainly cut from a different cloth than the two other party leaders in the Alberta Legislature. He is not a career politician (both Ed Stelmach and Brian Mason have been politicians for over 20 years) and is not any more charismatic than either of his counterparts in the Legislature, but agree or disagree with his politics, Swann is a devout Christian, social justice advocate, and environmentalist who personally practices what he preaches when it comes to what he believes in, and you can’t fault him for being genuine (he has also been one of the few MLAs to seriously engage First Nations communities on water safety and oil sands issues in northern Alberta).

As a politically engaged and frustrated Albertan who is looking to become involved in 1) an organization that is serious about engaging and challenging Albertans to be better citizens, and 2) a viable and competitive alternative to the current governing party, I have serious doubts that the Liberal Party fits these descriptions, but seeing engaged citizens like David Swann get involved in elected politics gives me a little bit more hope for democracy in general.

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David Swann Nuclear Power

nuclealberta.

Calgary-Mountain View Alberta Liberal MLA David Swann has some interesting thoughts on today’s Peace River nuclear power plant announcement.

Now, being skeptical about nuclear power is one thing (and another issue that I plan to elaborate further in a future post), but the secrecy surrounding who the plant’s largest customer will be is another bizarre story:

Bold plans to bring nuclear power to northern Alberta were unveiled Tuesday, but just exactly who’ll be using most of the megawatts remained a mystery even to many in the oilpatch.

It’s assumed that Energy Alberta Corp.’s proposed $6.2-billion project to put a Candu twin reactor in the sparsely populated Peace River area in the province’s northwestern corner is all about the oilsands, which require an immense amount of energy to squeeze oil from the ground.

The company and its partners said Tuesday that about 70 per cent of the 2,200 megawatts of electricity will be going to “one large, industrial off-taker” but declined to name names.

“At this time we’re not going to discuss those arrangements,” said Dale Coffin, spokesman for Atomic Energy of Canada Ltd., which is teaming up with Energy Alberta to build Canada’s first new nuclear power in nearly 25 years.

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David Swann Environment Water

two out of six.

Calgary Mountain View MLA David Swann released two YouTube videos from his July 19 press conference in response to the Stelmach Tories Measuring Up report.

The government’s Measuring Up report indicated that only two out of Alberta’s six major riverways had “excellent” or “good” water quality. This is in decline from other years, and is of serious concern especially considering the diminishing quantity of water across the province.

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