Tag: Alberta Prosperity Project

Quashing Alberta separatism debate could spark fireworks at UCP AGM

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date November 28, 2025

Premier Danielle Smith and Prime Minister Mark Carney in Calgary on November 27, 2025 (source: Government of Alberta / Flickr)

Danielle Smith’s pipeline deal with Mark Carney could get more jeers than cheers by some at the UCP AGM

The United Conservative Party’s most dedicated activists and supporters will gather in Edmonton on November 28, 29 and 30 to debate a swath of policy resolutions and elect members of its provincial board at the party’s annual general meeting.

Since the UCP was founded in 2017, the party’s AGM has become one of the most interesting and closely-watched political events of the year. It’s an annual reminder the delegates attending the meeting — the UCP’s most enthusiastic activists — are as a group among the most influential people in Alberta politics today.

Read all about it on the Daveberta Subtack

Tags Abigail Johnson, Adam Doyle, Al Biel, Albert Biel, Alberta Pipeline Memorandum of Understanding, Alberta Politics Substack, Alberta Prosperity Project, Alberta Separatism, An Injection of Truth, Andre Grondin, Battle River-Crowfoot, Benjamin Gill, Brian Golka, Brian Mulroney, Calgary-Lougheed, Canada Election Substack, Cardston-Siksika, Dan Harder, Danielle Smith, Darby Crouch, Darrell Komick, Daveberta Substack, David Eby, Donna Kennedy-Glans, Ed Vandenberg, Gordon Reynen, Heather Yourex-West, Helen Holder, Irma Roberts, Jaspreet Saggu, Jeff Rath, Jeffrey Rath, Jodie Gateman, Justin Trudeau, Mark Carney, National Energy Program, Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills, Pamela Davidson, Peter Lougheed, Pierre Poilievre, Richard Asselin, Richard Mallett, Rob Smith, Samantha Steinke, Scott Payne, Stacey Vanderveen, United Conservative Party, United Conservative Party AGM, Vicki Kozmak-LeFrense

Alberta Politics

Separatists accuse Danielle Smith of purging UCP board

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date November 10, 2025

The United Conservative Party’s board elections are happening at its AGM at the end of November and the rhetoric is heating up from the party’s bustling separatist wing.

Alberta Prosperity Project co-founder Jeffrey Rath took to the internet to accuse “Danielle Smith’s Death Star team” of abusing their access to party membership lists to purge the party board of separatists.

Alberta is Recalling. UCP MLA Angela Pitt facing recall campaign in Airdrie-East

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date November 9, 2025

Airdire-East MLA Angela Pitt (source: Angela Pitt / Facebook)

Also: Look who’s running in the UCP AGM board elections

An MLA Recall law championed by United Conservative Party MLAs four years ago is coming back to haunt some of those politicians today.

A second recall campaign launched this month aims to recall UCP MLA Angela Pitt in her suburban Airdrie-East riding north of Calgary. Pitt is the second MLA to face a recall effort in recent weeks with a similar campaign being launched by constituents of Calgary-Bow UCP MLA and Minister of Education and Childcare Demetrios Nicolaides in October.

Alberta separatists march on the Legislature and UCP AGM

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date October 25, 2025

The steps of the Legislature are a busy place this week as supporters of Alberta separatism are promising a large pro-independence rally on October 25. The rally will feature speakers from the Alberta Prosperity Project including Jeffrey Rath, Dennis Modry and Mitch Sylvestre, restaurant owner, podcaster and COVID-19 restrictions opponent Chris Scott, and former UCP nomination candidate Tanya Clemens.

Describing the rally as the first battle in the fight for an independent Alberta, Sylvestre told separatist supporters in a rambling video posted by the APP yesterday that “before we have to pay in blood we have to pay in time because Communism always comes in on a promise and leaves with a bullet.”

Sylvestre is the president of the UCP constituency association in the Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul riding and is the proponent of the court-delayed citizen initiative to hold a province-wide referendum asking the question “Do you agree that the Province of Alberta shall become a sovereign country and cease to be a province in Canada?”

Forever Canadian petition rumoured to have collected more than 300,000 pro-Canada signatures

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date October 24, 2025

Former cabinet minister Thomas Lukaszuk and his Forever Canadian Unity Bus (source: Thomas Lukaszuk / Facebook)

Former Progressive Conservative cabinet minister Thomas Lukaszuk is on the final stretch of his “Unity Bus” tour to collect signatures for the Forever Canadian petition that asks the simple question “Do you agree that Alberta should remain in Canada?”

Lukaszuk’s question requires 293,976 in-person signatures in order to be approved and sent to an MLA committee to be considered for a province-wide referendum, but there are rumours that the pro-Canada campaign’s more than 4,000 volunteers have already collected more than 300,000 signatures.

Evasive maneuvers! Alberta politics on a collision course!

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date October 24, 2025

A large rally of around 30,000 striking teachers gathered outside the Legislature to welcome MLAs back for the fall session on October 23 (source: @atalocal8 / Instagram)

A loud crowd of 30,000 teachers and their supporters welcomed MLAs back to the Legislature

When MLAs returned to the Legislature yesterday for the Speech from the Throne and the start of the fall session they were welcomed back by a very large and very loud crowd of around 30,000 Alberta teachers.

More than 51,000 teachers from public, Catholic, and Francophone schools across the province have been on strike since October 6 with workload challenges being their biggest issue, namely class sizes and per-student funding.

Instead of getting back to the bargaining table to negotiate a deal that could satisfy both the government and teachers, Premier Danielle Smith has signalled her government’s plans to fasttrack back to work legislation — and there is wide speculation that it could use the constitutional sledgehammer known as the Notwithstanding Clause to block any court challenges of the law.

The Order Papers for next week shows that Minister of Finance Nate Horner will soon introduce Bill 2: Back to School Act along with motions to severely limit debate at all stages of reading. With a 6 vote majority in the Legislature, UCP MLAs should have no problem pushing it through swiftly, though the opposition NDP can be expected to try its best to delay the passage of the bill.

Get ready for a big fight over Alberta’s separation referendum

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date July 31, 2025

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Justice Minister Mickey Amery in April 2025 announcing changes to Alberta’s citizen initiative referendums (Photo: Government of Alberta/Flickr).

It’s going to be messy but the Chief Electoral Officer needs to hold his ground – and his independence.

Alberta’s Chief Electoral Officer was publicly rebuked by Premier Danielle Smith and Minister of Justice Mickey Amery after a petition aimed at triggering a province-wide referendum on Alberta’s separation from Canada was referred to the courts to determine if it is legal.

Chief Electoral Officer Gordon McClure announced earlier this week that a citizen initiative petition request submitted by separatist Alberta Prosperity Project CEO Mitch Sylvestre was being referred to the Court of King’s Bench to determine whether it conforms with the requirements of sections 2 (4) of the Citizen Initiative Act. That section specifically states that “an initiative petition proposal must not contravene sections 1 to 35.1 of the Constitution Act, 1982.”

Smith and Amery took to social media to call on McClure to withdraw the court reference and allow the Alberta separation petition to move forward.

Read the rest on the Daveberta Substack

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Tags Alberta Chief Electoral Officer, Alberta NDP, Alberta Next Panel, Alberta Politics Substack, Alberta Prosperity Project, Alberta Separation Referendum, Alberta Separatism, Andy Sims, Bonnyville-Cold Lake-St. Paul, Canada Election Substack, Commonwealth of Alberta Delegation to Washington, Danielle Smith, Daveberta Substack, Dennis Modry, Elections Alberta, Elections Alberta Financial Disclosures, Forever Canadian, Gordon McClure, Jason Stephan, Jeff Rath, Jeffrey Rath, Ken Chapman, King Charles III, Mark Carney, Mickey Amery, Mitch Sylvestre, Money and Politics, Naheed Nenshi, Rakhi Pancholi, Red Deer-South, Scott Cyr, Subst, Thomas Luksazuk, United Conservative Party, Vladimir Putin, Western Alienation, Western Separation

Alberta Politics

Ten big questions about Alberta separatism in 2025

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date May 16, 2025

The Alberta Prosperity Project’s Jeffrey Rath shows off the separatist group’s proposed referendum question in Calgary (source: Facebook).

Is Premier Danielle Smith a separatist? Is the UCP a separatist party?

The biggest difference between today’s Alberta separatist push and past efforts is that today’s most vocal separatists are operating within the governing UCP. Premier Danielle Smith gave her tacit public support for these groups in an online video address earlier this month and she knows that any direct effort to try to stop it would turn those groups, which included some of the UCP’s most enthusiastic activists, against her.

Many of those enthusiastic separatists inside the UCP helped topple former Premier Jason Kenney in 2022 and propel Smith to victory in the leadership race that followed. Writer Jen Gerson cleverly described Smith’s situation through one rule of politics: you get ate by the dragon you ride in on.

Punchy Nenshi calls on Danielle Smith to stop playing Alberta separatist games

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date May 5, 2025

Alberta NDP leader Naheed Nenshi (source: Dave Cournoyer)

Also: Pierre Poilievre running in Battle River—Crowfoot by-election, gets unwelcome greetings from UCP VP

Naheed Nenshi’s speech was upbeat and touched on a lot of traditional NDP points about public health care, public education and rights for workers, but he was most animated when ripping into Premier Danielle Smith’s threat that the Liberal Party’s re-election would spark an unprecedented national unity crisis and her flirtation with Alberta separatists.

‘I will be damned if we ever let Danielle Smith tear the country down,’ Nenshi said. “Alberta’s New Democrats will always, always, always stand with the millions and millions of Canadians who believe in a stronger, more unified country,” Nenshi said.

“No more playing stupid separatist games with the future of our province! No more disrespecting Indigenous communities! No more disrespecting Albertans!”

NDP MLA Rod Loyola challenging Conservative MP Tim Uppal in Edmonton Gateway

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date March 27, 2025

Rod Loyola was the NDP MLA for Edmonton-Ellerslie until stepping down this week (photo source: Rod Loyola / Facebook)

Rod Loyola has resigned as the Alberta NDP MLA for Edmonton-Ellerslie and is running as the Liberal Party candidate in the new Edmonton Gateway riding in the federal election. Loyola represented his south Edmonton provincial riding from 2015 until he stepped down earlier this week to pursue the federal Liberal nomination.

Read all about it on the Daveberta Substack

Tags Alberta Federal Candidate Nomination Update, Alberta NDP, Alberta Politics Substack, Alberta Prosperity Project, Ashley Fearnall, Ben Shapiro, Bharat Agnihotri, Blair-Marie Coles, Calgary-Centre, Calgary-Midnapore, Camrose, Canada Election 2025, Commonwealth of Alberta Delegation to Washington, Conservative Party of Canada, Danielle Smith, Daveberta Substack, Debbie Carlson, Dennis Modry, Donald Trump, Edmonton Centre, Edmonton Gateway, Edmonton Manning, Edmonton Northwest, Edmonton-Ellerslie, Edmonton-Ellerslie by-election, Edmonton-Strathcona, Edmonton-Strathcona by-election, Eleanor Olszewski, Jackie Lovely, Jason Markusoff, Jeffrey Rath, Kathleen Petty, LaVar Payne, Liberal Party of Canada, Lindsay Luhnau, Lindsey Machona, Logan Hooley, Lori Williams, Mark Carney, Miles Berry, Mitch Sylvestre, Naheed Nenshi, Naresh Bhardwaj, Parkland, Pierre Poilievre, Ponoka-Didsbury, PragerU, Rachel Notley, Rahim Jaffer, Randy Boissonnault, Ranjit Bath, Rob Anders, Rod Loyola, Ron Thiering, Sunjiv Raval, Tim Uppal, United Conservative Party

Alberta Politics

Can Danielle Smith survive the UCP political circus in Red Deer?

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date October 31, 2024

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith (photo: Danielle Smith/Facebook)

Alberta politics is unpredictable and sometimes it’s best to expect the unexpected

The main event of Alberta’s political season is nearly upon us. No, I’m not talking about the return of the Legislature or the impending by-election in Lethbridge-West. I’m talking about the United Conservative Party’s Annual General Meeting and leadership review that is happening this weekend in Red Deer.

With more than 6,000 people expected to attend, it will likely be the biggest single political convention in Alberta’s history. And it is going to be a circus.

Read the rest on the Daveberta Substack.

Tags 1905 Committee, Adriana LaGrange, Airdrie-Cochrane, Alberta Federal Candidate Nomination Update, Alberta First Pension Plan, Alberta NDP, Alberta Prosperity Project, Black Hat Gang, Blaine Higgs, Calgary Crowfoot, Calgary-Lougheed, Chemtrails, COVID-19 Pandemic, Cynthia Moore, Danielle Smith, Daveberta Substack, David Parker, Demetrios Nicolaides, Edmonton-Manning, Elections Alberta, Eric Bouchard, Glen Resler, Gordon McClure, Ian Brodie, Jason Kenney, Jason Nixon, Jim Prentice, Jodi Calahoo Stonehouse, John Middleton-Hope, Joseph Schow, Kathleen Ganley, Lesley Thompson, Lethbridge-West, Lethbridge-West by-election, Mathew Jammaz, Matt Jones, Naheed Nenshi, National Firearms Association, Ralph Klein, Rob Miyashiro, Sarah Hoffman, Scott Moe, Shahnaz Munir, Stephen Harper, Take Back Alberta, Tiffany Nixon, Transgender policy, Transgender Rights in Alberta, Umair Ahad, United Conservative Party, United Conservative Party AGM, United Conservative Party Leadership Review, Wildrose Party

Alberta Politics

It’s all about the UCP leadership review

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date August 1, 2024

Minister of Public Safety Mike Ellis and Premier Danielle Smith respond to questions about politicians accepting tickets to NHL playoff games (source: Screenshot from YourAlberta / YouTube)

Protected rights for the unvaccinated and tax cuts aimed at appeasing unruly UCP members ahead of November vote

Summer is normally a time when politics cools down and politicians hit the BBQ circuit, but there’s something smelly in the air and it’s not just the wildfire smoke that Albertans have become accustomed to being part of our increasingly hot summers.

A political scandal surrounding Premier Danielle Smith and senior United Conservative Party cabinet ministers accepting tickets to skybox seats during the Edmonton Oilers NHL playoff run has erupted. Globe & Mail journalist Carrie Tait first broke the story that Smith and some UCP cabinet ministers had accepted box seat tickets to NHL playoff hockey games from private corporations that have close connections to or are lobbying the Alberta government.

Read the rest on the Daveberta Substack

Tags Alberta Bill of Rights, Alberta Election 2023, Alberta Federal Candidate Nomination Update, Alberta NDP, Alberta Prosperity Project, Alberta Tax Cuts, Alison Redford, Calgary McKnight, Calgary-Lougheed, Calgary-Skyview, Carrie Tait, COVID-19 Pandemic, Danielle Smith, Dave Quest, David Parker, Ed Stelmach, Edmonton Centre, Edmonton Oilers, Edmonton-Griesbach, Edmonton-Manning, Eric Bouchard, Florida Panthers, George Chahal, Heather Mackenzie, Jagmeet Singh, James Cumming, Jason Kenney, Jason Stephan, Kamran Choudhry, Katie Teeling, Lesley Thompson, Marco Van Huigenbos, Mike Ellis, Naheed Nenshi, Postmedia, Preston Manning, Ralph Klein, Raman Gill, Randy Boissonnault, Red Deer-South, Rick Bell, Sayid Ahmed, Shawn Newman Podcast, Stanley Cup Finals, Take Back Alberta, Trisha Estabrooks, United Conservative Party, Vancouver Canucks

Alberta Politics

10 things I’m watching in Alberta politics in 2024

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date January 22, 2024

Premier Danielle Smith (centre) at a November 27, 2023 press conference with Minister of Environment and Protected Areas Rebecca Schulz (left) and Minister of Affordability and Utilities Nathan Neudorf (right). (source: Alberta Newsroom / Flickr)

From the price of oil to the influence of right-wing populist groups to the NDP leadership race and more

January is usually a quiet month in politics, making it a good time to look ahead at what to expect in the year to come. Here are ten things I will be watching that could have a big impact on Alberta politics in 2024:

1. Price of oil

Alberta is probably the only province where the international price of oil is at the top of the Premier’s daily briefing notes. The price of oil not only has a big impact on a lot of Albertans’ jobs, but also the provincial government’s revenue stream.

Relying heavily on the price of oil to pay for the day to day operations of public services, the Alberta government’s 2023/2024 budget projected as much as 25 percent of its revenue will come from oil and gas royalties.

“If we go into this coming fiscal year starting April 1 with $72 per barrel, that might put the government into a situation where they either have to revise their spending plans or face a modest deficit,” University of Calgary economist Trevor Tombe told CBC.

In Alberta, governments live and die by the price of oil.

2. Influence of right-wing populist and separatist groups

Without a doubt the influence of populist and separatist groups has grown in Alberta politics in recent years. Nowhere is this more pronounced than inside the governing United Conservative Party since Danielle Smith became Premier in October 2022 after riding the wave of populist discontent that pushed out former premier Jason Kenney.

In the closing months of 2023, newly elected UCP President Rob Smith spent nearly two hours on a livestream hosted by Alberta Prosperity Project CEO Chris Scott and past Independence Party of Alberta candidate Kerry Lambert.

The APP has advocated for the creation of a Republic of Alberta and is currently calling for a referendum on Alberta’s independence from Canada. Scott gained notoriety in conservative circles during the COVID-19 pandemic when his restaurant in the central Alberta hamlet of Mirror remained open in contravention of public health rules.

Also, in the final days of 2023, the UCP highlighted an endorsement from University of Calgary professor Barry Cooper in its year-end fundraising pitch on social media. Cooper has compared Alberta to pre-revolutionary colonial America in 1775 and has called for a referendum on separation from Canada. He is also a co-founder of the Free Alberta Strategy, an autonomist documentchampioned by Premier Smith’s Chief of Staff Rob Anderson.

And, on January 24, Smith will host and interview American media personality and conspiracy theorist Tucker Carlson at an event in Calgary that has been promoted by the APP and other influential right-wing groups like Alberta Proud, and Take Back Alberta (which is reported to be under investigation by Elections Alberta).

3. The race to replace Rachel Notley

It is hard to imagine the modern Alberta NDP without Rachel Notley, but she announced last week that she will not lead the NDP into the 2027 election and will step down as leader when her successor is chosen, likely later this year.

The leadership race jockeying has already begun, with at least five MLAs sending signals that they plan to run: Calgary-Mountain View MLA Kathleen Ganley, Edmonton-Glenora MLA Sarah Hoffman, Edmonton-Whitemud MLA Rakhi Pancholi, Edmonton-City Centre MLA David Shepherd, and Edmonton-Rutherford MLA Jodi Calahoo Stonehouse.

The NDP Provincial Council will meet on January 27 to discuss timelines and rules for the leadership race. The winner of the race will lead the 38-MLA NDP Caucus into 2025 and the party into the 2027 provincial election.

I am planning to write a lot more about this leadership race in the weeks and months to come.

Read the rest on the Daveberta Substack.

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Tags 2024 Alberta NDP Leadership Race, Alberta Federal Candidate Nomination Update, Alberta NDP, Alberta Prosperity Project, Alberta Proud, Barry Cooper, Calgary Signal Hill, Calgary-Mountain View, Chris Scott, Danielle Smith, Daveberta Substack, David MacKenzie, David Shepherd, Dean Mikalauskas, Edmonton-Centre, Edmonton-City Centre, Edmonton-Decore, Edmonton-Glenora, Edmonton-Rutherford, Edmonton-Whitemud, Free Alberta Strategy, International Price of Oil, James Cumming, Jason Kenney, Jeremy Nixon, Jodi Calahoo Stonehouse, Kathleen Ganley, Kelly Hopper, Kerry Lambert, Leela Aheer, Michael Kim, Rachel Notley, Rakhi Pancholi, Randy Boissonnault, Rob Anderson, Sarah Hoffman, Sayid Ahmed, Take Back Alberta, Trevor Tombe, Tucker Carlson, United Conservative Party, University of Calgary, Wyatt Claypool

Alberta Politics

Danielle Smith hosts Alberta’s largest call-in talk show: the United Conservative Party

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date November 7, 2023

Premier Danielle Smith speaks to delegates at the 2023 United Conservative Party annual general meeting in Calgary (source: Danielle Smith / Facebook)

Any good talk radio host understands that the show doesn’t belong to the host, it belongs to the listeners. And if this past weekend’s annual general meeting is any indication, talk radio host-turned-Premier Danielle Smith might be taking a similar approach as leader of the United Conservative Party.

Aside from a nod to protecting parental rights during her keynote speech, Smith largely stood out of the way as more than 3,700 delegates packed into Calgary’s BMO Centre to vote on party policy and elect a new executive board. It was an impressive crowd and probably the largest provincial political convention in Alberta’s history.

Read the rest on the Daveberta Substack.

Sign up for a paid subscription to get access to the Daveberta Podcast and special Alberta politics extras

Tags Albert Biel, Alberta NDP, Alberta Prosperity Project, Calgary-Fish Creek, Central Peace-Notley, Chantelle de Jonge, Chestermere-Strathmore, Chris Scott, Dahlia Mostafa, Danielle Smith, Daveberta Substack, David Parker, Don Braid, Innsifail-Sylvan Lake, Irma Roberts, Jack Redekop, Jagmeet Singh, Jason Kenney, Jason Nixon, Jason Stephan, Jessica Arsenault, Jim Prentice, Joanny Liu, John Roggeveen, John Williams, Lake of Fire, Lisa Young, Morinville-St. Albert, Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills, Rachel Notley, Rajan Sawhney, Ranjit Bath, Red Deer-South, Rick Orman, Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre, Rob Smith, Samantha Steinke, Sara-Lyn Quist, Sonia Egy-Samu, Strathcona-Sherwood Park, Take Back Alberta, Tim Hoven, Todd Loewen, Trisha Estabrooks, United Conservative Party, United Conservative Party AGM, Valerie Boese, Vicki Kozmak-LeFrense, Wildrose Party

Alberta Politics

Nate Horner’s hooked on a pension feeling

Post author By Dave Cournoyer
Post date November 3, 2023

Alberta Finance Minister Nate Horner (photography by Chris Schwarz/Government of Alberta)

More confusing messaging about the Alberta Pension Plan

As Alberta’s United Conservative Party government continues its big $7 million advertising push to convince Albertans to leave the Canada Pension Plan and start a separate Alberta Pension Plan, Finance Minister Nate Horner told CTV’s Vassy Kapelos that the province’s decision on whether or not to hold a referendum on leaving the CPP will be based on a “high level feeling from many sources.”