In the late evening of May 29, 2023, Alberta's voters, after a long wait for the count to finish, handed the United Conservative Party another term in government, a result that tells of a province still anchored in its rural heartland even as its cities began to lean the other way. Danielle Smith, who had come to the premiership through a contested path, kept her own seat and a team of ministers beside her, while Rachel Notley's New Democrats fell short of power but reclaimed ground in Calgary, the city long regarded as the stronghold of conservatism. Beneath the arithmetic lay the ordinary wo
UCP Wins Alberta Majority as NDP Gains Ground in Calgary
Ten communities were under wildfire evacuation orders during the campaign, displacing residents who were given alternate voting options.
No winner had been called more than two hours after polls closed
Mark
Why does Calgary matter so much in this result?
Mimi
It's the UCP's traditional stronghold. The NDP needed 20 more seats, and that required taking Calgary. They didn't win it outright, but they made inroads, including defeating Nicholas Milliken in Calgary-Currie.
Mark
So the UCP won, but not comfortably?
Luke
Careful. The source says a majority was projected, but it gives no final seat count. We know 44 seats are needed and the NDP fell short of its goal. How narrow the margin was isn't in this report.
Mimi
Fair. What's clear is the split: rural support carried the UCP, and the NDP held the capital.
Mark
What dominated the campaign?
Mimi
Cost of living and health care: high prices, too few family doctors, long ER waits. Both leaders promised more primary care teams.
Luke
And both promised to keep Alberta the lowest-tax province. The differences were in who would pay, and the $1 billion annual cost of the UCP's tax cut is the party's own figure.
Mark
What about Smith's controversies?
Mimi
The vaccine comments, and the ethics commissioner's report finding she pressured her justice minister. Polls showed trust was an issue for her personally.
Luke
Whether those cost votes isn't something this reporting shows. It only says she was dogged by them.
Mark
What happens with Jennifer Johnson?
Mimi
Smith said she wouldn't sit in caucus, then spoke of redemption and second chances. It's unresolved.
Der Puls
- The Canadian Press called a UCP majority while the count was still underway, leaving NDP supporters watching a result they had hoped to change.
- The NDP needed to flip twenty seats in an 87-seat legislature and instead gained ground mainly in Calgary, where cabinet ministers now face uncertain futures.
- Ten communities under wildfire evacuation orders forced Elections Alberta to add special ballots, alternate voting sites, and mobile stations in evacuation centres.
- Smith begins a second mandate pledging a referendum before any tax increase, while the question of Jennifer Johnson's place in caucus remains unsettled.
In the late evening of May 29, 2023, Alberta's voters, after a long wait for the count to finish, handed the United Conservative Party another term in government, a result that tells of a province still anchored in its rural heartland even as its cities began to lean the other way. Danielle Smith, who had come to the premiership through a contested path, kept her own seat and a team of ministers beside her, while Rachel Notley's New Democrats fell short of power but reclaimed ground in Calgary, the city long regarded as the stronghold of conservatism. Beneath the arithmetic lay the ordinary worries of a campaign fought over the price of living, the shortage of family doctors, and the anxieties of communities still threatened by wildfire, which together show what people asked of their government in a season of strain.
More than two hours after Alberta's polls closed on May 29, 2023, no winner had been declared, and Elections Alberta insisted it was working as fast as it could. Then The Canadian Press projected a United Conservative Party majority. Danielle Smith held her own seat in Brooks-Medicine Hat, and rural Alberta carried the party toward the 44 seats it needed in the 87-seat legislature.
Rachel Notley's NDP fell short of power but made real gains in Calgary, a traditional conservative stronghold. To govern, the New Democrats needed to flip 20 seats, and they did not. Several cabinet ministers were under pressure, and Nicholas Milliken lost his Calgary-Currie seat to the NDP's Janet Eremenko.
The campaign was shaped by the cost of living and health care, with families facing high bills and long emergency room waits. Smith promised a referendum before any income tax increase and tax cuts for those earning above $60,000, while the NDP proposed raising the corporate rate to 11 per cent to fund health and education.
The wildfire season added its own weight. Ten communities faced evacuation orders on election day, and Elections Alberta responded with special ballots, alternate voting sites, and mobile stations in evacuation centres.
The night also left an unresolved question. Jennifer Johnson won Lacombe-Ponoka after apologizing for past comments, and Smith's position on her place in caucus has shifted. Settling that matter is among the first tests of Smith's new mandate.
More than two hours after Alberta's polls closed at 8 p.m. on May 29, 2023, no winner had been declared. Elections Alberta said it was working as fast as it could, that it saw no problems, and that the hand count of the day's ballots was still under way. Then The Canadian Press projected the result: a United Conservative Party majority government.
Danielle Smith, the UCP leader, won her own seat in Brooks-Medicine Hat. Several cabinet members were returned with her: Education Minister Adriana LaGrange, Agriculture Minister Nate Horner, Indigenous Relations Minister Rick Wilson, and Affordability and Utilities Minister Matt Jones. Rural Alberta carried the party. Polls had suggested the UCP would dominate rural areas and smaller centres, giving it a cushion of up to 40 or so seats toward the 44 needed for a majority in the 87-seat legislature.
The NDP, led by Rachel Notley, fell short of its goal but made real gains in Calgary, a traditional conservative stronghold. Notley won Edmonton-Strathcona for a fifth time, and her party was on track to sweep the capital. To form government, the NDP needed to flip 20 seats. That meant holding Edmonton, taking the majority of Calgary, finding help in smaller cities, and defeating scores of UCP incumbents. Early results showed promise in several Calgary ridings outside the UCP's core support in the city's south end.
Cabinet ministers were among those under pressure. Nicholas Milliken, who handled mental health and addiction, was defeated in Calgary-Currie by the NDP's Janet Eremenko. Justice Minister Tyler Shandro faced a stiff challenge in Calgary-Acadia, as did Health Minister Jason Copping in Calgary-Varsity. Smith's two deputy premiers, Kaycee Madu in Edmonton-South West and Nathan Neudorf in Lethbridge-East, were also in tough races.
The UCP was seeking a second mandate. In 2019, under then-leader Jason Kenney, it won 63 seats to the NDP's 24. The NDP was trying to regain the majority it lost that year. Turnout was expected to be strong: advance polls set a record of 758,540 votes, passing the previous record of just over 700,000 in 2019.
The month-long campaign was dominated by the economy and health care. Albertans were dealing with high consumer costs, a shortage of family doctors, and long emergency room waits. Smith promised to keep Alberta the lowest-tax jurisdiction in Canada, to legislate a referendum before any personal or corporate income tax increase, and to cut taxes for people earning more than $60,000 a year, at a cost of $1 billion annually. The NDP also pledged to keep the lowest-tax status. It would end the small business tax and raise the corporate rate to 11 per cent from eight, which it said would fund health and education while balancing the books. It also promised legislation to counter UCP policies that raised the cost of utilities, auto insurance, fees, and tuition. Both leaders pledged to preserve public health care and expand primary care teams, pairing physicians with nurses and therapists, so more people could see a family doctor and avoid crowding emergency wards.
Trust was a key issue in polling. Notley was viewed more favourably than her party, while the reverse was true for Smith. Smith was dogged by earlier remarks comparing people who took the COVID-19 vaccine to credulous followers of Adolf Hitler. Midway through the campaign, the province's ethics commissioner concluded that she undermined the rule of law by pressuring her justice minister to end the criminal case against a COVID-19 protester.
The campaign also unfolded during a record-breaking spring for wildfires. Ten communities were under evacuation orders on election day. Elections Alberta added evacuation as an eligible reason to vote by special ballot, set up alternate voting locations, and placed mobile stations in evacuation centres.
One result leaves an open question. Jennifer Johnson won Lacombe-Ponoka after apologizing for last year's comments comparing transgender students to feces. Smith said Johnson would not sit in the UCP caucus, but later said she believes in redemption and second chances. Johnson's place in the caucus is the first issue Smith's new mandate has to settle.
Bemerkenswerte Zitate
We are not seeing any issues at this time, but understand that people are keen to see the results.— Elections Alberta statement
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