Provincial political landscape changes

In a surprise move, Wildrose Party leader and head of the Official Opposition Danielle Smith jumped ship and joined Prentice’s Conservative government. In her resignation letter of Dec. 18, Smith said nine of the 14 members of her caucus “have joined the government caucus in a reunification of Alberta’s conservatives.” The decision to accept the former Wildrose MLAs came after a lengthy debate of the Conservative caucus and was not unanimous. Evan Menzies, director of communications for the Wildrose party, issued a statement indicating, “As MLAs, we remain fiercely committed to the Wildrose party, but more importantly, the principles and mandate that we were sent to the Legislature to fulfill.” The defection dropped the Wildrose to five sitting members, the same number as the Liberals and drew the Wildrose’s status as Official Opposition into question. However, on Dec. 23, Speaker of the House Gene Zwozdesky ruled, “Based on a thorough review of authorities and precedents across Canada, I have determined that incumbency is the key factor in the case of a tie and that the Wildrose caucus shall continue as the Official Opposition.” The 2012 election saw the fledgling Wildrose party take 440,000 votes and earn 17 seats. Calgary-Fish Creek MLA Heather Forsyth, former Conservative member, took over as interim leader for Wildrose.