Alberta Alliance Party leadership election, 2005

Last updated
Wildrose Party leadership election, 2005
DateAlberta Alliance Party
November 18–19, 2005
Convention Red Deer
Resigning leader Randy Thorsteinson
Won by Paul Hinman
Ballots 3
Candidates 4
Entrance Fee $5,000
Spending limit N/A
Wildrose Party leadership elections

The Alberta Alliance Party, a conservative political party in Alberta, Canada, held its second leadership election on November 18 and 19, 2005, in Red Deer, Alberta. The leadership position was vacated by Alberta Alliance Party founder and leader Randy Thorsteinson in March 2005.

Alberta Province of Canada

Alberta is a western province of Canada. With an estimated population of 4,067,175 as of 2016 census, it is Canada's fourth most populous province and the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces. Its area is about 660,000 square kilometres (250,000 sq mi). Alberta and its neighbour Saskatchewan were districts of the Northwest Territories until they were established as provinces on September 1, 1905. The premier has been Rachel Notley since May 2015.

Red Deer, Alberta City in Alberta, Canada

Red Deer is a city in Central Alberta, Canada. It is located near the midpoint of the Calgary–Edmonton Corridor and is surrounded by Red Deer County. It is Alberta's third-most-populous city – after Calgary and Edmonton. The city is located in aspen parkland, a region of rolling hills that is home to oil, grain, and cattle production. It is a centre for oil and agriculture distribution, and the surrounding region is a major centre for petrochemical production. Red Deer had a population of 100,418 as of the Canada 2016 census making Red Deer Alberta's third city to surpass 100,000 people.

Alberta Alliance Party right wing provincial political party in Alberta, Canada

The Alberta Alliance was a right wing provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Many of its members were supporters of the defunct Canadian Alliance federal political party and its predecessor, the Reform Party of Canada. Members also joined from such other provincial fringe parties as the Alberta First Party, the Alberta Party and Social Credit. Alliance supporters tended to view themselves as "true conservatives", and believed the Progressive Conservative government of Premier Ed Stelmach to be out of touch with the needs of Albertans.

Contents

Paul Hinman was elected leader on the third ballot, defeating the other candidates, Marilyn Burns, David Crutcher and Ed Klop. Hinman lead the party from this leadership election to the merge with the Wildrose Party of Alberta in 2008.

Paul Hinman Canadian politician

Paul Hinman is a provincial politician and small business entrepreneur from Alberta, Canada. He was formerly the leader of the Wildrose Alliance. He served as a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 2004 to 2008 representing the electoral district of Cardston-Taber-Warner. On September 14, 2009, Hinman returned to the Legislative Assembly by winning a by-election in Calgary-Glenmore, but lost his bid for re-election on April 23, 2012.

The Wildrose Party of Alberta was a right wing political organization founded in Alberta, Canada in 2007. The organization took its name from Alberta's provincial flower.

Election results

The election was held using a preferential ballot. Members indicated their preferences in order on the ballot. After each round of voting, the candidate receiving the fewest votes was removed from the election, and his or her votes allocated to other candidates on the basis of the voters' indicated preferences.

All members who registered or renewed their memberships before October 6, 2005, were mailed a ballot. Members could mail in their ballots or take them to the leadership convention in Red Deer. Ballots had to be mailed in by November 18, 2005 to be eligible.

Sample Alberta Alliance leadership ballot Sampleaamailinballot.png
Sample Alberta Alliance leadership ballot
1st Ballot
CandidateVotes%
Paul Hinman 48543.0%
Marilyn Burns24421.6%
David Crutcher21118.7%
Ed Klop18816.7%
Total1,128
2nd Ballot
CandidateVotes%
Paul Hinman 54850.0%
Marilyn Burns31228.5%
David Crutcher23621.5%
Total1,096
3rd Ballot
CandidateVotes%
Paul Hinman 62661.2%
Marilyn Burns38738.2%
Total1,013

Candidates and platforms

Four candidates were officially nominated. Candidates needed 100 party member signatures and a $5,000 deposit to run for leader.

Marilyn Burns

Campaign slogan:"A Brighter Future, A Better Way" Marilyn Burns: Marilyn Burns is the Alberta Alliance justice critic and candidate for Stony Plain in the 2004 election. Marilyn was the first candidate to get her campaign off the ground. One of her main principles is defending Alberta's provincial rights, under a heavily expanded version of the Alberta Agenda. She is a lawyer, politician and mother of four from Edmonton Alberta. Informal polls have shown her to be fighting for the lead in the race with David Crutcher.

Stony Plain (electoral district)

Stony Plain originally styled Stonyplain is a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. The district is mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta using the first past the post method of voting. From 1926 to 1957 Single transferable vote was used in the district.

The Alberta Agenda is a loosely organized political movement initiated by a letter written by prominent Albertans, including future Prime Minister Stephen Harper and 2006 Alberta PC leadership candidate Ted Morton, urging Albertan Premier Ralph Klein to fully exercise Alberta's constitutional powers. The letter was published by the National Post on January 27, 2001, in the wake of the Alberta-based Canadian Alliance's defeat in the 2000 Canadian federal election.

David Crutcher

Campaign slogan:"A new Alberta"

David Crutcher, a member of the Progressive Group for Independent business, backed by Craig Chandler, ran in Calgary-Egmont, and won the largerst percentage of the popular vote of any Alliance candidate in Calgary in the 2004 election.

Craig B. Chandler is a Canadian businessman, pundit, and political and religious activist, with social conservative views such as those expressed when he expressed negative opinions regarding Alberta legislation permitting Gay-Straight Alliances (GSAs) throughout provincial schools. He is a co-founder and executive director of the Progressive Group for Independent Business. He was a candidate at the federal 2003 Progressive Conservative leadership convention and has also been a candidate for Member of Parliament in Ontario and Member of the Legislative Assembly in Alberta.

Calgary-Egmont

Calgary-Egmont was a provincial electoral district in Alberta. The district was one of 83 districts mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta using the first past the post method of voting.

Same-sex marriage is the marriage of two persons of the same sex or gender, entered into in a civil or religious ceremony.

Abortion is the ending of pregnancy due to removing an embryo or fetus before it can survive outside the uterus. An abortion that occurs spontaneously is also known as a miscarriage. When deliberate steps are taken to end a pregnancy, it is called an induced abortion, or less frequently an "induced miscarriage". The word abortion is often used to mean only induced abortions. A similar procedure after the fetus could potentially survive outside the womb is known as a "late termination of pregnancy" or less accurately as a "late term abortion".

Alberta separatism

Alberta separatism is a movement that advocates the secession of the province of Alberta from Canada either by forming an independent nation, by creating a new union with one or more of Canada's western provinces, or by joining the United States.

Paul Hinman

Paul Hinman - Alberta Election 2012 - Wildrose Candidate.jpg

Campaign slogan:"Moving Forward"

Paul Hinman: deputy leader of the Alberta Alliance and the party's only current Member of the Legislative Assembly, representing Cardston-Taber-Warner. Believes that by having its leader in the legislature, the party will get more respect and attention in both the legislature and media. Has been endorsed by Lethbridge Conservative MP Rick Casson and former Little Bow Member of the Legislative Assembly Raymond Speaker.

Gnome-speakernotes.png

Ed Klop

Campaign slogan:"Building Together" Ed Klop: Ed Klop is 38 years old from Red Deer; he ran for the Alberta Alliance in Lacombe-Ponoka. Ed achieved second place taking 18% of the vote.

Ed Klop has focused his platform around party building. His platform includes building constituency associations and the provincial council committees. Klop wants to increase communication through the various organizations in the party, as well as more communication with the membership at large.

Ed believes in building a solid base of conservative policies through regional policy development sessions all over the province, as well as working to increase fundraising and party membership.

Candidates leadership debates

During the leadership election, two debates took place. The debate was hosted by the Freedom Radio Network, a radio show that was broadcast on AM 1140 in southern Alberta.

The entire audio of the debate was broken down into two parts to be rebroadcast later. The debate itself was taped before a live studio audience who purchased tickets beforehand.

Candidate Ed Klop joined the race after the debate and is not featured.

Gnome-speakernotes.png Debate part 1
Gnome-speakernotes.png Debate part 2

The second debate was held on October 18, 2005, in Edmonton. All four candidates participated. The second debate was held by the Party and morderated by Eleanor Maroes.

Campaign controversies

The election race's major developments in October 2005 centred on Craig Chandler and David Crutcher, whom many Alberta Alliance members began increasingly attacking for what they viewed as undesirable spin and campaign tactics. These tactics included attacking leadership candidates, former election, some party policies and the provincial council. The Crutcher team believes many on the council, including Eleanor Maroes, the interim leader, are actively campaigning for other candidates against party rules.

The first blow to the Craig Chandler campaign came on October 18, 2005 when Travis Chase, a former Alberta Alliance candidate in Calgary Fort issued a public statement removing himself from being associated with Craig Chandler and David Crutcher. He announced his support for Marilyn Burns. The result prompted the Craig Chandler campaign to threaten legal action against Travis Chase. On October 25, 2005 Travis responded by issuing a press release,

On October 25, 2005, former party leader Randy Thorsteinson broke his silence and endorsed Ed Klop, and attacking the Chandler campaign. The Crutcher camp responded with a deamon dialer phone message attempting to dismiss the statements as campaign propaganda. Craig Chandler responded with legal action against Randy Thorsteinson.

Speculated candidates

The following people had been mentioned as possible choices to run for leader:

Timeline of campaign developments

See also

Related Research Articles

Canadian Alliance political party

The Canadian Alliance, formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance, was a conservative and right-wing populist federal political party in Canada that existed from 2000 to 2003. The party was the successor to the Reform Party of Canada and inherited its position as the Official Opposition in the House of Commons of Canada and held it throughout its existence. The party supported policies that were both fiscally and socially conservative, seeking reduced government spending on social programs and reductions in taxation.

The Alberta Social Credit Party was a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada, that was founded on social credit monetary policy put forward by Clifford Hugh Douglas and on conservative Christian social values. The Canadian social credit movement was largely an out-growth of the Alberta Social Credit Party. The Social Credit Party of Canada was strongest in Alberta, before developing a base in Quebec when Réal Caouette agreed to merge his Ralliement créditiste movement into the federal party. The British Columbia Social Credit Party formed the government for many years in neighbouring British Columbia, although this was effectively a coalition of centre-right forces in the province that had no interest in social credit monetary policies.

The Canadian Alliance, a conservative political party in Canada, held two leadership elections to choose the party's leader. The first was held shortly after the party's founding in 2000, and the second was held in 2002. The party merged with the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003 to form the Conservative Party of Canada.

Alberta Party

The Alberta Party, formally the Alberta Party Political Association, is a political party in the province of Alberta, Canada. The party describes itself as a centrist and pragmatic party that is not dogmatically ideological in its approach to politics.

Randy Thorsteinson is a politician and businessman in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada.

2004 Alberta general election

The Alberta general election of 2004 was the twenty-sixth general election for the province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on November 22, 2004 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.

2003 Progressive Conservative leadership election

The 2003 Progressive Conservative leadership election was held on May 31, 2003 to elect a leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. Peter MacKay was elected as leader to replace former Prime Minister Joe Clark, who had retired as party leader. In the end, five candidates emerged as challengers for the leadership by the convention date. Two other candidates had participated in the race but both withdrew as contestants before the vote. Quebec Member of Parliament (MP) André Bachand withdrew his candidacy from the race due to financial concerns and backed Peter MacKay. Former Cabinet Minister and Quebec MP Heward Grafftey also withdrew his candidacy from the race due to health concerns and backed David Orchard.

Progressive Group for Independent Business

The Progressive Group for Independent Business (PGIB) is a membership-funded right-wing business group in Canada founded in 1992 with the goal of promoting "less government, lower taxes and political accountability" in Canada. The PGIB claims to have a membership of roughly 6500. Its CEO is Craig Chandler.

2008 Alberta general election

The Alberta general election of 2008 was the twenty-seventh general election for the province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 3, 2008, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.

2012 Alberta general election

The 2012 Alberta general election, formally the 28th general election of Alberta, Canada, took place April 23, 2012, to elect members of the 28th Legislative Assembly of Alberta. A Senate nominee election was called for the same day.

The 2009 leadership election for the Wildrose Alliance Party of Alberta began on June 6, 2009, when leader Paul Hinman officially announced his resignation as leader of the party. This was the third leadership convention for the party under its banners since 2002.

Ric McIver Canadian politician

Richard William "Ric" McIver is a politician and businessman from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, who has served on Calgary City Council (2001–10) and has been an MLA in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta since 2012. He served in several cabinet positions under Premiers Alison Redford, Dave Hancock and Jim Prentice. Following the party's defeat in the 2015 provincial election McIver was chosen interim leader of the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta.

Calgary-Glenmore

Calgary-Glenmore formally styled Calgary Glenmore from 1957 to 1971 is a provincial electoral district in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The district is mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.

Eleanor Maroes is a former politician and life insurance agent from Alberta, Canada. She served as interim leader of the Alberta Alliance Party in 2005.

Reform Party of Alberta (2016–present)

The Reform Party of Alberta is an active political party in Alberta founded in 2016 by Randy Thorsteinson. The party is not related to the former Reform Party of Alberta, which was de-registered by Elections Alberta in 2004, leaving the name available for a new party.

Marilyn Burns is a Canadian lawyer and politician who currently serves as the leader of the Alberta Advantage Party. She was previously active in the Alberta Alliance Party and the Wildrose Party.

References

  1. ^ Randy Thorsteinson endorses Ed Klop and condemns the Chandler campaign
  2. ^ Travis Chase makes a public statement on the election
  3. ^ Press Release from Travis Chase on legal threats by Craig Chandler
  4. ^ Randy Thorstienson responds to threats of legal action by Craig Chandler

Campaign websites

News Articles on the Alberta Alliance leadership campaign

Online Forums covering the Alberta Alliance Leadership election

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.