After two months of speculation it looks as though it will be a three-dog race for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative party in Alberta — unless a surprise candidate emerges in the next few days prior to the May 30 nomination deadline.
But even if it is just the three candidates, based on the speculation from media pundits and ringing endorsements from several caucus members, including area MLAs Maureen Kubinec and Jeff Johnson, Jim Prentice will be Alberta’s next premier.
An outsider will have a better chance of leaving behind the perceived culture of entitlement that has plagued the governing PCs, proving to voters this party is still able to responsibly steer this province in the right direction.
At least that’s how the thinking goes. Ideas about what prevalent opinions are have been proven wrong time and time again during elections, and it would be unwise to assume this one is a foregone conclusion. This race is important for party members and non-party members alike. Whoever wins will immediately become the province’s next premier. Of course, you can’t have your say without buying a membership to the party, but that’s a different issue.
What’s a more pressing concern in this case is the strong possibility that Alberta’s next premier might be a man who doesn’t hold a seat in the Legislature, and in fact has never been elected as an MLA.
Sure, if he is elected there will undoubtedly a sitting PC MLA who will resign, forcing a byelection in which Prentice would undoubtedly by the preferred Tory candidate. A resignation from Calgary-Elbow MLA Alison Redford, for example, probably wouldn’t surprise too many people.
But even then, it’s not inconceivable that a seatless premier could lose a byelection, forcing him to lead from the sidelines.
These concerns are undoubtedly premature. The nomination deadline has yet to pass, and the election itself is still more than three months away. A lot can change in that time.
But whoever is elected as our new premier, with or without a mandate from the population at large, will wield a lot of power — and that’s going to have an effect on each and every one of us.
We would do well to pay close attention as all of this unfolds and make sure these candidates know what issues are important to us.
