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Following a hard fought and very tight election campaign, the dust has settled and the United Conservative Party (UCP) has emerged victorious, winning a majority government in the 2022 Alberta Provincial Election.
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Danielle Smith’s UCP dominated outside Alberta’s two largest cities while retaining enough support in Calgary to overcome an NDP sweep in Edmonton to win their second consecutive majority government.
“To paraphrase our dear friend (former Alberta premier) Ralph Klein, welcome to another miracle on the Prairies,” Smith told cheering supporters on the Calgary Stampede grounds.
Smith thanked the hundreds of thousands of Albertans who voted UCP, but also addressed those who did not.
“Though I didn’t do enough in your judgment to win your support in this election, I will work every day to listen, to improve and to demonstrate to you that I can be trusted to improve on the issues you care so deeply about.”
The UCP were winning or elected in 49 seats to 38 for Rachel Notley’s NDP in the 87-seat legislature, but a final tally was unknown early Tuesday given close races in Calgary.
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The change represents a 14-seat swing compared to the 63-24 vote split between the two parties in 2019.
Jackie Armstrong-Homeniuk runs successful reelection campaign in Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville
In the local riding of Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville, the incumbent, Jackie Armstrong-Homeniuk, secured the seat for the UCP, winning with 57.9 per cent of the vote.
“The constituents of Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville have spoken and have chosen to continue to move Alberta forward,” said Armstrong-Homeniuk following the announcement of her reelection. “Over the course of the campaign, my team and I knocked on over 16,000 doors and we heard time and again that Albertan’s didn’t want to go back, and the election results reflect this.”
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Of the 25,231 reported votes, Armstrong-Homeniuk was able to secure 14,616 in the Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville constituency.
“I am very grateful and proud that the constituents and communities of Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville have once again placed their trust in me to continue to represent them and I will continue to work hard to do so,” said Armstrong-Homeniuk. “I would like to thank my team for their dedication and hard work in ensuring that Fort Saskatchewan-Vegreville stayed blue.”
The other candidates in the election included, Taneen Rudyk with the NDP earning 9,441 votes, independent candidate Kathy Flett garnering 823votes, Kelly Zeleny of the Advantage Party of Alberta earning, 239 votes, and Granny Margaret Mackay with the Solidarity Movement of Alberta securing 112 votes.
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The Alberta New Democrat Party, and Leader Rachel Notley promised to hold the UCP government accountable in their role as Official Opposition.
“I feel tremendous gratitude and pride in the people of Alberta—those who stood up and put their support behind a better future,” said Leader Rachel Notley, as the party won at least 35 of 87 seats on election night.
“Although we did not achieve the outcome we wanted, we took a major step toward it,” said Notley. “The unprecedented growth of our party through this campaign is a warm light, one that gives me so much optimism for the work to come.”
Despite not forming government, the Alberta NDP are taking positives out of this election, pointing to the wide-breadth of experience and backgrounds in the MLAs from across the province. Albertans elected the first Indigenous woman to the Legislature—Jodi Calahoo Stonehouse in Edmonton-Rutherford—and the first Black woman to the Alberta Legislature—Rhiannon Hoyle in Edmonton-South.
Notley thanked party volunteers and supporters, and promised to continue fighting for the priorities of Albertans, and encouraged supporters to continue building inroads for the future of the party.
“My friends, let me be clear, now is not the time to let up. Now is the time to step up and to do the work that has been asked of us. The challenges facing Alberta—economic, environmental, and social—require dedication and determination. We will bring that to Alberta’s Legislature tirelessly.”
With files from Dean Bennett, The Canadian Press.
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