The United Conservative Party of Alberta is more than a month away from announcing the results of its leadership review, but the validity of the result is already under control. Alberta’s prime minister and UCP leader Jason Kenney faces a deeply divided parliamentary group and party members. A special general assembly convened to determine his future as leader began last weekend with what was equivalent to a pre-election rally for him at Red Deer. UCP members have until May 11th to return their ballots by post and the results are scheduled to be announced on May 18th. Mr. Kenney must secure more than 50 percent support to avoid being ousted from the top of the UCP. But the party’s board changed voting rules several times last month, leaving critics within the UCP to question whether the results could be credible. “At this stage, unfortunately, this is happening,” said Jack Redekop, who served as Kenney’s chief financial officer when the prime minister was a federal politician. “Because he has made so many changes, there is no way.” Mr Redekop is chairman of the UCP constituency association for Calgary-Fish Creek, but noted that he was speaking as a member and not as a local executive. He declined to say whether he supported Mr Kenney. The vote was originally scheduled to take place in person on April 9, but the increase in membership registered for the meeting prompted the party official to turn to postal ballots by mail and extend the voting period. Last week, the UCP told local media that party members who preferred not to post the ballots could leave them at equestrian offices, sparking criticism that the move would create opportunities for ballot falsification. “It was a gong show by the party executive at every turn,” Mr Redekop said. Patrick Malkin, president of the UCP Red Deer-South constituency, caught the crowd at the hotel and convention center in Cambridge on Saturday for Mr. Kenney’s speech. He went to the hotel only to be told that he was not among the invited and registered attendees. Mr Malkin watched the speech online and endorsed much of what Mr Kenny said. But when the leader spoke of unity, Mr Malkin was unbearable. “Where is the unity in the removal of members in a special general assembly?” said Mr. Malkin. “It’s not unifying. that’s divisive. “ It could also cause technical problems, he said. If members were not allowed in the special general assembly, he argued, perhaps the gathering was in fact a private function. The UCP can not conduct party activities in such an environment, Mr Malkin said. Dave Prisco, a spokesman for the UCP, argued that the in-person assembly was not the actual special assembly. “There was no face-to-face event, but there was a small joint studio made up of volunteers who were invited to attend the talk,” he said in a statement. In his speech, Mr. Kenney warned that his removal would spark a leadership race that would further divide the UCP, as would-be candidates reiterate COVID-19 policies. That, Mr Kenney told a group of supporters, some of whom were waving campaign signs, would give the New Democratic Party a chance to return to government. “I’m really afraid that if we choose the path of division, there will be a wedge right in the middle of our party from which we may never recover again,” he said on Saturday. “And there is only one person who benefits from it and her name is Rachel Notley.” Erika Barootes, the founding president of the UCP, supports Mr Kenney. The UCP executive, he said, would address questions about the integrity of the vote regardless of how they decided to handle the influx of registrations. “The party has finally reached the best way, which is one member, one vote,” he said. “But there will be people who will criticize the process or try to position themselves to take advantage of any decision.” Ms Barootes, who is no longer an executive member of the UCP, said that regardless of whether Mr Kenney wins, the party has work to do internally. “A close vote means it is divided,” he said. We have a weekly newsletter for Western Canada compiled by the heads of our offices in BC and Alberta, providing a comprehensive package of news you need to know about the area and its position on issues facing Canada. Register today.
