Members of the United Conservative Party will virtually gather on Saturday to hear a speech by Jason Kenny around 11 a.m. and the ballots will then be mailed. The prime minister last received questions from reporters on April 1, the same day he had a problem filling the blue pickup that led to an announcement about gas taxes. “I am not going to distract myself from the politics of division,” he said when asked about the criticism. He then read some posts from his critics that he called extremists. Kenney later made a joke on the Internet about the schmozzle nozzle. Meanwhile, his opponents continued to blaze him and the process that will see him either re-confirm as leader of the UCP or be defeated on May 18th. “This list has problems,” new UCP MLA Brian Jean said on Friday. “I think there are thousands of people on the list who have not paid for their own subscriptions, but I also know that about 54,000 of the 58,500 are either long-term members or have purchased their own personal credit card subscriptions.” Jean and 11 other members of the UCP started an arbitration dispute within the UCP on March 28, but announced their intention to leave it the day before the Special General Meeting. “Due to political games, this process has been going on for too long. It is time to let the members vote. “I’m sure that if the voting process is fair, Jason Kenney will not get a survivable number from this voter list.”
“WE ARE CONSERVATIVE CONSERVATIVES”
An official from the Association of Local Constituencies also continued to beat the process. Rob Smith said he had heard from many members that the party had the wrong postal address for them. “Members’ information is incorrect and they report that on many occasions they tried to change this information electronically or to contact the party and failed,” said the UCP official from Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills. A party official said Friday that members with address concerns could email the party and re-issue ballots. “This scenario is embedded in the process and that is why we have incorporated over four weeks into the schedule to ensure that everyone receives their ballot and that it can be sent back in time,” Dave Prisco said, defending his decision. of the board to cancel the – individual vote. “20,000 people were expected to show up in a place that could only hold 3,000 people. Something had to be done to make voting safe and accessible to all members.” Smith was among several lawmakers and local presidents who called for the vote to take place in Red Deer instead of by mail. They called on board members to resign if they did not return to the original plan, but the party did not back down. At the same time, two UCP MPs demanded the resignation of the Prime Minister. Both are still in the party. “We are mainstream conservatives, we are not radical, we do not support any agenda other than the fact that we believe we have a tyrannical leader and we want him to replace him,” Smith said. He would not rule out leaving the party if Kenney wins, and suggested that others join him. “If (the UCP) is still led by Jason Kenny, I really question how successfully we can stay together.”
“PROBLEM IN RESULT TRUST”
Concerns about whether people can trust Kenne are now rampant in Alberta, two local political scientists have said. The latest leadership battle between the prime minister and Jean is still under investigation by the RCMP. Kenney was interviewed as part of this research. “My campaign did everything it could to follow all the rules carefully and I’m sure we did,” he said on March 28. “People who really worked with Jason Kenney in 2017 are now questioning whether it will allow a fair trial to proceed. I think ordinary Alberts will have a hard time trusting the outcome if it confirms Jason Kenney’s leadership,” said Lori Williams of Mount . Royal University. The prime minister has focused much of his strategy on celebrating economic improvements, calling his critics extremists and arguing that keeping him is the best chance for another conservative government. Kenney is likely to insist on these points in his virtual speech to members Saturday, said Duane Bratt, also of Mount Royal. “I think they have to frame it based on their interest, which is, ‘A divided UCP could very well lead to the re-election of the NDP.’ “This is the only glue that holds the members together, so it whistles at this point?” said Bratt. Kenney has good news to talk about and sell himself, Bratt said. This includes a balanced budget and the recent abolition of a provincial gas tax. The question Bratt has is: do trust concerns drown out the successes that Kenny needs to talk about? “I do not know if there is a number that people will not distrust. Unless, of course, if Kenney loses and falls below 50%, I think people will believe it,” Bratt said. CTV News Edmonton called on the prime minister’s leadership campaign to respond to this story. With archives by Chelan Skulski of Edmonton CTV News
