Nenshi’s NDP is still a blank slate. Will the real NDP please stand up? Because I’m not sure what you look like. Come to think of it, I’m not sure the NDP itself knows what it looks like. The post A Work in Progress appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more

Alberta’s UCP government never sleeps. It is always up, always moving, always finding new things to chew on. It is the shark of Canadian politics. The post Opinion | An emboldened Danielle Smith has voters wondering what she’s really up to appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more

To survive a leadership review at this weekend’s United Conservative Party convention, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith is relying on two old adages: “dance with the one that brung you”; and “those who fail to learn from history are doomed to repeat it.” That’s why Smith is pandering to the same social conservatives who helped topple Jason Kenney as UCP leader (and... The post Opinion | Alberta Premier Danielle Smith faces a leadership review this weekend. Here’s what she needs to do to survive appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more

If you were thinking Alberta’s politics is getting particularly crazy these days — you’d be right. I mean, how else to explain why Premier Danielle Smith was recently dabbling in the “chemtrail” conspiracy theory. If you were thinking that’s because Smith has spun out of control — you’d be wrong. Smith is very much in control. She’s just worried about staying... The post Opinion | Danielle Smith is in control of Alberta, but the fringe forces that sank Jason Kenney are trying to pull the premier further to the right appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more

Climate change comes for Jasper Everybody has a Jasper story. In the aftermath of the July wildfire that ripped through Jasper National Park and the Jasper townsite, people from around the world shared theirs. The post “More Extreme Fires” appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more

After his overwhelming victory to become Alberta’s opposition NDP leader in June, Naheed Nenshi abruptly turned into something of a political Bigfoot. There were few sightings of him as he all but disappeared into a summer of backyard barbecues and backroom party confabs with members. Last week, he reemerged. The post Opinion | Naheed Nenshi is still under construction appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more

Too soon? Is it too soon after the devastating fire that ripped through Jasper last week, creating a human tragedy and an ecological disaster, to talk about the fraught politics of wildfires in Alberta? The Alberta Union of Provincial Employees (AUPE) didn’t think so. The post Opinion | Political squabbles and finger pointing abound after the Jasper fire. For some leaders two words get left unsaid appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more

The UCP vs. Alberta’s riding map. It’s the most contentious issue in Alberta politics that we’re not talking about. I give you Alberta’s Electoral Boundaries Commission, which every eight years or so erases and redraws the province’s political ridings like a five-year-old playing with an Etch A Sketch. The post Know Your Boundaries appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more

It was a bloodless coup. Alberta’s opposition New Democratic Party is now being led by a man who wasn’t even a member of the party until entering the leadership race in March. Naheed Nenshi, noted for his “purple revolution” as Calgary mayor from 2020-2011 where he blended Liberal red and Conservative blue ideals, has gone full NDP orange. Or has... The post Opinion | Naheed Nenshi’s bloodless coup to be crowned Alberta’s NDP leader appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more

Voting has begun in the leadership race to choose a new leader of Alberta’s NDP. During the first 48 hours of voting from Monday to Wednesday, more than 27,000 party members cast a ballot. That’s a record for Alberta New Democrats. In fact, everything about the race is record-setting for a party that, with 38 MLAs, is the largest official... The post Opinion | The frontrunner in the race to challenge Danielle Smith could change Alberta for good appeared first on Graham Thomson ..read more