Results May 18: Balloting complete in membership review of Alberta Premier Kenney
Volunteers began checking voter identification Thursday in a mail-in leadership review of Alberta Premier Jason Kenney and, if so inclined, the public could watch a livestream of the work on the United Conservative Party website.
“Volunteers are verifying that each ballot package received meets the requirements. If it is, then the sealed ballot secrecy envelope is placed in the ballot box for (future) counting,” party spokesman Dave Prisco said in a statement.
“This entire process is being overseen by the returning officer, scrutineers and (third-party audit firm) Deloitte Canada.”
Prisco said ballots are to be counted and the results announced via livestream next Wednesday.
Ballots were sent out a month ago to almost 60,000 eligible party members. The question is simple: “Do you approve of the current leader? Yes or No?”
The vote has been under a cloud.
Correspondence obtained by The Canadian Press indicates Elections Alberta is investigating allegations of possible illegal bulk buying of party memberships.
Elections Alberta, as per legislation, cannot confirm whether an investigation is ongoing. The party has said it has not been informed of any such review.
It has been a winding path to get to this point.
The review was delayed by a year and then pushed up to an in-person vote in Red Deer, Alta., on April 9 after fierce demands from almost two dozen constituency associations.
The expected 3,000 or so expected voters ballooned to 15,000. The party executive, citing a difficulty of logistics, announced the vote would be expanded to all 59,000-plus members and balloting done by mail.
Kenney opponents say the change was made because the large in-person voter rolls indicated Kenney was going to lose.
The board has denied that.
Kenney won the party's inaugural leadership review in 2017 in a race marred by allegations of collusion and voting irregularities. A multi-year RCMP investigation into allegations of criminal voter identity fraud continues.
The fallout from that review, coupled with suspicion over last-minute changes to this vote, has led to concerns over whether it will be conducted fairly. UCP president Cynthia Moore has said she is confident everything will be handled above board.
Kenney said as recently as this week that he is confident he will stay in the top job and that most of the party wants to move forward united.
The leadership review has become the cudgel that disgruntled party members and backbenchers have used to try to take Kenney to task for what they say are failures in leadership, sluggish fundraising and lagging poll numbers that suggest the door is wide open for an NDP win in next spring's election.
Members also criticized Kenney for COVID-19 pandemic health restrictions they deemed needlessly excessive.
Kenney and his staff have publicly crossed swords with several backbench caucus members who say he promised leadership driven by grassroots advice, but has delivered a tight-fisted, top-down administration that has ignored most input except for a small group of advisers.
Kenney in turn has characterized his opponents as extremists, hate pedlars, lunatics and kooks seeking to oust him. He has suggested that, by doing so, they risk pulling out the centre pole of his big-tent conservative party and reducing it to a rump of anger ripe for destruction.
Kenney needs 50 per cent, plus one, to stay on. If he doesn't, he has promised to quit - as per the rules - so a race could begin to pick a new leader.
If he wins, he has said, malcontents on his backbench will be expected to fall in line or face yet-to-be named consequences.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 12, 2022.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
China rebukes U.S., Canadian navies for Taiwan Strait transit
China's military rebuked the United States and Canada for 'deliberately provoking risk' after the countries' navies staged a rare joint sailing through the sensitive Taiwan Strait.

Alcohol policies in every province, territory receive failing grade in meeting public health standards: report
A new report has found that alcohol policies in all provinces and territories are failing to meet public health standards.
Four kids and one man drown after Quebec fishing accident: provincial police
A fishing excursion ended in tragedy on Saturday when four children died in a village in northeastern Quebec, provincial police said.
Antipsychotic drugs use increased in Canadian long-term care homes, pointing to possible quality-of-care issues: study
New study finds increase in antipsychotic drugs use in long-term care homes across Canada, despite no significant increase in behavioural symptoms – something that may expose a potential area of concern for quality of care, researchers say.
Officials declare Halifax-area wildfire largely contained as rain brings relief
Heavy rain and some military reinforcements arrived to assist efforts on Saturday to quell the wildfires that have destroyed homes and caused the evacuation of thousands of people across Nova Scotia.
Forest fires in Northern Quebec: Another 2,000 evacuated from their homes
Another northern Quebec town was evacuated due to an out of control wildfire on Saturday as the federal government confirmed that Canadian Forces personnel would be deployed to help combat forest fires in the province.
'Very good outcome' for sale of Ottawa Senators expected in the next few weeks, NHL Commissioner says
NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman says the process to sell the Ottawa Senators is moving forward as "quickly as possible," and the New York-based company overseeing the sale is advising to "expect a very good outcome in the next few weeks."
Fighting climate change or funding fossil fuels? America wants it 'both ways': U.S. ambassador
The U.S. Ambassador to Canada says America 'absolutely wants to have it both ways' when it comes to fighting climate change while pursuing fossil fuel projects.
More than 5,000 new species discovered at future deep-sea mining site in Pacific Ocean
More than 5,000 new species have been discovered at an expansive future deep-sea mining site in the Pacific Ocean.