By Sean Oliver, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Shootin’ the Breeze
May 23, 2022
One day after Premier Jason Kenney announced he would step down as leader of the United Conservative Party, the party caucus has announced he will remain at the party’s head until a new leader is chosen.
Kenney received just over 51 per cent of votes during the UCP leadership review. Of the total 59,000 mail-in ballots issued, only 34,000 votes were received.
Though achieving a majority of votes was all he needed to maintain his position, the premier said during his resignation speech that such a slim majority was “not adequate support to continue on as leader” and that the party needed to move forward unitedly and “clear the air through a leadership election.”
UCP caucus chair Nathan Neudorf released a statement today saying that the party has decided to affirm Kenney’s continued leadership until a new leader is chosen.
“We agreed that we must remain united, focused on the best interests of Albertans, and committed to doing the job Albertans elected us to do,” the statement reads.
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The time frame for selecting a new leader will be determined by the party in the near future. Former Wildrose leaders Brian Jean and Danielle Smith have both indicated they will be among those seeking leadership of the party.
