‘We must remain united’: Jason Kenney to remain as leader until new is chosen, UCP decides
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Prior to the caucus meeting, MLA Brian Jean, one of Kenney’s loudest critics, said the premier needed to remove himself immediately to allow the party to begin ‘healing’
Publishing date:
May 19, 2022 • 16 minutes ago • 4 minute read • Join the conversation 
Jason Kenney speaks at an event at Spruce Meadows in Calgary on Wednesday, May 18, 2022. During the speech, he announced that he was stepping down as leader of the Alberta UCP party. Jim Wells/Postmedia Article content
Jason Kenney will remain the UCP leader until a new head of the party is chosen.
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UCP caucus chair Nathan Neudorf released a statement Thursday evening after a six-hour caucus meeting, saying the caucus had a “vigorous discussion” regarding the future of the party and the government and decided to affirm Kenney as the leader.
“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,” said Neudorf. “In that spirit, we have affirmed Premier Jason Kenney’s continued leadership of our caucus and government until such time as a new leader is chosen, the timing of which will be determined by the United Conservative Party.”
The caucus meeting came the day after Kenney announced his intention to resign as leader after he received just over 51 per cent support in a leadership review. Kenney publicly released a letter Thursday that he issued to UCP secretary Janis Nett confirming that intent.
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Before the gathering at the McDougall Centre in downtown Calgary on Thursday, Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche MLA Brian Jean, one of Kenney’s loudest critics and a confirmed challenger for the top job, said the premier needed to remove himself immediately to allow the party to begin “healing.”
“The healing process can’t start until Jason Kenney leaves. He knows that, we know that and we need to start the renewal process of the UCP,” said Jean. “Kenney knows parliamentary tradition. It would be parliamentary tradition for him to step down immediately.”
Heading into the meeting, Chestermere-Strathmore MLA Leela Aheer, who was critical of Kenney’s leadership before she was removed from cabinet, said Wednesday was a day of opportunity for the party.
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“The only thing that most of us wanted was to have a leadership race and to be able to engage with our public and earn back their trust,” said Aheer. “I just think it’s a beautiful moment for us to be able to see what happens with all of that.”
Chestermere-Strathmore MLA Leela Aheer speaks with media at McDougall Centre in Calgary before a UCP caucus meeting on Thursday, May 19, 2022. Gavin Young/Postmedia
Several MLAs appeared determined to have a new leader by the end of the caucus gathering, with Calgary-Fish Creek MLA Richard Gotfried, who has been critical of Kenney, saying he was willing to take as long as necessary to make it happen.
“I’ll stay here till three in the morning if we need to, to get that done. But we need to take the opportunity now,” said Gotfried. “The signal has come from Albertans, now’s the time to take that reset button opportunity and to move boldly forward.”
Before the announcement that Kenney would stay on, Lori Williams, a political scientist at Mount Royal University, said the leader of the party, regardless of who it was, will have work to do to address concerns from both inside and outside the party.
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“If the UCP want a new beginning, the sooner they start, the better,” said Williams.
Before the results of the leadership review were made public, Kenney had said he would only need a 50 per cent plus one result to stay on, saying that is a majority in a democratic system.
Williams said that because of those comments she was surprised to hear Kenney announce he would resign. She said she is unsure if he decided himself to step aside or was convinced by others, but that Thursday’s caucus and the opposition he would face probably factored into the decision.
Many of the UCP MLAs entering the McDougall Centre remained tight-lipped about whether they would put their names forward for the top job. Aheer said she believed if she was to be interim leader someone else should put her name forward.
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MLA for Innisfail-Sylvan Lake Devin Dreeshen speaks with media at McDougall Centre in Calgary before a UCP caucus meeting on Thursday, May 19, 2022. Gavin Young/Postmedia
Innisfail-Sylvan Lake MLA Devin Dreeshen declined to comment, saying it was an “interesting question” when asked if he would put his name forward. He said the party has a lot of work to do and needs to remember that their political opponents are the NDP and not each other.
“I think (Kenney’s) team was really surprised. I think they thought they had this in the bag and I think at 51 per cent that really shocked a lot of people,” said Dreeshen.
In the lead-up to the leadership review, senior political staffers took to Twitter to compare members of the party who disagreed with Kenney to clowns, and often criticized Jean and fellow critic and former Wildrose leader Danielle Smith for failing to win general elections in the past.
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NDP Leader Rachel Notley said Thursday her party is united and ready to take on whoever is leading the UCP in next year’s provincial general election.
“Our message is no matter who the leader is, is that we are ready. We are more than ready and so it doesn’t really matter who ultimately is leading them into the next election. The fact is that they’ve got a record, and I’ll put mine up against that one any time,” said Notley.
Meanwhile, Smith reannounced Thursday her intention to seek the top job with the UCP. She thanked Kenney for his time as premier but called the leadership review a real grassroots resolution.
— With files from Michael Rodriquez and Brittany Gervais
dshort@postmedia.com
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