Advertisement

Alberta election: Get to know the provincial party leaders

From left to right: UCP leader Jason Kenney, NDP leader Rachel Notley, Alberta Party leader Stephen Mandel, and Alberta Liberal leader David Khan. The Canadian Press

Albertans are heading to the polls for a spring election on Tuesday, April 16.

The leaders vying for your vote have changed somewhat drastically since the 2015 vote, with Rachel Notley the only leader still representing her party four years later.

Here are some details about the main party leaders.

NDP Leader Rachel Notley

Watch below: Get to know Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley

Click to play video: 'Alberta election: Get to know Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley'
Alberta election: Get to know Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley

Rachel Notley was first elected as an NDP MLA in 2008 and has served the constituency of Edmonton-Strathcona ever since. She lives in the riding with her husband and two teenage children.

Story continues below advertisement

Born in Edmonton and raised in Fairview, Alta., she is the oldest child of Grant and Sandra Notley. Her father led the Alberta NDP from 1968 to 1984.

Notley has a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Alberta and a law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School. She practised labour law and workers compensation advocacy and also served as an adviser to British Columbia’s attorney general.

Notley won the leadership of the Alberta NDP in October 2014, succeeding Brian Mason, who is not seeking re-election in 2019.

In the 2015 provincial election, Notley and her NDP stomped out 44 years of Progressive Conservative dynasty in Alberta.

Notley is once again running in the Edmonton-Strathcona constituency.

UCP Leader Jason Kenney

Watch below: Get to know Alberta UCP Leader Jason Kenney

Click to play video: 'Alberta election: Get to know Alberta UCP Leader Jason Kenney'
Alberta election: Get to know Alberta UCP Leader Jason Kenney

Jason Kenney worked in federal politics for years before making the move to enter provincial politics.

Story continues below advertisement

He was elected as a member of Parliament for the Reform Party in 1997; re-elected with the Canadian Alliance in 2000 and elected four more times with the Conservatives. Kenney held several cabinet posts from 2008 to 2015, including immigration, employment and defence.

Kenney became leader of the Alberta Progressive Conservatives in March 2017, before the party merged with the former Wildrose to become the United Conservative Party. Kenney won the UCP’s leadership race later that year.

Prior to politics, Kenney studied philosophy at the University of San Francisco and was the CEO of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.

Kenney is running in the Calgary-Lougheed constituency.

Alberta Party Leader Stephen Mandel

Watch below: Get to know Alberta Party Leader Stephen Mandel

Click to play video: 'Alberta election: Get to know Alberta Party Leader Stephen Mandel'
Alberta election: Get to know Alberta Party Leader Stephen Mandel

Stephen Mandel is likely most familiar to voters in Edmonton, having sat on city council for 12 years both as a councillor and mayor.

Story continues below advertisement

Mandel was elected an Edmonton city councillor in 2001, before taking the mayor’s chair in 2004. He was re-elected mayor in 2007 and 2010 before announcing in 2013 he would not seek another term.

From there, Mandel made the move to provincial politics. He was named the PC’s health minister and won the Edmonton-Whitemud byelection in 2014. During the 2015 provincial election, Mandel lost his seat.

In February 2018, Mandel won the Alberta Party leadership race, taking over the reins from former leader Greg Clark.

Mandel is running in the Edmonton-McClung constituency.

Alberta Liberal Leader David Khan

Watch below: Get to know Alberta Liberal Leader David Khan

Click to play video: 'Alberta election: Get to know Alberta Liberal Leader David Khan'
Alberta election: Get to know Alberta Liberal Leader David Khan

David Khan was raised in Calgary and has been involved in Liberal politics in the province since the 1990s.

Story continues below advertisement

He served on the Calgary-Buffalo constituency board before running as the Liberal candidate in Calgary-West in the 2014 byelection and in Calgary-Buffalo in the 2015 general election. He lost both of those races.

In 2017, Khan won the Liberal party leadership race, taking over the reins from former leader David Swann.

Khan practised Indigenous law across Canada, representing First Nations government clients at all levels of court, including the Supreme Court of Canada.

Khan is running in the Calgary-Mountain View constituency.

— With files from The Canadian Press.

Sponsored content

AdChoices