Alberta liberals divided over unified centre
Meeting between self-described centrists raises possibility of ‘co-operative venture’
As centrist politicians in Alberta try to find common ground across party lines, the issue is exposing a long-standing divide in the provincial Liberal party.
Former Edmonton mayor and Progressive Conservative cabinet minister Stephen Mandel is one of the organizers of a private meeting in Red Deer Saturday to discuss the possibility of unity or cooperation among self-described centrists.
Alberta Party Leader Greg Clark will attend the meeting, as will Liberal leadership candidate Kerry Cundal.
The other candidate for the Liberals’ top job, David Khan, won’t go to the meeting however. And the party won’t send an official delegation to the event.
Current Liberal Leader David Swann, who holds the party’s only seat in the legislature, said in a recent interview that the timing of the meeting is problematic because the party is in the midst of a leadership campaign that will be decided in June.
But he acknowledged there is a long-running split among Alberta Liberals between those interested in working with other parties — and potentially forming something new — and those determined to stick with the Liberal brand and rebuild the party.
“It’s always been a question because we have not been in government for 100 years and the question for all of us is, ‘ how do we best serve Albertans?’
“Is it through the Liberal party or is it through some sort of cooperative venture?” said Swann, the MLA for Calgary-Mountain View.
In 2010, Swann — facing the then-PC government in his first turn at the helm of the Liberal party — proposed talks with both the NDP and Alberta Party.
But neither party was receptive to the idea and Swann also faced a backlash from within Liberal ranks.
“It didn’t go very well for me,” he acknowledged.
“So there’s this ongoing debate ... and it will go on and on and people will go in and come out on the basis of that until ultimately a decision is made by the new leader and new board. I don’t think anyone is opposed to talking but certainly we haven’t seen any huge momentum.”
The discussions around potential co-operation has taken on new life with the election last month of former MP Jason Kenney as Tory leader on a platform of uniting the PCs and Wildrose. Kenney and Wildrose Leader Brian Jean have formed a discussion group with representatives of each party to discuss a unified entity.
Mount Royal University political scientist Duane Bratt said there could be potential in a centrist alternative to the NDP government and a more right-leaning conservative opposition, but believes it would require a truly unified party made up of Liberals, Alberta Party and disgruntled PC members.
But he noted that many Alberta Liberals — despite not holding government since 1921 — are reluctant to relinquish the legacy of the federal party and the provincial party’s periods of being a strong opposition in the 1990s and 2000s.
“Given the damage that’s been done to the brand for so long, it’s going to be tough,” said Bratt.
In a recent news release, Cundal confirmed she would attend the Red Deer meeting and stated her interest in the “unite-the-centre” idea.
“I want to see us reaching out to people who are not necessarily Liberals, but share our values and our principles ... I am ready to sit down with people who share our principles and our vision for Alberta,” she said.
In a message, Khan dismissed the Red Deer event and said that his focus was on rebuilding the Alberta Liberal party.
“I’m not interested in closed door ‘secret’ meetings with political insiders,” he said.