Judge reserves decision on fixed election dates
EDMONTON A court case challenging former premier Jim Prentice’s decision to call an early election in 2015 — as well as the meaning of Alberta’s fixed election laws more generally — got its day in court Thursday.
Donald Rigney, who planned to seek a Wildrose Party nomination in the last election, and Tom Engel, an Edmonton defence lawyer, sought an injunction in March 2015 in an attempt to stop Prentice from calling the snap election.
Rigney told the court he had “arranged his affairs” to run for MLA in 2016 — a plan upended by the early election call. He argues his rights under Section 3 of the Charter — which guarantees the right to vote and participate in elections — were violated.
“I had a reasonable expectation that the government would follow the law,” he said Thursday. “Apparently I was wrong.” A judge at the time dismissed the injunction but allowed the case to be heard at a later date.
The May 5, 2015, election proved disastrous for the governing Progressive Conservatives and resulted in just the fourth change in government in Alberta’s history.
Rachel Notley’s NDP won 54 seats and formed government for the first time.
The Wildrose and PCs merged under Jason Kenney in 2017.
Prentice, whose name is still listed as respondent in the case, died in a plane crash in 2016.
Michael Bates, lawyer for the applicants, told the court the name hadn’t been changed for procedural reasons and that the case is really against the President of the Executive Council — one of the premier’s titles.
According to the applicants, Alberta passed legislation in 2011 setting a fixed period in which a premier must ask the lieutenantgovernor to call an election.
They submit that the law was meant to accommodate as many Alberta voters as possible, avoid overlap with local and federal elections and prevent governments from opportunistically calling early elections from positions of strength. The applicants claim the decision to call the 2015 election was unfair — Engel previously called it “illegal.”
The applicants want the courts to determine whether the fixed election law is “meaningless” given the fact premiers can still call early elections, or whether Rigney simply misinterpreted the law.
They want the court to clarify what, if anything, the law means.
Rigney went on to seek the United Conservative Party nomination in Morinville- St. Albert for this year’s election but was unsuccessful.
Engel said if the court finds the law is meaningless, premiers could potentially wait until the end of five years in government to call an election — the maximum time allowed under the constitution.
Christine Enns, a lawyer for the Government of Alberta, told court the legislation is meaningful in that it expresses the legislature’s will to have fixed elections.
However, there are still factors that are “subject to the lieutenantgovernor’s discretion,” which is informed by the constitution.
This year’s Alberta election must happen between March 1 and May 31. The earliest the writ could be dropped is Feb. 1.
Justice Steven Mandziuk reserved his decision for a later date.