Danielle Smith will run in Brooks-Medicine Hat byelection
CBC
Two days after winning the vote to become the UCP's new leader, Alberta's premier-designate Danielle Smith announced Saturday that she will run for MLA in a byelection in Brooks-Medicine Hat.
The announcement follows the riding's MLA, Michaela Frey, resigning on Friday. She said it was her "dear hope" that Smith would choose to take her place — and that Smith's vision "will breathe new life into our region."
"The main reason that I am so committed to running in a rural riding is I know that our rural ridings didn't feel like they had the strongest voice during the last years of the COVID pandemic," said Smith.
She's hopeful that the decision sends a signal to rural Albertans that "their voice will be heard, it will be prominent and it will be respected."
In 2019, UCP candidate Frey received more than 60 per cent of the votes in the riding. The next closest candidate received 17.5 per cent of the votes.
In a statement, Gwendoline Dirk, the NDP candidate for Brooks-Medicine Hat for the 2023 election, said she's excited to start her formal campaign in the region.
"I grew up in this region. I live here and I work here. I don't have to guess about what people are concerned about," she said. "I know my neighbours and they know me."
Smith lives about a three hour drive away in High River, Alta., in the riding of Livingstone-MacLeod.
Choosing to run in conservative-leaning Brooks-Medicine Hat is a smart move, said Mount Royal University political scientist Duane Bratt.
It's a similar strategy to what other federal and provincial leaders — including former Alberta premier Don Getty and former B.C. premier Christy Clark have done.
"[Smith] wants a safe seat to ensure that she wins and has a seat in the legislature as premier," said Bratt.
He expects that come the next provincial election in May, Smith will not run in Brooks-Medicine Hat.
"I think this is a temporary arrangement for a couple months, but it solves the political problem for her by being a premier without a seat," said Bratt.
"The expectation is you can be premier without a seat, but you have to try to get into the legislature as quick as possible."
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