Orange is the new blue: How progressive conservatives could help the NDP win power
CBC
Alberta's New Democrats unveiled a new logo at their convention this weekend.
It's a shield housing two stripes of orange, representing the prairie fields, two white mountains, and a light blue stripe of sky.
The colour palette could be an unintentional representation of the mix of the voters — a lot of NDP orange, a little bit of conservative blue — who may pave the NDP's path to victory in next year's provincial election.
Part of the blueprint to get Rachel Notley back into the premier's office is to woo progressive conservative voters into leaning a little left.
How? The convention offers some clues: Upping the emphasis on the economy and honing in on voters in Calgary.
Ironically, the people who could help push the NDP to the 45 of 87 needed seats (44, plus a speaker) may actually be conservatives. But it's not a strategy without hurdles.
Orange and blue signs rippled in the crowd as Notley proclaimed "We've got politically active Albertans joining us today from other progressive traditions" in her speech to just under 1,400 party members.
The NDP is betting there are some "light blue" conservatives who feel politically homeless.
Polling from Janet Brown Opinion Research from the summer shows that on a scale of 0 (strongly left) and 10 (strongly right), 31 per cent of respondents identified as a five — dead in the political centre.
The work is to convince those people to "dip their toes in the NDP waters," said Cheryl Oates, who worked in Notley's premier's office and is back to help with the campaign.
Lou Arab, who is organizing the party's ground game and is also Notley's partner, said they've seen a 332-per-cent increase in identified voters open to voting NDP since the 2019 election. He also said in the 24 hours following Danielle Smith's election as UCP leader, his party raised $100,000.
Monday will also mark the launch of a new NDP advertising push, in part targeting traditionally conservative voters who don't identify with the path the UCP is travelling under its new leader.
The rival parties are pushing similar priorities, as Smith's speech during the UCP convention (also Saturday) spoke to affordability and health care issues as well — albeit, from a different angle.
It's maybe the one thing the two parties can agree on these days: Votes lie in a strong economic offering.
P.E.I.'s Public Schools Branch is looking for 50 substitute bus drivers, and it'll be recruiting at three job fairs on Saturday, June 8. The job fairs are located at the Atlantic Superstore in Montague, Royalty Crossing in Charlottetown, and the bus parking lot of Three Oaks Senior High in Summerside. All three run from 9 a.m. until noon. Dave Gillis, the director of transportation and risk management for the Public Schools Branch, said the number of substitute drivers they're hiring isn't unusual. "We are always looking for more. Our drivers tend to have an older demographic," he said.