Premier Danielle Smith announced her new Cabinet today, following her party’s majority win in the May 29th general election. Smith’s United Conservative Party secured 49 of the 87 seats in the legislature, down from the 63 won by the UCP in 2019 under Jason Kenney. Several high-profile ministers either left the government before the election or lost in the May 29th election, leaving gaps in the key portfolios of finance, health, justice, social services, environment, and mental health and addiction.
The premier also faced the challenge of building her new cabinet in light of the fact the NDP captured all 20 seats in Edmonton, and the majority of UCP seats are in smaller cities and rural cities after the party lost eleven seats in Calgary, the main battleground of the election. Two election races were subject to recounts, Calgary-Acadia and Calgary-Glenmore, and while both recounts will not change the overall result, the deadline to apply for a judicial recount is June 16th.
The new Executive Council that will lead the Alberta government is comprised of 5 women, 20 men and a total of 9 Calgary MLAs. They are:
- Premier and Minister of Intergovernmental Relations – Danielle Smith
- Deputy Premier and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Services – Mike Ellis
- Minister of Advanced Education – Rajan Sawhney
- Minister of Affordability and Utilities and Vice-chair of Treasury Board – Nathan Neudorf
- Minister of Agriculture and Irrigation – RJ Sigurdson
- Minister of Arts, Culture and Status of Women – Tanya Fir
- Minister of Children and Family Services – Searle Turton
- Minister of Education – Demetrios Nicolaides
- Minister of Energy and Minerals – Brian Jean
- Minister of Environment and Protected Areas – Rebecca Schulz
- Ministry of Forestry and Parks – Todd Loewen
- Minister of Health – Adriana LaGrange
- Minister of Immigration and Multiculturalism – Muhammad Yaseen
- Minister of Indigenous Relations – Rick Wilson*
- Minister of Infrastructure – Pete Guthrie
- Minister of Jobs, Economy and Trade – Matt Jones
- Minister of Justice – Mickey Amery
- Minister of Mental Health and Addiction – Dan Williams
- Minister of Municipal Affairs – Ric McIver
- Minister of Seniors, Community and Social Services – Jason Nixon
- Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction – Dale Nally*
- Minister of Technology and Innovation – Nate Glubish*
- Minister of Tourism and Sport – Joseph Schow
- Minister of Transportation and Economic Corridors – Devin Dreeshen*
- President of Treasury Board and Minister of Finance – Nate Horner
*retained their portfolios from previous cabinet
Caucus leadership positions will include:
- Chief whip – Shane Getson
- House leader – Joseph Schow
Treasury Board members will include:
- Nate Horner (president)
- Nathan Neudorf (vice-chair)
- Andrew Boitchenko
- Devin Dreeshen
- Mike Ellis
- Brian Jean
- Dale Nally
- Rajan Sawhney
- Rebecca Schulz
Cabinet policy committees will be chaired by:
- Alberta First – Garth Rowswell
- Building Communities – Martin Long
- Economic Diversification – Jackie Lovely
- Public Safety and Wellness – Scott Sinclair
This new group of ministers was sworn-in at a ceremony at Government House in Edmonton today and will immediately assume their new responsibilities. Next up, the ministers will be briefed by their departmental staff, and mandate letters will likely be issued by the Premier to each minister to give them their marching orders in their new portfolios. The other MLAs will also be sworn-in soon. The legislature is not expected to sit until late October, meaning the newly elected MLAs will spend the next few months hiring staff, setting up their offices, and touring their constituencies on the “summer BBQ circuit”.
We’re Here to Help
For more information and insights about what these developments mean for Alberta’s political landscape, please contact:
Elysa Darling – Senior Strategy Advisor
elysa@prairieskystrategy.ca
587.393.7756
Richard Feehan – Senior Strategy Advisor
feehan@prairieskystrategy.ca
780.940.8956
Rick Fraser – Senior Strategy Advisor
rick@prairieskystrategy.ca
403.701.7584
Colleen Potter – Senior Strategy Advisor
colleen@prairieskystrategy.ca
587.500.2336
Mat Steppan – Senior Strategy Advisor
mat@prairieskystrategy.ca
780.236.1543
Jeff Sterzuk – President
jeff@prairieskystrategy.ca
403.612.1724
Ben Thibault – Senior Strategy Advisor
ben@prairieskystrategy.ca
587.897.6261
Richard Truscott – Vice-President
richard@prairieskystrategy.ca
403.998.0494
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