With the release of Elections Alberta’s fourth-quarter party fund-raising disclosures today, we can now report that the NDP raised more money in every quarter of 2022 than the United Conservative Party.
Yesterday’s results show the NDP ahead by more than a million dollars in donations in the final three months of last year, with contributions totalling $3.3 million, compared with the $2 million raised by the UCP.
That brought contributions to the NDP to $7.2 million for the year, compared to a known $4.4 million for the UCP – an important distinction since all NDP contributions go to the party and are accounted for immediately to Elections Alberta, whereas the UCP does not report contributions to constituency associations and leadership donations until March.
So the parties’ true final fund-raising totals may be closer than they appear right now.
Nevertheless, the 2022 donations reported by Elections Alberta today strengthen the narrative that there is now really a two-party system operating in Alberta.
“These contributions are coming directly from Albertans who are seeking change,” said NDP Provincial Secretary Brandon Stevens in a news release today. “Much of the contributions to the UCP came from their own leadership candidates and leadership race.”
Indeed, the political party with the third largest donations isn’t really a political party – it’s the anti-abortion wing of the conservative movement operating as a political party to get around election spending laws.
The Pro-Life Alberta Political Association, operating as a separate political party but in fact part of the UCP’s political apparatus, collected $324,000 in donations in 2022, $111,280 in the fourth quarter.
It is said here its donations should be considered partisan contributions to the UCP, since the Pro-Life Party operates as a public anti-abortion and covert candidate-recruitment auxiliary to the UCP.
By comparison, the would-be third rail in Alberta politics, the Alberta Party, managed to collect donations of only $190,700 last year, just under $105,000 in the final quarter.
The most successful of the openly separatist fringe parties was the Wildrose Independence Party, which managed to collect only $50,000 for the year, $28,000 in the last quarter.
Several other political parties from the Communist Party to the Buffalo Party collected nothing at all.
Mustn’t forget the Green Party of Alberta. They received donations of about $17,500, $8,000 in the last quarter.
“The most successful of the openly separatist fringe parties slightly to the right of the NDP was the Wildrose Independence Party”
I can’t tell-sarcasm or scathing critique.
Either way, good one.
PJP: Typo, written in a hurry on an unfamiliar computer. But funny, as you say, and perhaps accurate, as you suggest. It’s been fixed. DJC
While the right-wing looney political parties seem to be multiplying in abundance, the absence of a centerist party in Alberta is very telling. Every province has a centerist party, or a governing party that will move to the center if it feels it’s in danger for not doing so. But in Alberta things are getting weirder and weirder. I completely expect that there will soon be parties formed called the “Lynch Em’ All”, “Gun Rights” and “Put the Women Back Where They Belong” parties. And I supposed a party calling itself the “Party of the End Times” is not that outlandish anymore. Truth be told, Alberta is not, what it would like to believe about itself, a vibrant place of flourishing ideas. It is in reality a land of demented kook-burgers. Start a political party and people will throw money at it; stand for election and you will get votes.
The question for me is that in this climate of crazy, where is the center these days? Does it include policies to protect public health care, access to family-planning services, maintain a credible and funded public education system, and good public infrastructure? Or, is the center just varying degrees on the hellscape dial?
The HBO series “The Last of Us” was filmed in Alberta. I guess it’s a documentary, too.
Just Me: ” the absence of a centerist party in Alberta is very telling”
spelling aside, you are in denial regarding the very centrist green-washing AB NDP.
The Overton window has been relentlessly dragged to the right … abetted by Libs and NDP and the media.
Just Me: ummm … I think it’s pretty fair to say that they Alberta NDP in its current incarnation is pretty centrist. There is no talk from Rachel Notley or any of her front bench about, say, nationalizing or re-regulating power or gas utilities, or liquor and cannabis retailers, or registry services — although with to respect to that last item, perhaps there should be. (I’d add nationalizing banks, but that’s already even done … ATB, anyone?). Or a guaranteed annual income, or abolishing private child care, or putting employee reps on corporate boards, or any other genuinely lefty ideas.
What they are advocating, is rational, sensible, calm, drama-free good governance. Seems pretty centrist to me.
The current fundraising results seem to a continuation of the trend for 2022 and a bit before that, with the NDP ahead of the UCP and everyone else very far behind.
Fundraising is not always an accurate indication of voter support. If it were, the Federal Conservatives might be celebrating 8 years in power, not the Federal Liberals. However when a Conservative party, which generally attracts larger contributions from well off supporters, consistenly falls behind that has to be a bad sign for them.
Of course, I suppose there is still time for the UCP to somehow boost contributions before the election, now that they have dealt with their leadership issues. However, even if this happens the NDP will still probably still get more small contributions, which often come from motivated supporters, as opposed to the UCP who may get fewer but larger contributions from well off supporters.
Let’s hope that the UCP are finished in May of 2023.
You didn’t mention the once-viable Alberta Liberal Party, in fifth place at $97,000, which says a lot: Pretty much toast since retirement of David Swann (much-admired MLA until 2019 for my riding of Calgary Mountain View ). It looks like we’re a two-party province–until the UCP blows apart.
The Alberta Party’s donation total probably reflects their leader’s campaign in the Medicine Hat by-election. Otherwise, they would likely be in dodo territory too.
“So the parties true final fund-raising totals…”
“So the parties’ true final fund-raising totals…”
Minor niggle.
Lars: There are no mere niggles. Fixed. Thanks. DJC
What I found interesting looking at the Elections Alberta website, that there were 260 pages of donors listed of NDP donations, whereas the UCP only had 134 pages of donors listed.
Politicians should not be allowed to fundraise. “Campaign contributions” are just legalized bribery. Canada is an incredibly rich nation, we can afford to pay for our own elections.
A two party state is a welcome improvement on the decades of one party rule. Alberta is maturing as a political entity. Perhaps in time there will be a viable third option, and it would be truly entertaining if it was the Green Party. After Peak Oil in 2032.