Premier of Alberta
Premier of Alberta | |
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Premier ministre de l'Alberta | |
Office of the Premier | |
Style |
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Status | Deputy Premier of Alberta |
Website | www |
The premier of Alberta is the head of government and first minister of the Canadian province of Alberta. The current premier is Danielle Smith, leader of the governing United Conservative Party, who was sworn in on October 11, 2022.[1]
The premier of Alberta is the leader of the
By constitutional convention the premier is normally a Member of the Legislative Assembly.
Duties and functions
To be effective, accountable and in line with custom, the premier is expected to hold a seat in the legislature, so the premier serves as the MLA for a riding and is elected as MLA by the constituents of that constituency. As with most government leaders in a parliamentary system, the premier usually wins his or her own election as MLA easily. However, on occasion, a premier has not been re-elected to their seat in a general election, forcing them to run in a by-election in a constituency that comes empty by the resignation of the sitting MLA or other incident. The most recent case of this was Don Getty, who lost his Edmonton-Whitemud seat in the 1989 election and then ran and was elected in a by-election in Stettler. In 2022 Danielle Smith was elected party leader without holding a seat in the legislative assembly, thus becoming premier, and within a few weeks won a seat in a by-election.
List of premiers
References
- ^ Austen, Ian (30 May 2023). "After a Hard-Right Turn, Alberta's Conservatives Retain Power". The New York Times. Retrieved 28 October 2023.
Further reading
- Perry, Sandra E.; Craig, Jessica J. (2006). The Mantle of Leadership: Premiers of the Northwest Territories and Alberta. ISBN 0-9689217-2-8.
- Bradford J. Rennie, ed. (2004). Alberta Premiers of the Twentieth Century. ISBN 978-0-88977-151-2.