The West Block – Episode 36, Season 12

THE WEST BLOCK

Episode 36, Season 12

Sunday, May 28, 2023

Host: Mercedes Stephenson

Guests:

Rachel Notley, NDP Leader

Ron Liepert, ConservativeCalgary Signal Hill

Evan Menzies, Crestview Strategies

Location:

Calgary, Alberta

Mercedes Stephenson: Voters in Alberta decide tomorrow whether to give Rachel Notley another chance or stay the course with Danielle Smith and its right here in Calgary where the race for premier is down to the wire.

Im Mercedes Stephenson. Welcome to The West Block.

The stakes couldnt be higher in a campaign that is being watched across the country. With rural areas supporting the UCP and Edmonton supporting the NDP, its Calgary and its all-important ridings where the race will be decided. Can Rachel Notley break through?

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And UCP Leader Danielle Smith is no stranger to controversy, including during this campaign. But Smith says shes learned from her mistakes. Will it be enough to keep moderate Conservatives in the UCP tent?

Rachel Notley ended decades of Conservative rule when she was elected Alberta premier in 2015. She lost the last election to Jason Kenney and the United Conservative Party. Now she is locked in a tight battle with the UCP Leader Danielle Smith, who says Notleys record speaks for itself.