It was something Lac La Biche County's Mayor Aurel Langevin says he could have seen coming, but Alberta Premier Alison Redford's sudden resignation on Wednesday evening was still unexpected.
It was something Lac La Biche County's Mayor Aurel Langevin says he could have seen coming, but Alberta Premier Alison Redford's sudden resignation on Wednesday evening was still unexpected.
"I knew that something was coming, but I didn't know what it was," Langevin told the POST. "I saw the premier earlier at the (Alberta Association of Municipal Districts and Counties) convention, and there was no indication this would happen."
Langevin was not the only one who wasn't completely caught by surprise when Redford announced her intention to step down. Lac La Biche-St. Paul-Two Hills MLA Shane Saskiw, a member of the Wildrose opposition party, was present when the announcement was made. He says the premier's resignation is only the first step in restoring public confidence in the government.
"The problems run much deeper than Ms. Redford," Saskiw said. "The Progressive Conservatives (PC) have a sense of entitlement. It's time for Albertans to move forward with a government that's honest."
Redford became Alberta's first female premier on Oct. 7, 2011. With her resignation taking effect on Sunday, March 23, her time as premier was one of the shortest in Alberta's history.
Her last weeks as premier were marked by strong criticism, both from within the PC Party and from across the aisle. Two members of the PC caucus defected to sit as independent MLAs and the party's approval rating sank.
As Langevin said, Redford lost much of the support of her own party members. The out-going premier acknowledged her party's lack of unity seconds before announcing her resignation.
"I am not prepared to allow party and caucus infighting to get in the way of building a better future for our province and for all Albertans," she said.
"It was a sombre occasion," Saskiw said of the announcement. "Obviously, being premier of a province is a difficult job, but the PC candidates are already lining up and I think that's telling."
Dave Hancock, long-serving MLA for Edmonton-Whitemud, has been named interim leader of the Progressive Conservative Party. Saskiw says it will be business as usual for the Wildrose Party in the meantime, but he's not confident the next official PC leader will be able to turn over a new leaf.
Saskiw gave Redford credit for wanting to make improvements to her party, which has governed Alberta for 43 years, but he says she fell victim to the party's inherent problems.
"It's the same culture of entitlement and corruption that prevails," Saskiw said. "It doesn't matter who the party leader is. If you only stand for power, then you don't really stand for anything."
"On election night two years ago, I pledged that we would govern with unity and build prosperity," Redford said near the end of her speech Wednesday evening. "Well, at least we got the prosperity part right."
While Hancock will serve as interim premier, it remains to be seen who will officially take the reins in the Legislature. The PC Party's rules state that a new leader must be chosen in the next six months.
When the Wildrose Party last held a leadership election in 2009, Danielle Smith took Paul Hinman's place as party leader four months after Hinman resigned.
