# Alberta Election 2015: "Mother of mercy, is this the end of Alberta Tories?"
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970
**Category:** Politics & Elections
**Created:** [April 18, 2015, 5:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970 "2015-04-18T05:51:46Z")
**Posts on this page:** 20
**Page:** 5
### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/81 "2015-05-06T04:28:16Z")
> [@eschereal](#):
>
> Wow, that looks kind of brutal, I thought you people were supposed to be nice?
Brutal is when you go from a majority government of 156 to a rump of 2, which is what we did to the PC federal party in the 1993 election. It’s on record as the worst melt-down of a party in the Commonwealth.
This, this is just mild discipline. 😉
Of course, no party in Alberta has ever been re-elected to government once they’ve lost it, so who knows if this is a downward spiral for the PCs? Much will depend on how Wildrose does in Opposition over the next four years.
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### Author:  [@Spoons](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoons)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 4:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/82 "2015-05-06T04:39:10Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> This, this is just mild discipline. 😉
It will certainly make this and subsequent governments think twice about provincial government jets, and trips overseas to funerals.
> [@](#):
>
> Of course, no party in Alberta has ever been re-elected to government once they’ve lost it, so who knows if this is a downward spiral for the PCs? Much will depend on how Wildrose does in Opposition over the next four years.
I don’t think it is the beginning of the end for the PCs, but I do think that they are going to spend the next few years taking a long, hard look at what happened, and working to avoid making the same mistakes in the future.
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 4:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/83 "2015-05-06T04:45:13Z")
Skimming the news reports, I saw a tweet that said that the NDP caucus will have 24 women out of 54. If that’s accurate, I think that’s the highest ratio of women in a provincial government ever.
The [Famous Five](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Famous_Five_(Canada)) must be beaming up in Heaven.
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### Author:  [@FloatyGimpy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FloatyGimpy)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 4:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/84 "2015-05-06T04:50:42Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> Skimming the news reports, I saw a tweet that said that the NDP caucus will have 24 women out of 54. If that’s accurate, I think that’s the highest ratio of women in a provincial government ever.
>
> The [Famous Five](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Famous_Five_(Canada)) must be beaming up in Heaven.
I’m home from work today, sick as a dog. Because of them I got my sweaty body out of bed and went and voted.
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### Author:  [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 5:15am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/85 "2015-05-06T05:15:03Z")
[Fr. Raymond de Souza had a classic snipe this morning](http://news.nationalpost.com/full-comment/father-raymond-j-de-souza-is-this-the-end-for-the-alberta-pcs):
_The Progressive Conservative party is like a villain in a horror film. Just when it appears to finally have been killed, it roars back to life, brutally laying waste to all rivals._
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### Author:  [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 6:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/86 "2015-05-06T06:29:35Z")
The Progressive Conservative Party? What does that even _mean_? What kind of screwball politics do you people have up there, anyway? The common clay of the new North? You know, oxymorons?
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### Author:  [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 6:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/87 "2015-05-06T06:38:47Z")
> [@elucidator](#):
>
> The Progressive Conservative Party? What does that even _mean_? What kind of screwball politics do you people have up there, anyway? The common clay of the new North? You know, oxymorons?
You could try skimming the whole thread, it is pretty short. You might [find an answer in this post](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?p=18305193&postcount=13).
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### Author:  [@elucidator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elucidator)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/88 "2015-05-06T06:46:05Z")
Already sorry I asked. I withdraw the question, and back away slowly…
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### Author:  [@Biffster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Biffster)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 7:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/89 "2015-05-06T07:35:25Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#):
>
> Prentice just resigned both as PC leader and as MLA for the riding he just won. No great surprise there.
All that does is reinforce WHY he didn’t make for a very good leader. He is a poor sport.
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### Author:  [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 12:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/90 "2015-05-06T12:25:37Z")
Huh, the NDP in Alberta. Well, it’s not quite as jarring as the fall of the Berlin Wall, but it’s still on a list of things I would not have expected in my lifetime.
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### Author:  [@Raygun99](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Raygun99)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 1:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/91 "2015-05-06T13:03:36Z")
“NDP wins majority in Alberta” is like the headline you see in the time travel movie when you see how much you’ve changed the timeline.
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### Author:  [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/92 "2015-05-06T14:01:01Z")
> [@Gorsnak](#):
>
> Prentice just resigned both as PC leader and as MLA for the riding he just won. No great surprise there.
What is an MLA?
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/93 "2015-05-06T14:08:48Z")
> [@Biffster](#):
>
> All that does is reinforce WHY he didn’t make for a very good leader. He is a poor sport.
It’s not a sporting event (well, maybe a blood sport).
• The people of Alberta have massively repudiated him as Premier.
• He lead the party from a solid majority to third place.
• he doesn’t have a lot of roots or personal support in the party, having spent most of his prior life with the federal Conservative Party.
• he would be facing an automatic leadership review at the next party convention, where he would have to convince the party faithful that having led the party from government to backbench, he’s the guy who the party should rely on in the future.
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### Author:  [@Cyros](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cyros)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 2:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/94 "2015-05-06T14:11:43Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#):
>
> What is an MLA?
[Member of the Legislative Assembly](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Member_of_the_Legislative_Assembly)
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/95 "2015-05-06T14:16:16Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#):
>
> What is an MLA?
Member of the Legislative Assembly.
In other words, “I’m outta here!”
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### Author:  [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/96 "2015-05-06T15:34:08Z")
The NDP kind of has roots in the UFA, via the CCF, right? So this could be vaguely like a party returning to power – after 85 years on the sidelines.
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### Author:  [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/97 "2015-05-06T15:39:17Z")
> [@eschereal](#):
>
> The NDP kind of has roots in the UFA, via the CCF, right? So this could be vaguely like a party returning to power – after 85 years on the sidelines.
Paging the Whig Party! There is hope!
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### Author:  [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/98 "2015-05-06T16:37:20Z")
The National Post has a good graphic of the new electoral map, as well as comparisons of the past four elections. It shows just how major a shift there has been in the Alberta landscape:
> **[National Post](https://nationalpost.com/?b=news.nationalpost.com%2F%2Fnews%2Fcanada%2Fcanadian-politics%2Falberta-election-results-2015-live)**
>
> Read latest breaking news, updates, and headlines. National Post offers information on latest national and international events & more.
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### Author:  [@eschereal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/eschereal)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 6:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/99 "2015-05-06T18:01:14Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#):
>
> The National Post has a good graphic of the new electoral map, as well as comparisons of the past four elections. It shows just how major a shift there has been in the Alberta landscape:
>
> [Home | The National Post Home Page | National Post](http://www.nationalpost.com/m/wp/blog.html?b=news.nationalpost.com//news/canada/canadian-politics/alberta-election-results-2015-live)
That map makes the NDP’s grip look pretty tenuous. Outside of Edmonton strongholds, none of their candidates garnered an actual majority in their ridings, some winning by a third or less of the total vote. Unless they make convincing improvements in the province in the next few years, one of the other parties will suck up the other and blow them off the map.
“First-past-the-post” is kind of a sucky scheme that makes elections like sliding a big rock along some ice toward some guys with brooms to knock the other rock out of the circle.
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### Author:  [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)
#### Post date: [May 6, 2015, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/alberta-election-2015-mother-of-mercy-is-this-the-end-of-alberta-tories/717970/100 "2015-05-06T18:04:16Z")
Maybe I’m the only person in Canada who isn’t surprised by this. I find it completely unremarkable. Dynasties end, and the NDP, thanks to Wildrose, was the successor in waiting.
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