Rachel Anne Notley (born April 17, 1964) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

politician who served as the 17th

premier of Alberta The premier of Alberta is the first minister for the Canadian province of Alberta, and the province's head of government. The current premier is Danielle Smith, leader of the United Conservative Party, who was sworn in on October 11, 2022. The ...

from 2015 to 2019, and has been the

leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

since 2019. She sits as the member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for

Edmonton-Strathcona Edmonton-Strathcona is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. It shares the same name as the federal electoral district of Edmonton Strathcona. The boundaries of Edmonton-Strathcona include the neig ...

, and is the leader of the

Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party (french: Nouveau Parti démocratique de l'Alberta), commonly shortened to Alberta's NDP, is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada. It is the provincial Alberta affiliate of the federal New Demo ...

(NDP). The daughter of former Alberta NDP leader

Grant Notley Walter Grant Notley (January 19, 1939 – October 19, 1984) was a Canadian politician. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1971 to 1984 and also served as leader of the Alberta NDP from 1968 to 1984. Early life Notl ...

, she was a lawyer before entering politics; she focused on labour law, with a specialty in workers' compensation advocacy and workplace health and safety issues. Notley was first elected to the Legislative Assembly in the 2008 provincial election, succeeding former NDP leader

Raj Pannu Rajinder Singh "Raj" Pannu (born January 12, 1934) is a Canadians, Canadian educator and politician, who led the Alberta New Democratic Party from 2000 to 2004. Pannu was born in Punjab, India, Punjab, India completing an undergraduate degree b ...

. Six years later on October 18, 2014, Notley won the Alberta New Democratic Party leadership election on the first ballot with 70% of the vote and went on to lead the party to a

majority A majority, also called a simple majority or absolute majority to distinguish it from #Related terms, related terms, is more than half of the total.Dictionary definitions of ''majority'' aMerriam-Webster2015 provincial election, ending 44 years of rule by the

Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta (often referred to colloquially as Progressive Conservative Party of Alberta) was a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta that existed from 1905 to 2020. The party f ...

. In the 2019 provincial election, the NDP government was defeated by the

United Conservative Party The United Conservative Party of Alberta (UCP) is a conservative political party in the province of Alberta, Canada. It was established in July 2017 as a merger between the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta and the Wildrose Party ...

, making Notley the Opposition leader.

Background

Notley was born on April 17, 1964, in

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, and was raised outside of the town of

Fairview, Alberta Fairview is a town in Peace Country, Alberta, Canada. It is located southwest of Peace River and north of Grande Prairie at the intersection of Highway 2 and Highway 64A. History In 1928, the railroad extended west from Whitelaw through the ...

, the daughter of Sandra Mary "Sandy" (Wilkinson) and Alberta NDP Leader and MLA

.Legislative Assembly of Alberta
She is the first Alberta premier to be born in Edmonton. Notley is the sister of Paul Notley and Stephen Notley, author and illustrator of ''

Bob the Angry Flower ''Bob the Angry Flower'' is a webcomic that tells the exploits of an easily angered anthropomorphic flower named Bob and his interactions with the world, often in search of either global domination or love. Though the comic strip features a range ...

''. Her mother, a devout

Anglican Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...

, was born in

Concord, Massachusetts Concord () is a town in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, in the United States. At the 2020 census, the town population was 18,491. The United States Census Bureau considers Concord part of Greater Boston. The town center is near where the conflu ...

, and moved to Alberta as an adult. Notley was unafraid to challenge older political leaders as a college student, even asking her father at an Alberta NDP public meeting on poverty and student debt for his advice to a "poor student whose parents made too much money for her to get a loan while at the same time being too cheap to give her enough money to buy food." Notley credits her mother Sandy with getting her involved in activism, taking Notley to an anti-war demonstration before she was even ten years old. She remained unsure about whether or not to enter public office until she was in her 30s. Alongside her own family background, Notley has also cited her

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

social studies teacher Jim Clevette as having made a lasting impact when it comes to her interest in politics. She has also claimed

Jack Layton John Gilbert Layton (July 18, 1950 – August 22, 2011) was a Canadian academic and politician who served as the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) from 2003 to 2011 and leader of the Official Opposition in 2011. He previously sat on To ...

as being a personal hero. Notley was a twenty-year-old undergraduate at the

University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexander Cameron Rutherfor ...

when her father died on October 19, 1984. After attending a large party she received a call at four in the morning from Tom Sigurdson, her father's executive assistant, stating that there had been a plane crash and that she should return home. This was not the first accident her father had been in; as part of his frequent trips across the province he had already been in several other plane accidents as well as an automobile collision with an

elk The elk (''Cervus canadensis''), also known as the wapiti, is one of the largest species within the deer family, Cervidae, and one of the largest terrestrial mammals in its native range of North America and Central and East Asia. The common ...

. Fellow NDP MLA and future Alberta NDP leader Ray Martin later called to confirm to Notley that her father was indeed dead. It was then left up to Notley to inform her mother of the news. A day after her election as Alberta NDP leader, she would lead the 30th anniversary memorial of her father's death. Notley earned a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

(BA) in

Political Science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

at the

, and a

law degree A law degree is an academic degree conferred for studies in law. Such degrees are generally preparation for legal careers. But while their curricula may be reviewed by legal authority, they do not confer a license themselves. A legal license is gra ...

Osgoode Hall Law School Osgoode Hall Law School, commonly shortened to Osgoode, is the law school of York University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The law school is home to the Law Commission of Ontario, the Journal of Law and Social Policy, and the '' Osgoode Hall L ...

. While at Osgoode Hall she became active in the 1989 federal NDP leadership convention where she endorsed second-place finisher and former BC premier

Dave Barrett David Barrett (October 2, 1930 – February 2, 2018) was a politician and social worker in British Columbia, Canada. He was the 26th premier of British Columbia from 1972 to 1975. Early life and career Barrett was born in Vancouver, Britis ...

. She is married to Lou Arab, a communications representative for the

Canadian Union of Public Employees The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE; french: Syndicat canadien de la fonction publique, links=no; french: SCFP, link=, label=none) is a Canadian trade union serving the public sector – although it has in recent years organized workpl ...

(CUPE) and a campaign strategist for the party. She lives with him and their two children in the

historic district A historic district or heritage district is a section of a city which contains older buildings considered valuable for historical or architectural reasons. In some countries or jurisdictions, historic districts receive legal protection from c ...

Old Strathcona Old Strathcona is a historic district in south-central Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Once the commercial core of the separate city of Strathcona, the area is now home to many of Edmonton's arts and entertainment facilities, as well as a local s ...

located in south-central Edmonton. Notley is a cyclist, jogger, and skier, as well as a reformed smoker.

Activism

After law school, Notley articled for Edmonton labour lawyer Bob Blakely, and went on to work for the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees representing members with

Workers' Compensation Workers' compensation or workers' comp is a form of insurance providing wage replacement and medical benefits to employees injured in the course of employment in exchange for mandatory relinquishment of the employee's right to sue his or her emp ...

cases. In 1994, Notley moved to

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

, British Columbia, where she worked for the Health Sciences Association of BC as their occupational health and safety officer. During her time in BC, she worked for one year as a ministerial assistant to

Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general or attorney-general (sometimes abbreviated AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. The plural is attorneys general. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have exec ...

Ujjal Dosanjh Ujjal Dev Dosanjh ( pa, ਉੱਜਲ ਦੇਵ ਦੁਸਾਂਝ) (), (born September 9, 1947) is a Canadian lawyer and politician. He served as the 33rd premier of British Columbia from 2000 to 2001 and as a Liberal Party of Canada member of ...

. In this role, she was part of the team that first expanded the application of BC's family relations laws to same sex couples, several years before the

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

took similar initiatives. Notley acted as a representative of the provincial labour movement in the negotiation and drafting of new workplace health and safety standards. During her time in Vancouver, Notley was active with "Moms on the Move", an organization that advocated for the rights of special needs children. She is also a past board member of the

Vancouver Community College Vancouver Community College is a public community college in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Founded in 1965, it is the largest and oldest community college in British Columbia, offering 91 certificate programs, 31 diploma programs, and 3 bac ...

. Notley returned to Edmonton in 2002. She worked for a short time for the

National Union of Public and General Employees The National Union of Public and General Employees (NUPGE) is a Canadian trade union. Taken in total it is the second largest union in Canada. Most of its 425,000 members work in the provincial public service sector. There is also a large and gr ...

(NUPGE), worked at Athabasca University, acted as volunteer co-ordinator for the Friends of Medicare "Romanow Now" campaign, and finally as a labour relations officer for the

United Nurses of Alberta The United Nurses of Alberta (UNA) is a trade union representing more than 30,000 Registered Nurses, Registered Psychiatric Nurses, and allied health workers in Alberta, Canada. UNA negotiates collective bargaining with the employers, of which t ...

. Notley did volunteer work with the Strathcona Community League in 2006, assisting with a drive to garner support for the installation of sidewalks in east Strathcona.

Early political career

Entry into provincial politics

Alberta Budget 2009 NDP MLA Rachel Notley

Notley headed the election-planning subcommittee for the Alberta NDP in 1991, two years before the 1993 provincial election which shut the party out of the legislature. She became involved again with Alberta provincial politics in 2000 following the resignation of Pam Barrett as both Alberta NDP leader and the MLA for Edmonton-Highlands. Notley traveled to Edmonton to help

Brian Mason Brian David Mason (born October 12, 1953) is a Canadian politician who was leader of the Alberta New Democratic Party from 2004 to 2014 and served the Minister of Transportation in Rachel Notley's NDP government. He also served as the Governme ...

successfully retain the seat for the Alberta NDP in the face of a concerted effort by the

Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party (french: Parti libéral de l'Alberta) is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1905, it is the oldest active political party in Alberta and was the dominant political party until the 1921 election ...

to take it back. In October 2006, she was nominated by acclamation as the Alberta NDP candidate in the provincial constituency of

, succeeding former Alberta NDP leader

. The event was attended by then Federal NDP leader

. Notley had previously considered running in the 2004 provincial election, but had refrained from doing so because her two children were still toddlers at the time. She was subsequently elected as an MLA in the 2008 Alberta provincial election. She was re-elected in the 2012 Alberta provincial election with the highest share of the vote of any MLA in Alberta at that time. One month after her election in 2008 two

Greenpeace Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by Irving Stowe and Dorothy Stowe, immigrant environmental activists from the United States. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth t ...

protesters sneaked into the

Shaw Conference Centre The Edmonton Convention Centre (ECC, formerly the Shaw Conference Centre), is a meeting, entertainment, and convention venue located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Opened in 1983, it is managed by Explore Edmonton, the destination marketing org ...

in Edmonton during a fundraising dinner for then Progressive Conservative premier

Ed Stelmach Edward Michael Stelmach (; born May 11, 1951) is a Canadian politician and served as the 13th premier of Alberta, from 2006 to 2011. The grandson of Ukrainian immigrants, Stelmach was born and raised on a farm near Lamont and fluently speaks ...

to unfurl a banner that read "Stelmach: The Best Premier Oil Money Can Buy" in protest of his government's environmental policies. One of the protesters, a woman by the name of Denise Ogonoski, worked two days a week in Notley's constituency office. Notley described the issue as being a "personnel matter", saying that it was something she was "going to discuss with her in person and not through the media." During her early days in office, Alberta NDP leader

found her to be quick on her feet with an outgoing and warm personality. He also described her as being very nervous immediately after she was first elected as an MLA, not wanting to be left alone as the party's sole member in the legislature even when Mason was only leaving to go to the washroom. Despite these initial problems, Mason said she would go on to become "an articulate and passionate politician, a parliamentarian and a very, very effective communicator." On October 18, 2014, Notley won the

leadership Leadership, both as a research area and as a practical skill, encompasses the ability of an individual, group or organization to "lead", influence or guide other individuals, teams, or entire organizations. The word "leadership" often gets view ...

of Alberta's New Democratic Party with 70% support, succeeding Brian Mason and becoming the 9th leader of the party. She defeated fellow MLA

David Eggen David Manson Eggen (born 1962) is a Canadians, Canadian politician. He is a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, in 2019 he was elected as the member representing Edmonton North West. He previously served three terms as the member re ...

and union leader

Rod Loyola Rodrigo Alonso Loyola Salas (born February 28, 1974) is a Canadian politician who was elected in the 2015 Alberta general election to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta representing the electoral district of Edmonton-Ellerslie and re-elected on ...

on the first ballot. In addition to serving as party leader, Notley was critic for Health, International and Intergovernmental Relations, Status of Women, Justice, and Executive Council.

2015 election

Notley's first leadership test was in the May 5, 2015 provincial election. Following the reveal of a budget that slashed social spending, raised taxes and fees, and held the line on low corporate taxes, the incumbent Progressive Conservative premier,

Jim Prentice Peter Eric James Prentice (July 20, 1956 – October 13, 2016) was a Canadian politician who served as the 16th premier of Alberta from 2014 to 2015. In the 2004 federal election he was elected to the House of Commons of Canada as a candidate ...

, called the election. With the Official Opposition

Wildrose Party The Wildrose Party (legally Wildrose Political Association, formerly the ''Wildrose Alliance Political Association'') was a conservative provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. The party was formed by the merger in early 2008 of the Albe ...

reeling from a series of floor crossings and mass defections, most pundits and commentators felt that the PCs had a good shot at winning their thirteenth consecutive majority in the Legislature. With strong polling in Edmonton, some felt the Alberta NDP would form the official opposition. By the middle of the campaign, however, pollsters began predicting a three-way race between the Progressive Conservatives, the Alberta NDP, and the Wildrose Party. Notley had managed to capitalize on the unpopularity of the PCs' budget, stating that she would instead raise corporate taxes and rollback fees and cuts. The sole televised leaders' debate proved to be a turning point, with Notley largely viewed as having the best performance. Jim Prentice also came under fire for saying "I know math is difficult" to Notley, in reference to the embarrassing miscalculation in the proposed NDP budget released two days prior, a remark which was widely seen as sexist and patronizing. Despite her strong performance, Notley herself admitted to having been extremely nervous leading up the event. By the final week, the NDP emerged as the front runner. Notley herself said that she first realized she would be Alberta's next premier when she took a break in her hotel room a week before the election to read a credible poll that put the NDP solidly in first place. While she initially planned a whirlwind schedule to close out the campaign, she realized that this would have not only left her looking extremely haggard during her victory speech, but also would have left her without time to make plans for a transition. On election night, the NDP won 54 seats, re-electing their four incumbents as well as 50 new members to the Legislative Assembly. The NDP had been expected to make a strong showing in

, which has traditionally been much friendlier to centre-left candidates than the rest of Alberta. However, they took every riding in the capital, all by very large margins—a result that exceeded even the most optimistic NDP projections. Even more surprisingly, the NDP took 15 seats in

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

, long reckoned as the power base for both the provincial and federal Tories. This was mainly due to massive vote splitting between the Tories and Wildrose—a phenomenon which allowed the NDP to sweep

Red Deer The red deer (''Cervus elaphus'') is one of the largest deer species. A male red deer is called a stag or hart, and a female is called a hind. The red deer inhabits most of Europe, the Caucasus Mountains region, Anatolia, Iran, and parts of wes ...

. The NDP also swept the city of

Lethbridge Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 101,482 in its 2019 Alberta municipal censuses, 2019 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian ...

in its own right and won 16 seats in the rest of Alberta, mostly in the northern and central parts of the province.

Premiership

Notley held her first caucus meeting as Premier-designate on May 9, 2015. Three days later, Notley announced that she would be retaining the previous head of the Alberta public service, Richard Dicerni, as well as appointing NDP party strategists Brian Topp and Adrienne King as her

chief of staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

and deputy chief of staff, respectively. She also met with outgoing Premier Jim Prentice that same day, in addition to extending the deadline for the province's school boards to submit their budgets, her first major deviation from the previous Progressive Conservative government's financial commitments as Premier-designate. On May 22, 2015, Notley suspended

Calgary-Bow Calgary-Bow is a provincial electoral district in the city of Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The district is one of 87 districts mandated to return a single member (MLA) to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta using the first past the post method of ...

MLA Deborah Drever from the Alberta NDP caucus after a series of controversial postings by Drever were discovered on

social media Social media are interactive media technologies that facilitate the creation and sharing of information, ideas, interests, and other forms of expression through virtual communities and networks. While challenges to the definition of ''social medi ...

websites such as

Instagram Instagram is a photo and video sharing social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. The app allows users to upload media that can be edited with filters and organized by hashtags and geographical tagging. Posts can ...

and

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...

."Here's the image that finally got NDP MLA Deborah Drever suspended from caucus"
''

Calgary Herald The ''Calgary Herald'' is a daily newspaper published in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. Publication began in 1883 as ''The Calgary Herald, Mining and Ranche Advocate, and General Advertiser''. It is owned by the Postmedia Network. History ''The ...

'', May 22, 2015. Notley had previously announced that she had directed Drever, as a result of the media attention, to create a plan to improve education on violence against women, particularly outreach to groups working with vulnerable young women. This was before a later image surfaced which was considered to be

homophobic Homophobia encompasses a range of negative attitudes and feelings toward homosexuality or people who are identified or perceived as being lesbian, gay or bisexual. It has been defined as contempt, prejudice, aversion, hatred or antipathy, m ...

, something which Notley apologized for on behalf of the party.

Swearing-in

Notley was sworn in as the 17th

along with her cabinet on May 24, 2015. When she took office she ended an 80-year streak of centre-right governments in Alberta (

Social Credit Social credit is a distributive philosophy of political economy developed by C. H. Douglas. Douglas attributed economic downturns to discrepancies between the cost of goods and the compensation of the workers who made them. To combat what he ...

from 1935 to 1971 and the Tories from 1971 to 2015). Her twelve-member cabinet was the smallest in the country, containing only 14% of the legislature's members. The slimmed down cabinet was met with a mixed response from pundits; some said it showed the NDP's lack of experienced people while others felt that it brought a much needed sense of economy and individual importance to the various positions. The swearing-in ceremony was an unusually public event, held on the steps of the

Alberta Legislature Building The Alberta Legislature Building is located in Edmonton and is the meeting place of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta and the Executive Council of Alberta. It is often shortened to "the Ledge". The Alberta Legislature Building is located at 10 ...

in front of a large crowd of spectators while a folk band played the national anthem and free popsicles and food were distributed from

food truck A food truck is a large motorized vehicle (such as a van) or trailer, equipped to cook, prepare, serve, and/or sell food. Some, including ice cream trucks, sell frozen or prepackaged food; others have on-board kitchens and prepare food from scratc ...

s. The Alberta NDP was criticized, though, for using the event as a part of its party fundraising, for which they later apologized. The ceremony cost $19,298; more expensive than the swearing-in ceremonies of the previous two premiers, but still less than the expenditure for the swearing-in of

Alison Redford Alison Merrilla Redford (born March 7, 1965) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician. She was the 14th premier of Alberta, having served in this capacity from October 7, 2011, to March 23, 2014. Redford was born in Kitimat, British Columbia ...

in 2011.

Speech from the Throne

The government's first

throne speech A speech from the throne, or throne speech, is an event in certain monarchies in which the reigning sovereign, or a representative thereof, reads a prepared speech to members of the nation's legislature when a session is opened, outlining th ...

was read by newly appointed Lieutenant Governor

Lois Mitchell Lois Elizabeth Mitchell (née Boulding; June 22, 1939) is a Canadian businesswoman and philanthropist who was the 18th Lieutenant Governor of Alberta from 2015 to 2020. Her appointment as Lieutenant Governor was made by Governor General of Cana ...

on June 15, 2015. The speech announced three bills intended to ban corporate and union donations to political parties and to increase taxes on large corporations and high income earners, ending the flat tax rate that had been in place since the premiership of

Ralph Klein Ralph Philip Klein (November 1, 1942 – March 29, 2013) was a Canadian politician and journalist who served as the 12th premier of Alberta and leader of the Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta from 1992 until his retirement in 20 ...

. Both of these proposals were promised as part of the Alberta NDP's election platform. That same day Notley also announced the creation of a seventeen-member all-party committee tasked to look into ways to improve government accountability in areas such as whistleblower protection, electioneering, and conflicts of interest. The government also reached out to the Opposition benches by having the committee be initiated through a joint motion with

leader

Brian Jean Brian Michael Jean (born February 3, 1963) is a Canadian politician who has served as the minister of Jobs, Economy and Northern Development since 2022 and the member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche since Ma ...

, with

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

leader

David Swann David Richard Swann (born June 19, 1949) is a Canadian medical doctor and politician. He was the leader of the Alberta Liberal Party and Leader of the Opposition in the Alberta Legislature from December 2008 until resigning as party leader in ...

also being tasked with helping conduct a review of provincial mental health policy along with NDP MLA Danielle Larivee.

Aboriginal relations

On June 22, 2015, Notley apologized to the Aboriginal community of Alberta for a long history of neglect by prior governments. In particular she apologized for the province not addressing the issue with decades of abuse at government- and church-operated residential schools. Notley pledged that her government would engage and improve living conditions of Alberta's Aboriginal community. Notley joined the chorus of Canadian premiers demanding a federal inquiry into the issue of missing and murdered Aboriginal women. The inquiry is intended to prevent abductions with early intervention and investigations of root issues affecting high-risk Aboriginal females. On December 8, 2015, Notley tweeted out her support of Prime Minister

Justin Trudeau Justin Pierre James Trudeau ( , ; born December 25, 1971) is a Canadian politician who is the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada. He has served as the prime minister of Canada since 2015 and as the leader of the Liberal Party since 2 ...

's announcement that a national inquiry into missing and murdered indigenous women and girls would be immediately launched. On December 15, 2015, Notley expressed her support for the recommendations outlined in the Truth and Reconciliation Committee's final report. The budget of 2017 included $100 million to upgrade the provincial and federal waterworks facilities that provide drinkable water for Albertan First Nations Communities. Thirteen communities have endured chronic boil water advisory conditions for two decades. In 2018, the Albertan government sold 150 hectares of land to the Fort McKay Métis for $1.6 million. The dealing was a precedent-setting event for the

Métis The Métis ( ; Canadian ) are Indigenous peoples who inhabit Canada's three Prairie Provinces, as well as parts of British Columbia, the Northwest Territories, and the Northern United States. They have a shared history and culture which derives ...

community.

Climate change and environment

On November 22, 2015, Notley unveiled Alberta's updated climate change strategy, in time for the

COP 21 The 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference, COP 21 or CMP 11 was held in Paris, France, from 30 November to 12 December 2015. It was the 21st yearly session of the Conference of the Parties (COP) to the 1992 United Nations Framework Conve ...

conference in Paris. In doing so, Notley acted upon one of the NDP's central campaign promises: for years, the NDP had criticized the PC government's inaction on the climate change file. The plan was described in multiple media outlets as bold and far-reaching. This policy shift came about partly because of the characterization of Alberta oil as 'some of the dirtiest in the world' by US President Barack Obama, which the premier likened to a "kick in the teeth". The plan included an economy-wide

carbon tax A carbon tax is a tax levied on the carbon emissions required to produce goods and services. Carbon taxes are intended to make visible the "hidden" social costs of carbon emissions, which are otherwise felt only in indirect ways like more sev ...

starting in 2017 and a cap on emissions from the oil sands. The plan also included a phase-out of coal-fired electricity by 2030, a 10-year goal to halve

methane emissions Increasing methane emissions are a major contributor to the rising concentration of greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere, and are responsible for up to one-third of near-term global heating. During 2019, about 60% (360 million tons) of methane r ...

, as well as incentives for renewable energy. The plan won plaudits from both environmental groups and oil executives, who were present behind Notley at the announcement in Edmonton. The

Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

also applauded the plan, saying it "provides direction that will allow the oil and natural gas industry to grow, further enhance its environmental performance through technological innovation, and is expected to improve market access to allow Canadian oil to reach more markets." The carbon tax was expected to raise $3 billion annually by 2018. Although Notley initially indicated that the carbon tax would be revenue neutral, similar to the structure imposed in neighbouring British Columbia, the plan did not cut any personal taxes, bringing into doubt Notley's assertion of revenue neutrality. Notley acted on the recommendations of a five-member panel appointed by

Shannon Phillips Shannon Rosella Phillips (born September 4, 1975) is a Canadian politician who was elected in the 2015 and 2019 Alberta general elections to represent the electoral district of Lethbridge-West in the 29th and 30th Alberta Legislatures, respect ...

, the minister of environment. In November 2016, $1.4 billion was paid to compensate three major Albertan power producers (

ATCO Atco or ATCO may refer to: Businesses * ATCO, a Canadian diversified company involved in manufacturing, utilities, energy and technologies ** ATCO Electric, a subsidiary of the above company * Atco (British mower company), a mower manufacturing com ...

Capital Power Capital Power is an independent power generation company based in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Capital Power develops, acquires, owns and operates power generation facilities using a variety of energy sources. Capital Power owns approximately 6,6 ...

, and

Transalta TransAlta Corporation (formerly Calgary Power Company, Ltd.) is an electricity power generator and wholesale marketing company headquartered in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. It is a privately owned corporation and its shares are traded publicly. It o ...

) to expedite the transition caused by the closure of six coal-fired power plants. The compensation was derived from the carbon tax and was to be paid over a period of 14 years. In 2017, the Notley government resumed addressing the proliferation of

abandoned wells Orphan, orphaned or abandoned wells are oil or gas wells that have been abandoned by fossil fuel extraction industries. These wells may have been deactivated because of economic viability, failure to transfer ownerships (especially at bankruptcy o ...

by budgeting $235 million for the Orphan Well Association to begin land reclamation and rehabilitation of thousands of abandoned wells in the province. The plan was expected to carry through three years and create jobs. A partnership between the provincial government, the Tallcree First Nation, and conservation group 'Nature Conservatory of Canada' created the

Birch River Wildland Provincial Park Birch River Wildland Provincial Park is a wildland provincial park in northern Alberta, Canada. It was established on 14 May 2018 and covers .The park is contained in the Lower Athabasca Region Land Use Framework finalized in 2012. The park i ...

adjacent to the south of

Wood Buffalo National Park Wood Buffalo National Park is the largest National Parks of Canada, national park of Canada at . It is located in northeastern Alberta and the southern Northwest Territories. Larger in area than Switzerland, it is the second-largest national park ...

. The park is the largest territory of protected

boreal forest Taiga (; rus, тайга́, p=tɐjˈɡa; relates to Mongolic and Turkic languages), generally referred to in North America as a boreal forest or snow forest, is a biome characterized by coniferous forests consisting mostly of pines, spruc ...

in the world. Syncrude contributed $2.3 million to the project.

Public health and welfare reforms

The NDP made revisions reforms and implemented new services to public health and well-being services. In 2018, the NDP proposed legislature Bill 9 ('The protecting choice for women accessing healthcare act') to enforce 50 m buffer zones around abortion clinics in Alberta to ban harassment by pro-life activists against users and personnel of these facilities. Coverage for the abortion drug 'Mifegymiso' was made public in 2018. Notley's government enacted campaign promised pilot project to fund $25/day per child into 18 Early Learning Child Care services (ELCC) for daycare services. It is expected that 1,000 spaces and 230 professional jobs for ELCC trained staff will be available by 2017. The project also seeks to research ways to provide for children with specialized needs. If the economy improves Notley intends to expand the program with additional $10 million in funding. After a successful pilot project, in 2018 the NDP continued to expand the Daycare services by increasing capacity for 6,000 additional children and 100 additional ELCC centers. The expansion was made possible by a funding grant from the Federal government investing $136 million over 3 years as well from the Albertan government investing $14.5 million. Albertans with a higher risk of HIV will be provided coverage for the Anti-HIV drug

PrEP PowerPC Reference Platform (PReP) was a standard system architecture for PowerPC-based computer systems (as well as a reference implementation) developed at the same time as the PowerPC processor architecture. Published by IBM in 1994, it allo ...

. The proposed Bill 24 designed to protect

LGBTQ ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term is ...

rights will uphold anonymity among members of

gay–straight alliance A Gay–Straight Alliance, Gender-Sexuality Alliance (GSA) or Queer–Straight Alliance (QSA) is a student-led or community-based organisation, found in middle schools, high schools, colleges, and universities. These are primarily in the United ...

(GSA) clubs in public schools. Additionally gay conversion therapies will be banned in Alberta. In 2019, Bill 26 was enacted which aims to combat poverty for Albertans suffering from poverty. Among the provisions are an increase of benefits for the elderly and

AISH Aish may refer to: *Aish HaTorah, Orthodox Jewish outreach organization and yeshiva * Aish, South Brent, England * Aish, Stoke Gabriel, England * Aish Tor, Dartmoor, England *Aishwarya Rai, a popular Bollywood actress *Assured Income for the Severe ...

recipients connected to the consumer price index.

Economy and labour

Alberta's minimum wage was raised incrementally from $10.20 an hour in 2015 to $15.00 an hour in 2018. Notley's government revised labour regulations with the implementation of the 'Fair and Family-friendly Act' (Bill 17), which came into effect in 2018. The revisions were the first overhaul of Alberta's labour laws in three decades. In 2017, Saskatchewan Premier

Brad Wall Bradley John Wall (born November 24, 1965), is a Canadian former politician who served as the 14th premier of Saskatchewan from November 21, 2007 until February 2, 2018. He is the fourth longest-tenured premier in the province's history. His so ...

's government instigated a moratorium on vehicles with Albertan licence plates at government project sites in Saskatchewan. The Saskatchewan government initially said the ban was in response to reports that vehicles with Saskatchewan plates were being barred from Alberta sites, but did not provide evidence for these claims. Wall later claimed the ban was due to what he described as a "disturbing pattern of protectionist behaviour", citing, among other things, Alberta's $1.25-per-litre mark-up on beer prices in 2016. Notley's government responded by enacting the arbitration clause of the New West Partnership inter-provincial trade agreement. In January 2018, Saskatchewan rescinded the 'plate wars' moratorium in what it called a measure of good faith in advance of a decision on Alberta's beer prices by the

Agreement on Internal Trade The Agreement on Internal Trade (AIT) entered into force on July 1, 1995, and includes government departments, agencies, commissions and Crown corporations of the 10 Canadian provinces, the three territories and the federal government. The Agreeme ...

appeal panel. In early 2018, an inter-provincial trade dispute between the

BC NDP The New Democratic Party of British Columbia (BC NDP) is a social democracy, social-democratic provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. As of 2017, it governs the province. It is the British Columbia provincial arm of the feder ...

and Alberta NDP hampered the export of resources. Alberta's AGLC ceased to export wine produced in BC. Notley's government chose this as retaliation for Hogan's government decision to limit export of Bitumen from Alberta as protest to ongoing discussion of the proposed

Trans Mountain Pipeline The Trans Mountain Pipeline System, or simply the Trans Mountain Pipeline, is a pipeline that carries crude and refined oil from Alberta to the coast of British Columbia, Canada. The pipeline is currently owned by the Government of Canada th ...

expansion. In 2017, Alberta imported $72 million of BC wine. However hospitality service businesses in Alberta worry their industry could be harmed with a prolonged embargo. The government's Bill 31 of 2017 'A Better Deal for Consumers and Businesses Act' enacted a number of reforms to enhance consumer protections. Such as the abolition of purchasing bots to purchase blocks of online tickets for popular demanded events to prevent their inflated resale by the operators of such applications. The abolition of purchasing bots was enacted in August 2018. Consumers are empowered to sue the operators of bots if they have been financially injured should sellers and promoters of shows inadvertently fail to detect clandestine online bots. The act also requires auto repair mechanics to provide a warranty for repair services, an estimate for the work. Consumers will also be empowered to litigate violators of consumer rights. High interest lenders and money transaction services will be regulated. In 2019, the Albertan government agreed to lease 4,400 oil cars from

Canadian Pacific Railway The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

and

Canadian National Railway The Canadian National Railway Company (french: Compagnie des chemins de fer nationaux du Canada) is a Canadian Class I freight railway headquartered in Montreal, Quebec, which serves Canada and the Midwestern and Southern United States. CN i ...

. The service will resume in the summer of 2019 with an initial capacity of 20,000 barrels per day. The potential revenue expected is $6 billion over three years.

Education

In 2015, Notley's government froze tuition fees for post-secondary students. The freeze was initially meant to last two years, but it was extended until 2018. The NDP government also reversed a 1.4 per cent cut to post-secondary institutions and instead increased base funding by two per cent. In 2016, to fulfill her campaign promise, Notley's government implemented a pilot program aimed at providing Alberta's neediest children with nutritious sustenance lunch programs. The program is expected to expand in coming years.

Key events in premiership

In 2016, a wild fire devastated Fort McMurray. In October 2016 Notley visited the construction site of the first rebuilt house. She rededicated an overpass crossing Highway 63, where first responders had welcomed residents home, as 'Responders Way Bridge'. Notley welcomed former PC MLA

Sandra Jansen Sandra Jansen (born c. 1963) is a Canadian politician who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta representing the electoral district of Calgary-North West. She served as the Minister of Infrastructure between October 2017 and Apr ...

into her party in November 2016. Jansen withdrew her membership and party leadership candidacy which she took to challenge the candidacy of

Jason Kenney Jason Thomas Kenney (born May 30, 1968) is a Canadian former politician who served as the 18th premier of Alberta from 2019 until 2022 and the leader of the United Conservative Party (UCP) from 2017 until 2022. He also served as the member of ...

. She claimed that she was harassed over her position on human rights issues such as LGBTQ rights and abortion by Kenney's supporters. She warned of a hostile take over of democratic values by Kenney's campaign. Notley granted Jansen with a security detail as reports of vulgar death threats threatened Jansen. Notley and

Ma Xingrui Ma Xingrui (; born October 1959) is a Chinese politician and aerospace engineer who is the Communist Party Secretary of Xinjiang. Prior to that, he had served as the Vice Minister of Industry and Information Technology, Head of the Political an ...

, governor of

Guangdong Guangdong (, ), alternatively romanized as Canton or Kwangtung, is a coastal province in South China on the north shore of the South China Sea. The capital of the province is Guangzhou. With a population of 126.01 million (as of 2020) ...

Province of

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

signed a provincial sistering agreement in 2017 during an economic trade mission to Asia.

Oil curtailments

On December 2, 2018, Notely announced the Alberta government would be instating oil production curtailments. The curtailments were meant to minimize lost revenue due to oil being sold at a lower market value as a bottleneck in transportation. The Alberta government rarely utilized this power, the last time was during the

National Energy Program The National Energy Program (french: Programme énergétique national, NEP) was an energy policy of the Canadian federal government from 1980 to 1985. Created under the Liberal government of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau by Energy Minister Marc ...

to limit federal revenues. Curtailments took effect in January 2019, under the '' Oil and Gas Conservation Act'' with the

Alberta Energy Regulator The Alberta Energy Regulator (AER) is an Alberta corporation, with its main office in Calgary, Alberta Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. ...

monitoring the program.

Opiate Fentanyl epidemic

Since 2016, Notley's government was tasked with a fatal opiate epidemic as

fentanyl Fentanyl, also spelled fentanil, is a very potent synthetic opioid used as a pain medication. Together with other drugs, fentanyl is used for anesthesia. It is also used illicitly as a recreational drug, sometimes mixed with heroin, cocaine ...

emerged on the street narcotic market. Notley's government responded with harm reduction counter measures such as the distribution of

naloxone Naloxone, sold under the brand names Narcan (4 mg) and Kloxxado (8 mg) among others, is a medication used to reverse or reduce the effects of opioids. It is commonly used to counter decreased breathing in opioid overdose. Effects begin withi ...

injection kits and naloxone spray for the Edmonton and Calgary police and paramedic services. Alberta Liberal Party leader

petitioned the Notley government to issue a state of emergency. Neighbouring province British Columbia issued a state of emergency as did the

Blood Tribe The Kainai Nation (or , or Blood Tribe) ( bla, Káínaa) is a First Nations in Canada, First Nations band government in southern Alberta, Canada, with a population of 12,800 members in 2015, up from 11,791 in December 2013. translates direc ...

and

Nakota Nakota (or Nakoda or Nakona) is the endonym used by those ''Assiniboine'' Indigenous people in the US, and by the Stoney People, in Canada. The Assiniboine branched off from the Great Sioux Nation (aka the ''Oceti Sakowin'') long ago and moved f ...

nations as frequent and close succession fatal overdoses on these

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

communities as well throughout Alberta. However, as of November 2016 the Notley government views the measure inappropriate as Albertan medical facilities were already established and gained experience through epidemics such as

SARS Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a viral respiratory disease of zoonotic origin caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV or SARS-CoV-1), the first identified strain of the SARS coronavirus species, ''sever ...

. However the health ministry is showing great interest in the prospect of establishing safe sites in Edmonton and is reviewing the data for the harm reduction approach. Associate health minister NDP MLA

Brandy Payne Brandy Payne (born 1978) is a Canadian politician elected in the 2015 Alberta general election to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta representing the electoral district of Calgary-Acadia. On February 2, 2016, Payne was appointed Associate Minis ...

granted $230K to the 'Access to Medically Supervised Injection Services Edmonton' to apply for permission to establish a 'safe site' in Edmonton. Increased funding was allocated to treatment and for the communities to explore the prospect of operating 'safe sites'. However, fentanyl is usually ground and inhaled or ingested and not injected. To further compound and aggravate the situation more potent

opiates An opiate, in classical pharmacology, is a substance derived from opium. In more modern usage, the term ''opioid'' is used to designate all substances, both natural and synthetic, that bind to opioid receptors in the brain (including antagonist ...

such as W-18 and

carfentanil Carfentanil or carfentanyl, sold under the brand name Wildnil, is a very potent opioid analgesic which is used in veterinary medicine to anesthetize large animals such as elephants and rhinoceroses. It is typically administered in this context ...

are emerging on the menu of illicit narcotics in Alberta. These compounds may be resistant to harm reduction counter measures such as the antidote naloxone.

Threats against Notley

After becoming Premier, Notley started to encounter abuse from Albertans who did not align with her values. As stated by the ''Edmonton Sun'', "The statistics show that from 2003 to 2015, Alberta Sheriffs recorded 55 security incidents involving six premiers. 19 of those came in the last half of 2015, which happened to be Notley's first months in office. At least three of those incidents required police intervention." Most of the threats against Notley proliferated online with photos and posts, encouraging violence against the premier. According to statistics in 2016 from Alberta Justice, Notley is the Alberta premier with the most death threats. She was the subject of 412 harassment communiques, of which 26 were investigated by law enforcement. A professor argued that there have been growing trends of violence against female politicians. Most of these threats had been attributed to the NDP government's controversial farm safety legislation, Bill 6, which made Worker Compensation Board coverage mandatory on Alberta farms with paid, non-family employees, leading to thousands of protesters. Official Opposition leader and Wildrose Party Leader

, despite criticizing Bill 6, made a call for the abuse directed at Notley to cease or else he would alert authorities. In late August 2016, Jean joked "I've been beating this drum for 10, 11 years. I will continue to beat it, I promise. But it's against the law to beat Rachel Notley", for which he apologized immediately for what he called “an inappropriate attempt at humour.”

Defeat

Following Notley's win in the 2015 provincial election, the Opposition

and third-place

, both right-of-centre, began contemplating forming a united right-wing party. Following referendums in both parties, they merged in 2017 into the

(UCP), with former federal minister and former PC leader

elected as leader later that year. In the 2019 provincial election, the UCP won a majority of seats and about 55% of the popular vote. While the NDP retained all but one of their seats in Edmonton, significant losses in Calgary and rural Alberta reduced them to Official Opposition status. Notley pledged on election night to continue serving as

Leader of the Opposition The Leader of the Opposition is a title traditionally held by the leader of the largest political party not in government, typical in countries utilizing the parliamentary system form of government. The leader of the opposition is typically se ...

. The NDP government's defeat was the first time a governing party in Alberta had been defeated after a single term in office. The NDP opposition caucus with 24 seats will be the largest in Alberta since

Laurence Decore Laurence George Decore (born Lavrentiy Dikur; June 28, 1940 – November 6, 1999) was Canadian lawyer and politician from Alberta. He was of Ukrainian descent. He was mayor of Edmonton, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, and ...

's Liberals won 32 seats in 1993. Notley will be the first New Democrat to serve as Leader of the Official Opposition since Ray Martin (1984–1993). Her father, Grant Notley, held the same office from 1982 until his death in 1984. In December 2019, Notley announced that she intended to lead the Alberta NDP into the next general election, due no later than May 2023.

Election results

2019 general election

2015 general election

2012 general election

2008 general election

References

External links

Legislative Assembly of Alberta Members Listing

Rachel Notley
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Notley, Rachel 1964 births Premiers of Alberta Alberta CCF/NDP leaders Alberta New Democratic Party MLAs Living people Politicians from Edmonton Women MLAs in Alberta Canadian people of American descent Canadian women lawyers University of Alberta alumni Osgoode Hall Law School alumni Lawyers in Alberta Female Canadian political party leaders Canadian female first ministers 21st-century Canadian politicians 21st-century Canadian women politicians Members of the Executive Council of Alberta