Danielle Smith - Speech at Leadership Convention

Leadership Vote - Results

I know everyone has eagerly been awaiting the numbers.

Total ballots sent out, just over 11,600.

Total ballots cast 8297; so roughly 71.5 % voter turnout.

Smith 6295

Dyrholm 1905

Spoiled ballots 97

Big thank you to the 20+ volunteers who put in a long day and were unable to take part in the events of the day.

Wildrose Alliance Confirms Candidates for Leadership Race

For Immediate Release

The Wildrose Alliance announces there are three Official Candidates for the Leadership of the Party: Mark Dyrholm, Danielle Smith, and Jeff Willerton. The Party is very pleased to have candidates of such high quality seek the leadership of the Party and looks forward to their contributions toward building the Party and bringing back the Alberta Advantage.

The Leadership Convention will be held in Edmonton. Attendees are encouraged to register early online at the Party website but can also register at the Convention.

Information and contact for their campaigns can be found at the following:

Mark Dyrholm:
Internet: http://www.markdyrholm.ca/
Phone: 403-203-3456
Fax: 403-273-2940
Email: membership@markdyrholm.ca

Danielle Smith:
Internet: http://www.daniellesmith.ca/
Phone: 403-256-0444
Email: info@daniellesmith.ca

 Jeff Willerton:
Internet: http://www.willertonforpremier.com/
Phone: 403-875-1619
Email: j.willerton@fixcanada.ca

A series of Leadership Forums are planned for the following dates:

September 8, 7:30pm, Grande Prairie
Grande Prairie Inn
11633 - 100 Street
Phone: 780-532-5221

September 10, 7:30pm, Edmonton
Four Points Sheraton
7230 Argyll Road
Phone: 780-465-7931

September 15, 7:30pm, Lethbridge
Balog Cow Palace
Just south of highway #4 on the east side of Lethbridge
Phone: 403-320-1980

September 16, 7:30pm, Calgary
Blackfoot Inn
5940 Blackfoot Trail SE
Phone: 1-800-661-1151

September 23, 7:30pm, Red Deer
Capri Hotel & Conference Centre
3310 - 50 Ave.
Phone: 403-346-2091

The Leadership Convention will be held in Edmonton on October 17. In order to vote, a person must become a member on or before October 3rd in order to vote for the Leadership. The vote will be a mail-in ballot but can also be cast at the Leadership Convention instead of mailed. Members will need to bring their mail-in ballot to the Convention to exchange for a Convention ballot.

October 17, starting at 9am,
Edmonton Holiday Inn & Convention Center
4520-76 Ave
Phone: 780-468-5400

Leadership Candidates, Debates & Voting Procedure

This news release will be going out later today.

Wildrose Alliance Announces Leadership Candidate Jeff Willerton Joins Race and Leadership Debate Schedule

For Immediate Release

The Wildrose Alliance announces that Jeff Willerton is an Official Candidate for the Leadership of the Party. The Party is very pleased to have three candidates bring a diverse range of experience and talent to the race and look forward to their contributions toward building the Party and bringing back the Alberta Advantage.

Information and contact for their campaigns can be found at the following:

Mark Dyrholm:
Website
Phone: 403-203-3456
Fax: 403-273-2940
Email: membership@markdyrholm.ca

Danielle Smith:
Website
Phone: 403-256-0444
Email: info@daniellesmith.ca

Jeff Willerton:
Website
Phone: 403-875-1619
Email: j.willerton@fixcanada.ca

The deadline for fulfilling Leadership Candidacy requirements is September 1.

Debate Schedule:

There are four Leadership debates scheduled and follow up on the 12 Townhalls the Party held this spring to engage and listen to Albertan’s concerns.

September 8, 7:30pm,

Grande Prairie Inn,
11633 - 100 Street
Grande Prairie
Phone: 780-532-5221

September 10, 7:30pm,

Four Points Sheraton,
7230 Argyll Road
Edmonton
Phone: 780-465-7931

September 15, 7:30pm,

Balog Cow Palace,
Lethbridge
Just south of highway #4 on the east side of Lethbridge
Phone: 403-320-1980

September 16, 7:30pm,

Blackfoot Inn,
5940 Blackfoot Trail SE
Calgary
Phone: 1-800-661-1151

Leadership Convention:

October 17, beginning at 9:00 am,

Holiday Inn and Convention Center,
4520-76 Ave
Edmonton

Phone: 780-468-5400

Voting Procedure:

In order to vote, a person must be a member in good standing as of October 3rd, 2009. Members may vote either by attending the Leadership Convention in Edmonton on October 17th, or by mail-in ballot. The vote will be done as follows:

If there is no clear majority on the first ballot, the nominee with the lowest share of the vote will be dropped. The ballots of members attending the convention will be set aside, and they will be permitted to cast new ballots in each round. This will continue until a majority is achieved.

Members using mail-in ballots will be asked to rank the candidates in order of preference. Mail-in ballots first choice will be used in each ballot (1st, 2nd.etc) until their first choice candidate is eliminated, and the same with their 2nd choice, and so on, if necessary. This process will continue until a majority is achieved.

Members who attend the Convention must exchange their mail-in ballot for a convention ballot at the venue. Members whose mail-in ballot has been received for counting will NOT be permitted to vote at the convention.

For further information, please contact:
John Hilton-O’Brien
Leadership Committee, Chair
john.hiltonobrien@wildrosealliance.ca

Wildrose Alliance Officially Welcomes Candidates to Leadership Race.

The Wildrose Alliance announces today two Official Candidates for the Leadership of the Party: Mark Dyrholm and Danielle Smith. The Party is very pleased to have candidates of such high quality express their interest and looks forward to their contributions toward building the Party and bringing back the Alberta Advantage.

Information and contact for their campaigns can be found at the following:

Mark Dyrholm:
Internet: www.markdyrholm.ca
Phone: 403-203-3456
Fax: 403-273-2940
Email: membership@markdyrholm.ca

Danielle Smith: www.daniellesmith.ca
Internet:
Phone: 403-256-0444
Email: info@daniellesmith.ca

The Party continues to receive interest in the Leadership of the Party with other individuals investigating a potential candidacy. The deadline for fulfilling Leadership Candidacy requirements is September 1.

A series of Leadership Townhalls is being planned for September and early October across the Province following up on the 12 Townhalls the Party held this spring to engage Albertans and listen to their concerns.

The Leadership Convention will be held in Edmonton on October 17, 2009. In order to vote, a person must be a member two weeks prior to the vote. The vote will be a mail-in ballot but can also be cast at the Leadership Convention.

For further information, please contact:
John Hilton-O’Brien
Leadership Committee, Chair
john.hiltonobrien@wildrosealliance.ca

AGM finishing touches.......

We are packing a lot of activity into this week as we complete the final preparations for the AGM this weekend.

Over 200 member packages and approximately 30 media packages are being compiled bringing us very close to full capacity.

The agenda and nominee list has been updated. Most notable being the list of guest speakers.

Friday:

Nadeem Esmail: Director, Health System Performance Studies, The Fraser Institute.
John Carpay: Executive Director, Canadian Constitution Foundation.
Dave Yager: CEO, HSE Integrated & Columnist for Oilweek & Calgary

Saturday:

Lunch with guest speaker, Danielle Smith. Former Director of Provincial Affairs, Canadian Federation of Independent Business. (CFIB)

Evening Keynote Speaker: Tom Flanagan, Professor at the U of C, Senior Fellow of the Fraser Institute, National Campaign Manager for the Canadian Alliance & Conservative Parties.

Also time previously set aside for the Leadership Review will now be available for brief speeches from any qualified Leadership candidates!!!

Hope you like being cozy....

Stewie our dog is quite happy the road trips are done for now. Not sure which he dislikes more; sitting in the car while we are at meetings or being left at home alone.

All in all, they were a success. Great turnouts in the urban areas; smaller in the rural, but met some really great people. Like Rick, he owns a gas station and pub on a secondary highway. He has a sign outside begging for Ralph to come back. When I went inside to chat with him, he explained what we really need is the Wildrose Alliance. I wish I had a picture of the look on his face when I told him who I was. The man was beside himself that I actually stopped in. I left him with a number of brochures and my card; I suspect the pub will be "a buzz" for awhile.


Now, back to the topic at hand...being cozy. The AGM registrations are coming in hard and heavy.

It wasn't that long ago that we deliberated the venue. You want to book enough room, but keep costs in line with anticipated turn out. We have a venue that can comfortably fit 150 and up to 200 if needed. Well, if this week is any indication we will be closer to the latter figure and it is too late in the game to find a bigger venue. (Especially during the grad/wedding season)

So it will be an excellent opportunity to snug-up and make new friends.... and there will be a number of new faces in the crowd. Including as I understand it, a couple of leadership "hopefuls".

Some additional speakers have been confirmed.

Friday night line up includes:

Nadeam Esmail,
Wilf Gobert,
John Carpay.

Saturday lunch: Danielle Smith.
Saturday dinner: Tom Flanagan.


All these great speakers, plus three meals, well worth the registration fee.