Alberta Finance Minister Travis Toews will not seek reelection

Alberta Finance Minister and treasury board president Travis Toews announced he will not seek reelection Friday morning.

He made the announcement over social media.

A message from Honourable Travis Toews: pic.twitter.com/23B8tKWINy

— Travis Toews (@TravisToewsAB) March 24, 2023

“After much deliberation and prayerful consideration, I have decided not to seek re-election,” his statement reads.

“I do, however, remain deeply committed to the conservative movement, to the United Conservative Party (UCP), and to its success this May.

“It has been a tremendous privilege to serve the people of Grande Prairie-Wapiti as their MLA and Albertans broadly as their Minister of Finance.

“Kim and I have been humbled by the support of so many in our region and across this great province. Thank you.

“We want to extend a special thank you to our family and close friends for your unwavering support.

“It has been an honour to serve.”

Toews was elected in the 2019 general election to represent the district of Grande Prairie-Wapiti.

He was appointed as the president of the treasury board and as the minister of finance in 2019 by former premier Jason Kenney. He succeeded Calgary-Buffalo MLA Joe Ceci as the minister.

Toews oversaw Alberta’s oil and gas-powered economy, both the good and the bad, with deficits, negative oil prices, and surpluses galore.

The minister de-indexed the personal income tax, argued for wage cuts for nurses during the COVID-19 pandemic, and lifted the rate cap on auto insurance.

In addition, he was also caught on camera in 2021 dining on a rooftop patio on the legislature grounds with Kenney, Tyler Shandro, and Jason Nixon in contravention of COVID-19 gathering rules.

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Toews stepped down as finance minister to run as the UCP leader and returned to the role under Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. He also became president of the treasury board at the time.

He was the runner-up in the race, with 46 per cent at the end of the sixth and final round.

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Mount Royal University political scientist Duane Bratt says this is a “big blow” to Smith but adds Toews didn’t quite see eye to eye with the premier.

“Travis Toews was quite critical of the sovereignty act and some of her comments on COVID. But then he also voted in favour of her sovereignty act. And he did bring through a budget,” Bratt said.

“So, was that about party unity? Was that about opposition to the NDP?”

Bratt says there have been 20 MLAs between the UCP and the NCP that turned over between elections since 2019, which is around 25 per cent of all Alberta MLAs leaving their ridings.

Accordingly, he says it is common for politicians to resign after placing second in a leadership contest.

“Brian Jean finished second to Jason Kenney, and he quit. Gary Maher finished second to Alison Redford. He quit. Jim Denning finished second to Ted Stelmach. He quit. And that occurs federally as well,” Bratt said.

“This is an ongoing pattern where it’s tough to build a big tent. So the days of a Chrétien bringing Paul Martin in, or Mulroney bringing Joe Clark in … those seem to be gone.”

At the end of February, Toews introduced the province’s budget with an estimated surplus of $2.4 billion.

He also introduced the spending plan in 2019 under Kenney to “bring the province back to fiscal responsibility.”

There are few details on the minister’s decision at this time.

Albertans will head to the polls for the upcoming provincial election on May 29.

-With files from The Canadian Press