Rachel Notley remains leader of Alberta NDP, but will consider role in coming months

Rachel Notley intends to remain at the helm of the Alberta NDP, but the Opposition party leader says she will take time to consider her role in the months ahead.

Notley says she will reflect on her future like all party leaders do after an election. She says once she reaches a conclusion, she will let Albertans know.

Notley reflected on the NDP’s results during last month’s provincial election at a news conference Tuesday. It was the first time Notley spoke with reporters since the May 29 election.

She celebrated the party’s vote total – up from the 2019 election – as well as victories in Edmonton and Calgary.

Notley’s NDP won 38 seats in the 87-seat legislature, becoming Alberta’s largest ever official Opposition.

At a Tuesday press conference, Rachel Notley says she intends to stay on as NDP leader but adds that, like all leaders after an elex, she will take time to consider her role in the months ahead.

Adds when she reaches a conclusion, she will let Albertans know #yeg #yyc #ableg

— Courtney Theriault (@cspotweet) June 13, 2023

The 59-year-old says the Alberta NDP nearly overcame what pundits called an impossible task, saying it came close to defeating Danielle Smith’s UCP.

She could not point to a turning point in the campaign.

The NDP did well in Alberta’s two major cities but fared poorly in rural Alberta. Notley says the party needs to be more active in rural communities outside Edmonton and Calgary, arguing their outreach on rural issues was impacted by the pandemic.

Notley did not second guess the party’s election campaign strategy of focusing on Smith’s past. Throughout the campaign, the NDP released or highlighted comments made by Smith in previous years – notably from her time as a radio host.

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She says if the election were against a more measured conservative leader, the Alberta NDP may have switched focus.

Notley was asked Tuesday if she believed Smith would govern as a moderate.

She vowed to push the Alberta premier to govern as such, but shared deep concern at the recent appointment of Adriana LaGrange as health minister.

Opposition NDP deputy leader Sarah Hoffman also criticized that appointment last week, saying LaGrange’s past anti-abortion stance was troubling given her new job.

On Tuesday Notley expressed concern that her election promise of making prescription contraception free would likely not happen under LaGrange. The NDP leader also said she was concerned about functional barriers on access to abortion services.

Smith has pledged there would be no changes to “any laws regarding a woman’s right to choose.”