EDMONTON — The Calgary-Buffalo UCP Constituency Association voted in favour of a motion Monday to call for Premier Danielle Smith to face a leadership review, following what one source said was a "heated" and "very uncomfortable" meeting.Sources told the Western Standard that the motion calling for a special general meeting and a Smith leadership review passed 13-3, joining the Highwood Constituency Association, which passed a motion on September 17, as two of the 22 constituency associations needed to trigger a leadership review. One source familiar with the meeting told the Western Standard that the motion was not on the agenda beforehand, and only some board members knew it would take place. .The source said four individuals from outside the constituency, including two from the Highwood Constituency Association board, attended the meeting and monopolized the discussion with prepared remarks in favour of an SGM. The source compared it to a coup. They described it as having a "very, very strong separatist sentiment."The individual said complaints included Smith opposing independence and allegedly betraying grassroots UCP members; failing to protect Albertans from federal bills like the Combating Hate Act (Bill C-9); comparisons to communism in Hong Kong or Czechoslovakia; and speculation about her positioning for a future federal role. The source claims individuals who attempted to speak against the motion were told to be quiet, and one person was aggressive with another, yelling and telling them to stop talking. .A source on the Calgary-Buffalo board said members felt Smith needs a course correction because the UCP's direction is supposed to come from party members, not the leader. They said Smith is not fulfilling her campaign mandates, and compared it to a performance review. The individual mentioned the recent Calgary-Shaw byelection, and said there were a lot of UCP supporters who chose not to vote, leading to the Alberta NDP's victory. They believe that the UCP will lose the next election if things do not change. Another source said members also raised concerns about allegations of corruption related to an alleged bribe offered to Alberta independence supporters Jeffrey Rath and Mitch Sylvestre. The source said members were concerned that Smith has not defended against the allegations. .Matthew Altheim, an executive producer at Nordic Media, is accused of offering Rath $4 million in legal contracts in exchange for him no longer criticizing Smith, and $2 million for Sylvestre to advocate for the Alberta Pension Plan instead of for Alberta independence. He denies the accusations. "Meeting was brief," wrote Altheim in a statement to the Western Standard on September 16. "I listened to his opinions on independence, which I did not agree, and his opinions on a Alberta firearms license, which I very much agreed. Alberta should manage its own firearms program separate from Ottawa.""I shook his hand — which was a bit too soft for a guy that wears a cowboy hat — and that was it."Smith's press secretary, Sam Blackett, has said the allegations are "entirely fabricated and false." .The UCP's governance manual and by-laws require the party's leader to face a review at their Annual General Meeting every three years. Smith passed her last review in 2024 with 91.5% and is not scheduled for one until 2027. UCP bylaws allow for constituency associations to trigger an early review if 22 of the 87 pass a motion to do so. The party may also call for one at a special general meeting if 2/3 of the party's board pass a motion, or if 1/4 of the constituency association boards vote for one. Multiple sources have told the Western Standard they expect more associations to pass leadership review motions before the UCP AGM on November 27. Smith has faced criticism from select UCP members in recent months, with her handling of the Alberta independence movement as the main issue for some. The premier and her party have also seen support from voters dip in recent months. Polling from Janet Brown Opinion Research, released Friday and commissioned by CBC, found the UCP and Alberta NDP tied at 35% support among respondents. The Western Standard has requested comments from the UCP and Smith's office.
