UCP leadership candidate Danielle Smith says Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner’s concerns about division in the UCP caucus are “valid.”.After weeks of speculation, Rempel Garner announced Thursday she will not run for the UCP leadership because she won't have time to resolve the “significant hurt and uncertainty in the UCP caucus team” ahead of next year’s provincial election..Smith said she respects the reasons the Calgary-Nose Hill MP outlined for not joining the race. .“Unity cannot be an empty phrase demanded by the status quo or a single party leader, it must be earned through policy that rebuilds trust, especially amongst our middle class,” Smith said in a post to Twitter..Rempel Garner's bid has been heavily anticipated since the Western Standard first reported she was considering a run earlier this month. .In a lengthy Substack posted to her Twitter page Thursday morning, Rempel Garner said she has received significant support for a potential UCP leadership bid..However, she would not have enough time for team-building which she said she would want to place at "the heart" of the role. And she's an outsider who isn't aware of the all the caucus divisions, the Calgary-Nose Hill MP wrote..“And, bluntly put, I’m concerned about what would happen if I stepped in as leader under the present internal UCP caucus dynamic, especially considering we would need to govern while preparing for a rapidly approaching general election.".On caucus divisions, Rempel Garner also referenced a Tuesday news article which confirmed her concerns "as it pertains to me.”.On Tuesday, the Western Standard reported the UCP’s Leadership Election Committee decided to grant Rempel Garner an exemption to enter the party’s leadership race, even as MLAs they consulted with warned it sets a “dangerous precedent.”.READ MORE: Rempel Garner will not run for UCP leadership, Alberta premiership.Rempel Garner said senior members — including people with whom she’s had decades of long and close friendships — participated in an attempt to "scuttle something minor the rules allowed for. ".“And while the waiver was granted, and I didn’t take any of this stuff to heart, my suspicions about what I’d be in for from caucus if I became leader were validated.”.Smith said she looks forward to continuing to work with Michelle as she raises Alberta's concerns in the House of Commons..UCP members will elect a new leader and premier on October 6.
