Recall Nicolaides petition falls well short of required signatures, pending Elections Alberta's verification

EDMONTON — Initial counts reveal that the petition to recall Minister Demetrios Nicolaides fell short of the required number of signatures by more than 59%, after the campaign organizer submitted the final petition to Elections Alberta on Tuesday. Petition organizer Jenny Yeremiy told The Canadian Press that her group gathered about 6,500 signatures, 41% of the 16,006 needed to recall Nicolaides, Calgary-Bow MLA and Alberta's Minister of Education and Childcare. Recall applicants and petition signatories must be Canadian citizens over the age of 18 and residents of the subject's specific riding. The petition must gather signatures equal to at least 60% of the votes cast in the riding during Alberta's 2023 General Election in order to trigger a recall election. "We want to put on the record that there are 6,500-plus of us that are angry with the way (Nicolaides) is abusing his rights," reads a quote from Yeremiy in the CP article. "(If that) doesn't tell our education minister that his constituents have an issue with the way that he's leading us, I don't know what will."Though they are still awaiting the final total of official signatures, which must be verified by Elections Alberta, Nicolaides' office has touted this initial number as a victory. “The fact that only 6,500 signatures were collected — not even half the number required to trigger a recall — is clear proof that this campaign was meritless, as has been the minister’s position all along," wrote Garrett Koehler, senior press secretary, Education and Childcare..Yeremiy has claimed that her recall campaign was partially motivated by a frusteration with Nicolaides' policy decisions and poor representation of constituents. "As a parent and geoscientist, it was very disturbing to learn from my MLA and Minister of Education in early 2024 that my legitimate curricula concerns, and the concerns of the majority of teachers, staff, and parents in this province, do not matter to him. Rather that he takes his directions from above," a statement from Yeremiy reads in a blog post on her podcast's website."It wasn’t long after learning this that I joined ABR to understand the recall legislation. Using it to support teachers, students, and staff in standing against impossible circumstances, created by the Education Minister and my MLA, is the right thing to do.”She previously stated that, regardless of whether the petition gathers the required number of signatures to trigger an election, it is still successful because it engaged people in politics. .Yeremiy is a Geophysicist, and according to her LinkedIn page, she is a "Pro-Social, Environmental, & Economic (SEE) Reformist."She is also a former political candidate, having run for the Calgary North-West MLA under the Alberta Party (now the Progressive Tory Party of Alberta) in Alberta's 2023 General Election. Calgary North-West was the tightest riding in that election, with UCP nominee Rajan Sawhey ultimately winning the race with 48.3% of the final vote, beating the NDP candidate by 143 votes. Yeremiy finished third in the race, gathering 778 votes (3%). .Many Albertans viewed the petition against Nicolaides as one of the most likely to secure enough signatures to trigger an election. Calgary-Bow was the second-tightest riding, using percentages, won by the UCP in the 2023 election. Nicolaides won the riding with 49.7% of the vote, beating the NDP candidate by 623 ballots. Nicolaides then faced significant heat from Albertans during the 2025 fall assembly session, when his role as Education Minister made him a pivotal figure in the province's ongoing contract negotiations dispute with Alberta teachers.He had to endure more frustration after the Alberta government ended the teacher strike by invoking the notwithstanding clause to impose a contract that teachers had rejected and forced them back to work. .There are still 25 recall petitions, 23 of which are against UCP MLAs, in the signature-gathering phase. Many of them are scheduled to be submitted to Elections Alberta in late February and into March. The next petition due for submission is against MLA Angela Pitt, Aidrie-East, whose collection period ends on Feb. 3. Other notable petitions with potential for success include the one against Sawhey, the petition targeting Justice Minister Mickey Amery, Calgary-Cross, who secured his seat with 50.2% of the votes in 2023, and the petition against MLA Peter Singh, Calgary-East, who also won with 50.2% of the votes. NDP MLA Amanda Chapman, Calgary-Beddington, is also facing a recall petition after wining he seat with 49.7% of the total vote in 2023, beating the UCP candidate by 543 ballots.

Recall Nicolaides petition falls well short of required signatures, pending Elections Alberta's verification

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