Campaign Life Coalition (CLC), pro-life advocacy group the Wilberforce Project, and RightNow expressed discontent in Alberta Premier Danielle Smith taking office. .CLC director of political operations Jack Fonseca said he's disappointed Smith won because she supports abortion and LGBT ideology. .“We had worked hard to recruit memberships for Todd Loewen, the only fully pro-life candidate in the race, so, of course, we were pulling for Todd to win even though we recognized he was an underdog,” said Fonseca in an interview. .Fonseca said Smith's pro-abortion stance is unfortunate because it “means she will not defend the human rights of children who are unjustly killed.”.He said support for abortion has no place in a party with conservative in its name. .While Fonseca is critical of Smith, he said he is happy she has committed to adding medical choice and political affiliation to the Alberta Human Rights Act (AHRA). He said Alberta “witnessed during the past two years of COVID tyranny wherein even pro-life Albertans were forced to take an abortion-tainted injection or else lose their jobs and get excluded from participation in society.”.Fonseca said he would love to see pro-life Alberta United Conservative Party MLAs such as Jackie Lovely, Mark Smith, and Adriana LaGrange appointed to cabinet. .Despite Smith holding socially liberal views, he said he wants social conservatives to stay involved with the UCP in nominations and policy conventions. .“It's all the more reason for so-cons to actually increase their involvement in the party, so they can try to influence the leader and the party, in a more family-friendly, pro-life direction,” he said. .Wilberforce Project director of political action Cameron Wilson said it was no secret the group had concerns around Smith’s candidacy. .“At this point, however, she has been duly elected as the leader of the United Conservative Party, and we are willing to give her a chance and to judge her by her policies now that she's in the big chair,” said Wilson..Knowing Smith is pro-abortion, Wilson said social conservatives have to be more vigilant about her policy decisions. He said he hopes her libertarian opinions were not “electioneering smoke and mirrors.” .He went on to say he's hopeful her not speaking about conscience rights for healthcare workers while campaigning does not represent hostility to them. Freedom of conscience, he said, is fundamental to a libertarian worldview. .Wilson said Loewen’s support went to Smith because his supporters felt uncomfortable putting an establishment candidate ahead of a grassroots option. This approach might change in the future. .He said social conservatives are needed to ensure the UCP stay in government. .“It is critically important that pro-lifers have a place in the UCP because governments set policies that are either hostile to dignity and value of human life or which recognize it,” he said. .“If we want human rights for all human beings, then we need to have a seat at the table.”.RightNow co-founder Scott Hayward said he was hoping UCP leadership candidate Travis Toews would win, as he is pro-life. .“However, we do look forward to Danielle Smith fulfilling her promises to the pro-life members of the United Conservative Party of Alberta,” said Hayward. .Some of the pro-life policies Hayward said he looks forward to Smith implementing are the allowance of private members' pro-life legislation, parental consent for minors seeking abortions, and increased financial supports for women facing crisis pregnancies. While pro-life members would prefer Loewen or Toews winning, he said people should unite around her. .It is his understanding her interpretation of adding medical choice to the AHRA would include abortion, which would be the first explicit pro-abortion legislation in Canadian history. He said if she enacted this law, she would beat Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in being the first government to pass explicit pro-abortion legislation. .There was residual anger in Alberta over COVID-19 restrictions. Hayward said it is unfortunate a number of pro-life UCP members put other issues ahead of reducing abortion and medical assistance in dying rates. .He concluded by saying pro-lifers should be active in all major political parties electing politicians to the Canadian and provincial legislatures. .“If pro-lifers are not active in these major political parties, then there can be no political wins for the pro-life movement,” he said. .“Pro-lifers being deeply involved in party politics is something that we see in other countries such as the United States and the United Kingdom.”.CLC and the Wilberforce Project said in August UCP members should vote to elect a leader with social conservative policies.
