29th Alberta general election

Alberta general election, 2015

← 2012 May 5, 2015 30th →
← outgoing members members →
87 seats in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta 44 seats needed for a majority
Opinion polls
Turnout	54.2%
First party Second party Third party   Leader Rachel Notley Brian Jean Jim Prentice Party New Democratic Wildrose Progressive Conservative Leader since October 18, 2014 March 28, 2015 September 6, 2014 Leader's seat Edmonton-Strathcona Fort McMurray-Conklin Calgary-Foothills (disclaimed re-election) Last election 4 seats, 9.82% 17 seats, 34.29% 61 seats, 43.95% Seats before 4 5 70 Seats won 54 21 9 Seat change 50 16 61 Popular vote 604,515 360,511 413,607 Percentage 40.57% 24.23% 27.80% Swing 30.75pp 10.06pp 16.15pp   Fourth party Fifth party   Leader David Swann Greg Clark Party Liberal Alberta Party Leader since interim until TBA September 21, 2013 Leader's seat Calgary-Mountain View Calgary-Elbow Last election 5 seats, 9.89% 0 seats, 1.31% Seats before 5 0 Seats won 1 1 Seat change 4 1 Popular vote 62,153 33,221 Percentage 4.19% 2.29% Swing 5.70pp 0.98pp
Popular vote by riding. As this is a first-past-the-post election, seat totals are not determined by total popular vote, but instead by results in each riding.
Premier before election Jim Prentice Progressive Conservative Premier-designate Rachel Notley New Democratic

Jim Prentice
Progressive Conservative

Rachel Notley
New Democratic

The 29th general election of Alberta, Canada, took place on May 5, 2015, following a request of Premier Jim Prentice to the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Donald Ethell to dissolve the Legislative Assembly on April 7, 2015. This election elected members to the 29th Alberta Legislature. It was one of only four times that Alberta has changed governments.

The provincial Election Act fixed the election date to a three-month period between March 1 and May 31 in the fourth calendar year after the preceding election day - in this case, April 23, 2012. However, the Act does not affect the powers of the Lieutenant Governor to dissolve the Legislature before this period.

The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta (PCs) had a majority in the outgoing Assembly. As a result of the election, the Alberta New Democratic Party (NDP) were elected to a majority government under leader Rachel Notley. The NDP formed Government for the first time in Alberta history, ousting the PCs, who were reduced to third place in seats. Prentice resigned as PC leader and MLA for Calgary-Foothills on election night. The Progressive Conservatives had won every provincial election since the 1971 election, making them the longest-serving provincial government in Canadian history. This was only the fourth change of government in Alberta since Alberta became a province in 1905, and one of the worst defeats a provincial government has suffered in Canada. It also marked the first time a left-of-centre political party had formed government in Alberta since the defeat of the United Farmers of Alberta in 1935 and the Depression-era radical monetary reform policies of William Aberhart's Social Credit government.