A legal challenge launched by the United Conservative Party (UCP) on July 14 has prompted independent MLAs Peter Guthrie and Scott Sinclair to enter discussions with the Alberta Party about joining forces.
Guthrie confirmed the UCP filed the challenge in response to their effort to form a new party under the Progressive Conservative name.
The UCP first issued a cease-and-desist letter to the two MLAs, who were removed from Premier Danielle Smith’s caucus, warning that their use of the PC name would infringe on the party’s intellectual property rights.
Earlier this month, Premier Smith said election rules bar any other political organization from using the name.
In a recent interview, Guthrie said resurrecting the Progressive Conservative name through the existing Alberta Party would be an easier path. He believes they could apply to Elections Alberta for an official name change and avoid the longer signatory verification process of forming a new party.
Alberta Party president Lindsay Amantea has proposed that the independent MLAs join her party’s fold, allowing them to file a name change to "Progressive Conservative" with Elections Alberta without further legal wrangling with the UCP.
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The UCP and Progressive Conservatives agreed to merge in July 2017. The PCs were officially dissolved nearly three years later. The PCs formed the Alberta government, with interruptions, from 1971 to 2015, when they were defeated by the Alberta NDP.
The Alberta Party has emerged as a centrist conservative party, formed following various coalitions and failed merger attempts. While it has had as many as three MLAs in its caucus, only Greg Clark was elected under the party's banner.
In 2019, the party ran its first full slate of candidates under leader Stephen Mandel, a former Edmonton mayor, and secured 9.09 per cent of the popular vote.
In 2023, the party ran 19 candidates and received less than one per cent of the provincial vote.