West of Centre

New polling for CBC suggests the UCP pulling ahead of the NDP. But it's not over yet. With a few days remaining in the campaign, all eyes are on battleground Calgary. West of Centre host Kathleen Petty breaks down the numbers with pollster Janet Brown and Duane Bratt of Mount Royal University. Then, CBC journalists join the pod in anticipation of Monday’s “Calgarypalooza!”.

The leaders of Alberta’s two major parties took an hour out of their campaigns to debate each other this week.. So, who won? The consensus seems to be that Danielle Smith didn’t make any serious gaffs to lose and Rachel Notley didn’t level a knock out punch to win. On the West of Centre podcast, host Kathleen Petty and guests debate the debate. She is joined by a panel of Calgary voters followed by a couple of political journalists who add their though and drill down on the campaign .

We might be obsessing over battleground Calgary. But it’s not the only place in Alberta where seats are up for grabs. This week, we take you to some of the small towns and cities where the election could be decided. Also on West of Centre, Jason Markusoff fills in for Kathleen Petty and talks to campaign watchers about how Danielle Smith and Rachel Notley are managing the province’s wildfire crisis.

The four week election campaign gets underway with the UCP promising big tax cuts and the NDP offering a leader Albertans can trust. The bottom line is this election is about two women who know what it’s like to be in the top political job, running on their records. This week, West of Centre host Kathleen Petty takes you behind the scenes of the campaigns with senior advisors in both camps. Cheryl Oates is with the NDP and Erika Barootes is with the UCP. And acting as a bit of a buffer between the two is Jason Markusoff , a producer and writer with CBC Calgary who somehow found a way to tie Cinco de Mayo into Alberta politics. .

Game On! . An election campaign promise from Danielle Smith this week is a 330 million dollar gamble that Albertans support subsidizing the Calgary Flames arena deal. Will that be the defining issue of the campaign or will it be health care or Albertans struggling with the cost of living? As the parties roll out their election machines,West of Centre host Kathleen Petty talks strategy with Karamveer Lalh former political staffer for federal Conservatives and UCP, Leah Ward former director of communications for Rachel Notley and the Alberta NDP caucus and Corey Hogan who served as head of government communications under Alberta Premiers Rachel Notley and Jason Kenney.

The writs are not expected to drop for another week or so , but no one is waiting for the official start of the provincial election. Alberta pitches a new plan for federal equalization payments while Ottawa sticks with the status quo. A former Prime Minister offers support for the UCP and both Danielle Smith and Rachel Notley are embroiled in scuffles with the media. On West of Centre with Kathleen Petty, a closer look at what’s happening on ground in this unofficial campaign and who is making “all the writ moves”

All signs point to Calgary as the battleground for the Alberta election in May. So what is the city thinking? What are Calgarians worried about? And who will they vote for? CBC Calgary has commissioned a poll looking exclusively at voters in the province’s biggest city. Guest host Jason Markusoff is joined by Janet Brown of Janet Brown Opinion Research, Mount Royal University’s Duane Bratt and Rishi Nagar of RED FM.

It’s the uncomfortable conversation Alberta has every year: How much is too much, when it comes to relying on oil and gas royalties. Both major parties agree it’s time to get off the revenue roller coaster, but how? And when? Guest host Jim Brown is joined by former Alberta Premier Alison Redford and University of Calgary economists Trevor Tombe and Lindsay Tedds.

Alberta is about to go into an election and it's a tight race. At a special live election show, host Kathleen Petty and her panel talk about the issues Calgary - home of many battleground ridings - and province are facing as Alberta votes. What topics will this campaign focus on? And what do those issues say about Alberta’s future? Calgary Chamber of Commerce President Deborah Yedlin, former Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi and pollster Janet Brown join.

We have an oil sands tailings pond leak sparking national questions, the federal government’s controversial environmental assessment legislation before the Supreme Court, details on Alberta’s efforts to procure children’s medication and a new budget coming next week from Ottawa. Host Kathleen Petty is joined by the Globe and Mail’s Kelly Cryderman, Alex Boyd from the Toronto Star and freelance columnist Graham Thomson to break down those topics.

Alberta is the only province to never have a minority government and with an election two months away the third parties are struggling to nominate candidates, raise money and get noticed. How did it evolve to this point and what does it say about politics and democracy? Host Kathleen Petty is joined by Dave Cournoyer, a politics and history writer, Lisa Young from the University of Calgary and CBC Calgary’s Jason Markusoff.

The curiosity with what Albertans think and why has been catching national attention for a while, but that focus is increasing as the provincial election gets closer. Host Kathleen Petty talks about why the country is paying attention and what political lessons there are for Canada in Alberta with David Coletto, the CEO of Abacus Data and Eric Grenier, founder of The Writ.

‘Spend’ might be the word of the week. Alberta’s budget is doling out $68 billion in spending. Where is all the money going? How precarious is Alberta’s financial position? And how does this budget frame the upcoming election? Host Kathleen Petty is joined by Kieran Leavitt, the Toronto Star’s national reporter in Edmonton, Calgary Sun Columnist Rick Bell and Elise von Scheel, CBC Calgary’s provincial affairs reporter.

The budget day boots are polished and on Tuesday Albertans will get a look at where the government plans to spend its large surplus. What can we expect in that document? How are budgets built? And how does that all shift in a pre-election budget? Guest host Jason Markusoff is joined by Trevor Tombe from the University of Calgary, former Alberta PC minister Gary Mar, now with the Canada West Foundation and former NDP minister Marg McCuaig-Boyd from Counsel Public Affairs.

They say things come in threes: On Friday, the federal government released its roadmap on a plan to move oil and gas workers into sustainable energy jobs, Alberta’s premier and the federal Conservative leader spoke in Calgary, and the report into the Emergencies Act invocation related to the Freedom Convoy was released. Host Kathleen Petty breaks down those events with Mount Royal University’s Lori Williams, strategist Corey Hogan and the CBC’s Jason Markusoff.

The prime minister has made his pitch to the premiers on a health care deal, but will they say yes? And how could those dollars help a struggling system? Host Kathleen Petty is joined by Fredrykka Rinaldi, the president of the Alberta Medical Association and a family doctor, Janet Brown of Janet Brown Opinion Research and the CBC’s provincial affairs reporter in Edmonton, Janet French.

The federal government’s plan to move oil and gas workers into clean energy jobs has created a huge debate. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says this forthcoming plan will destroy jobs and Alberta’s economy. Federal ministers say it’s necessary to protect the environment and stay competitive economically. So, what’s the deal with the ‘Just Transition’? Host Kathleen Petty sits down with Andrew Leach from the University of Alberta, Sara Hastings-Simon from the University of Calgary and the Globe and Mail’s Emma Graney.

Premier Danielle Smith is facing new controversy over just how involved she’s been in Alberta’s justice system. Host Kathleen Petty discusses the fallout, the implications and what it all says about political interference in the judicial system with the Toronto Star’s Alberta national reporter Alex Boyd, Lisa Young, a political scientist from the University of Calgary, and lawyer and professor Peter Sankoff.

Ottawa's plan to transition oil and gas workers stole headlines this week, until a bombshell story that a member of the premier’s staff contacted public prosecutors about Coutts blockade cases. Host Kathleen Petty digs into those two big topics with the CBC’s Jason Markusoff, Kelly Cryderman of the Globe and Mail and Janet Brown from Janet Brown Opinion Research.

If 2022 was a roller coaster in Alberta politics, 2023 won’t be any calmer. We are officially in an election year and it’s shaping up to be a competitive race. One person in particular has her eye on the province’s top job – for a second time. Host Kathleen Petty is joined by NDP Leader Rachel Notley on this week’s episode.