page_title: Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta
section_title: The party under Redford
hierarchical_section_title: Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta / History / The party under Redford
caption_attribution_description: Alison Redford
context_page_description: The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta was a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta. The party formed the provincial government, without interruption, from 1971 until the party's defeat in the 2015 provincial election under Premiers Peter Lougheed, Don Getty, Ralph Klein, Ed Stelmach, Alison Redford, Dave Hancock and Jim Prentice. At 44 years, this was the longest unbroken run in government at the provincial or federal level in Canadian history.
  In July 2017, the party membership of the PC and the Wildrose Party voted to approve a merger to become the United Conservative Party. Due to previous legal restrictions that did not formally permit parties to merge or transfer their assets, the PC Party and Wildrose Party maintained a nominal existence and ran one candidate each in the 2019 election in order to prevent forfeture of the assets. The UCP government later passed legislation removing the legal restriction for party mergers, and the party officially dissolved on February 7, 2020.
context_section_description: On January 25, 2011, Stelmach announced his intention to step down as party leader and Premier prior to the next provincial election as a result of a dispute with his finance minister, Ted Morton, over the provincial budget. Stelmach formally resigned in September 2011. Justice Minister Alison Redford won the following leadership contest on October 2, 2011, and was sworn in as Premier on October 7, 2011, becoming Alberta's first female Premier.
  Most polls from 2011 onward showed the PCs losing badly to the Wildrose. However, Redford defied expectations by leading the PCs to a 12th consecutive majority government in the 2012 provincial election. The PCs won 61 seats, a loss of only five. On June 18, 2013, the Alberta PCs passed their Ontario counterparts as the second-longest running provincial government in Canadian history; the Ontario PCs spent 42 consecutive years in office from 1943 to 1985.
  With her approval rating at 18% and growing caucus discontent, including the defection of two MLAs, Redford announced on March 19, 2014 that she was resigning as Premier effective March 23, 2014. After her departure, it emerged that Redford had used provincial resources for personal and partisan purposes.
caption: Alison Redford campaigning during the 2012 provincial election
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