Glen Carritt is shown next to his new unofficial party's logo in a public Facebook post.

By Josh Hall (Twitter: @Vancan19)

wants alberta to join the u.s.

Former Innisfail councillor elected leader of new Alberta Statehood Party

Jan 16, 2022 | 9:00 AM

A former Innisfail town councillor and 2021 mayoral runner-up is heading a new political party.

The Alberta Statehood Party, led by Glen Carritt, is not yet registered as an official party, Elections Alberta confirms to rdnewsNOW.

In a Jan. 11 Facebook post, Carritt shares he was recently elected leader.

(Facebook)

A post on the page from a person named Kim Stevens says the interim board of the Alberta Statehood Party Foundation is unanimously in support of Carritt’s leadership.

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“Glen has been creating a wave of activity, energy and momentum. He has organized and hosted a Statehood Townhall meeting in Innisfail,” Stevens wrote. “Despite the frigid temperatures, a crowd of about 40 people attended. Some were skeptical at first but most, if not all came away convinced of the cause.”

(Facebook)

The party website is adorned with a banner showing an outline of the U.S., Alberta included, with another banner below it asking the question, “Should Alberta join the U.S.A.?” Next to the phrase is a photo of former American president Donald Trump.

The website goes on to claim that by not being part of the U.S.A., “Alberta will always be at the mercy of American internal politics,” noting the Keystone XL Pipeline cancellation. By becoming an American state, it adds, access to U.S. domestic markets, and their foreign export agreements, will be guaranteed.

“Separation from Canada, to become an American State, is Alberta’s BEST and MOST PRACTICAL choice to solve a serious problem, that is NOT going away,” the site proclaims.

At the bottom of the home page, it’s noted that the Alberta Statehood Party intends to run a full slate of candidates in the 2023 provincial election.

Elections Alberta also confirmed for rdnewsNOW that Carritt’s party has applied for official party status, and the name ‘Alberta Statehood Party’ is reserved until March 10, 2022.

That means the application was filed last March, as parties are initially given six months to fulfill requirements, and can then apply for two three-month extensions.

If the party can’t fulfill the requirements listed below by March 10, it would have to start over.

Under section 6(2) of the Election Finances and Contributions Disclosure Act (EFCDA), a party can become registered in one of four ways:

1. it holds a minimum of three seats in the Legislative Assembly following the most recent election
2. it endorsed candidates who were nominated in at least 50% of the electoral divisions in the most recent general election
3. it endorses candidates in at least 50% of the electoral divisions following the issue of a writ of election for a general election, or
4. outside of a campaign period, it provides the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) with the names, addresses, and signatures of eligible electors who request the registration of the party and represent at least 0.3% of the number of electors eligible to vote at the last general election (i.e. 8,473 signatures, verified by the CEO)

“They can also solicit donations but those donations are not eligible for political contribution tax credits. They can also appoint a leader. They are not allowed to state that they are a registered political party or that contributions will be eligible for tax credits,” an Elections Alberta spokesperson outlines.

“If their registration application is successful, the maximum funds they can begin registered party operations with is $5,000. Funds raised/contributed from that point forward are subject to election finance reporting and disclosure rules.”

Carritt is also known for having led the United We Roll convoy to Ottawa in 2019, and then shorter convoys around Alberta.

In February 2021, an Innisfail council code of conduct investigation wrapped up. It had looked into allegations that Carritt had breached several sections of the Council Code of Conduct Bylaw during his term, finding that 29 of the 36 allegations had merit.

However, Carritt had resigned from town council a month earlier, shortly before announcing his run for the mayor’s seat. In the October 2021 election, he received 626 votes to Jean Barclay’s 2,025.