Danielle Smith

This article is about the Canadian politician. For the Californian martial artist, see Danielle Smith (martial artist).

Danielle Smith MLA
Leader of Official Opposition of Alberta
Incumbent
Assumed office April 24, 2012
Preceded by	Raj Sherman
Leader of the Wildrose Party
Incumbent
Assumed office October 17, 2009
Preceded by	Paul Hinman
MLA for Highwood
Incumbent
Assumed office 2012
Preceded by	George Groeneveld
Personal details
Born	(1971-04-01) April 1, 1971 Calgary, Alberta
Nationality	Canadian
Political party	Wildrose Party
Other political affiliations	Progressive Conservative (to 2009)
Spouse(s)	Sean McKinsley (divorced) David Moretta (m. 2006)
Residence	High River
Alma mater	University of Calgary
Occupation	lobbyist and advocate
Profession	journalist, broadcaster
Website	www.daniellesmith.ca/

Marlaina Danielle Smith, MLA, (born April 1, 1971) is a Canadian journalist and a provincial politician in Alberta. Smith has served as leader of the Wildrose Party since October 2009. She is currently the leader of the Official Opposition in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, where she represents the riding of Highwood as an MLA.

Prior to being elected leader of the Wildrose Party, Smith was the Director of Provincial Affairs for Alberta with the Canadian Federation of Independent Business. She has also worked as a journalist in print, radio and television. Since taking over as leader, Smith has been instrumental in the growth of the Wildrose Party, taking a party that lacked official party status to one that formed the Official Opposition within three years.

Background

Danielle Smith was born in Calgary, Alberta on April 1, 1971, and is the second of five children. Her paternal great-grandfather was Philipus Kolodnicki, a Ukrainian immigrant whose name was anglicized to "Philip Smith" upon his arrival in Canada in 1915. Growing up, her family lived in subsidized housing.

Smith attended the University of Calgary and acquired a Bachelor of Arts in English and in economics. While at university she was active with the federal and provincial Progressive Conservatives and won the presidency of the campus PC club. Other prominent conservatives who attended the university during the same period included journalist Ezra Levant and Member of Parliament Rob Anders. Smith's work in public policy began with a one-year internship with the Fraser Institute. Smith wed her second husband David Moretta, an executive with Sun Media, in 2006. She was previously married to Sean McKinsley, whom she met in university.

Summer 2010 promotional signs

At the age of 27, in 1998, Smith entered politics when she was a candidate for the board of trustees of the Calgary Board of Education. She was successful in the election but in 1999, the Minister of Learning, Lyle Oberg, dismissed the entire board after the chairwoman accused the board of being dysfunctional. Subsequently, Smith pursued work as an advocate for ranchers, farmers and other rural land owners with the Alberta Property Rights Initiative and the Canadian Property Rights Research Institute.

After her time as a board trustee Smith joined the Calgary Herald as a columnist with the editorial board. She then went onto to succeed Charles Adler as host of the national current affairs program Global Sunday, a Sunday-afternoon interview show on Global Television. She also hosted two talk radio programs focused on health policy and property rights.

In 2004, Smith was named one of Calgary's "Top 40 Under 40".

In September 2006, she co-hosted the Calgary Congress, a national assembly of citizens and economic and constitutional specialists to consider basic federal reforms for Canada.

Smith was hired by the Canadian Federation of Independent Business in 2006, becoming provincial director for Alberta.

Politics

In 2006, Smith contemplated running for the Progressive Conservatives in the riding of Calgary North Hill. However, because incumbent Richard Magnus was indecisive on whether he would seek re-election, Smith took her job with the CFIB and ruled out politics at that time. Smith had supported Ted Morton in the 2006 PC leadership election. Morton lost to the more centrist Ed Stelmach and Smith became increasingly disillusioned with what she claims were Stelmach's "free-spending ways". Smith cites the 2008 provincial budget as a turning point where she determined that Stelmach's government had 'lost its way'.

Party leadership

Smith quit the PC party in 2009. In 2009, Smith was recruited by officials of the Wildrose Alliance to run for the leadership of the party. During the course of the leadership campaign outgoing leader Hinman was victorious in a by-election in the riding of Calgary-Glenmore. His win meant he was one of four in the Wildrose caucus; by the time Smith was elected leader on October 17, 2009, support for the party had quadrupled since the 2008 election. After Smith was elected leader, support for the Wildrose Party continued to grow. Smith convinced three PCs who served in government to cross the floor to join the Wildrose Party: Rob Anderson and Heather Forsyth, and later Guy Boutiller.

2012 election

On the eve of the 2012 provincial election, numerous polls indicated that the Wildrose Party could defeat the governing Progressive Conservatives, the latter having governed the province since 1971. Others contend that they have been relegated to a southern Alberta social conservative rump, a protest party, and their longevity and potential historical impact – not unlike that of other southern Alberta conservative protest movements such as the Western Canada Concept Party, the old Wildrose Party, and the Alliance Party – remains yet to be proven.

Her campaign promise to pay Albertans $300 from energy revenues gave rise to the nickname "Dani dollars".

Political pundits suggested Wildrose lost their early polling lead over the Progressive Conservatives due to Smith's defence of two Wildrose candidates who had made controversial remarks. According to the National Post, the socially conservative views of the Wildrose candidates and Smith's refusal to condemn those views were the cause of her party's defeat in the 2012 election.

Ultimately, despite public polling suggesting a potential minority government, the Wildrose Party only won seats in 17 out of 87 constituencies on April 23, 2012. They did, however, garner 34.3% of the popular vote overall and win 17 of 87 seats in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, and took over Official Opposition status from the Alberta Liberal Party. Smith was elected to the Legislature representing the southern Alberta riding of Highwood on the same day.

Public image

Smith presents herself as a libertarian, particularly on moral issues. She has a declared affinity towards former Reform Party leader Preston Manning, and to Stephen Harper, with whom she shares a mentor, Tom Flanagan. She has been described as media-savvy and adept at presenting a professional and polished image.

External links

• Danielle Smith

Order of precedence
Preceded by Ric McIver	Order of precedence in Alberta as of 2013	Succeeded by Members of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada resident in Alberta