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Danielle Smith
Leader of the Wildrose Party
Incumbent
Assumed office October 17, 2009
Preceded by	Paul Hinman
Personal details
Born	(1971-04-01) April 1, 1971 (age 53) Calgary, Alberta
Nationality	Canadian
Political party	Wildrose Party Progressive Conservative (former)
Spouse(s)	Sean McKinsley (divorced) David Moretta (m. 2006)
Residence	High River
Alma mater	University of Calgary
Occupation	business lobbyist and property rights advocate
Profession	journalist, broadcaster
Website	Danielle Smith

Danielle M. Smith (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, and is the party's candidate in the district of Highwood in the 2012 Alberta provincial election.

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, steering the party to become a viable alternative government to the Progressive Conservatives for the first time.

Background

Danielle Smith was born in Calgary, Alberta on April 1, 1971, and is the second of five children. Her father was descended from one 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. Her father worked at Firestone, her mother at a drive-thru diner, and went on to work in the public service.

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.

At the age of 27, in 1998, Smith entered politics when she was a candidate for the Board of Trustees for 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 was contemplating 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 saw as 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'.

In 2006, following the resignation of Paul Hinman, Smith was recruited by officials of the Wildrose Alliance, a political party that is more fiscally conservative than the PCs, 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, which had been a PC stronghold for years. His surprising win led to increase in support for the Wildrose, by the time Smith was elected leader on October 17, 2009, support for the party had quadrupled since the 2008 election. Smith quit the PC party in 2009.

After Smith was elected leader, support for the Wildrose Party continued to grow. Smith convinced several PCs who served in government to cross the floor and join the Wildrose Party. By December 2009, a public opinion poll showed the Wildrose leading the Progressive Conservatives by 14 percentage points. The Progressive Conservatives surpassed the Wildrose in support in early 2010, the party was however able to remain in second place for the next two years. Leading into the 2012 Alberta provincial election support for the Wildrose increased to tie the ruling Progressive Conservatives. Many political commentators are in agreement that the Wildrose are possibly the biggest threat to the Progressive Conservative government since they first formed government in 1971. Smith in seeking election in the southern riding of Highwood.

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 has been compared to Stephen Harper, with whom she shares a mentor, Tom Flanagan. Margaret Wente, columnist for The Globe and Mail, called Smith "highly personable" and more likeable than Premier Alison Redford. Wente called Smith being a female an advantage for her in the campaign, saying that it steered the party away from its portrayal as a bunch of "angry old guys". Smith herself prefers for gender to be a non-factor in her 2012 election campaign, but it inevitably emerged as an issue anyway. She has been described as media-savvy and adept at presenting a professional and polished image. Smith has been criticized by her opponents for being inexperienced. Her campaign promise to pay Albertans $300 from energy revenues gave rise to the nickname "Dani bucks".

References

1. ^ Sharpe, Sydney. "Danielle Smith: Is she Alberta's Sarah Palin, or the future of Canada?". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 14 April 2012.
2. ^ "Danielle Smith Wildrose Leader profile". Calgary Herald. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
3. Verma, Sonia (12 November 2010). "Danielle Smith: 'My life will fall under the microscope'". Globe and Mail. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
4. ^ Wood, James (1 April 2012). "Party leader profile: Wildrose Party Danielle Smith". Calgary Herald. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
5. ^ "Wildrose Leader Danielle Smith". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 19 March 2012. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
6. "Top 40 Under 40 Alumni". Avenue Calgary. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
7. "The Calgary Congress 2006". Citizens Centre for Freedom and Democracy. Retrieved August 10, 2009.
8. "Two announce bid for Wildrose Alliance leadership". CTV. 7 June 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
9. "Tories stunning defeat sends strong message to Stelmach". CTV. 15 September 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
10. "Provincial Vote Intention Alberta Public Opinion Study – Fall 2009" (PDF). Lethbridge College. 7. Retrieved 2 April 2012. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= and |year= / |date= mismatch (help); Unknown parameter |month= ignored (help)
11. "New Wildrose leader ready to take on Stelmach Tories". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 18 October 2009. Retrieved 1 April 2012.
12. "Albertans eyeing Wildrose Alliance". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 29 December 2009. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
13. MacArthur, Mary (26 March 2012). "Alberta vote shaping up to be closest one seen in decades". The Western Prodcuer. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
14. McLean, Tanara (26 March 2012). "'Break from the past': Wildrose leader". Edmonton Sun. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
15. Thomson, Graham (26 March 2012). "Thomson: Countdown to April 23 vote starts today". Edmonton Journal. Retrieved 2 April 2012.
16. ^ Wente, Margaret (18 April 2012). "Wildrose's winning ways". The Globe and Mail.
17. Den Tandt, Michael (18 April 2012). "Danielle Smith and Wildrose ride the ave". POSTMEDIA NEWS via The Province.

External links

• Official Danielle Smith website
• Danielle Smith's Facebook page

Template:Persondata

• 1971 births
• Alberta school board trustees
• Canadian columnists
• Canadian libertarians
• Canadian television journalists
• Female Canadian political party leaders
• Living people
• People from Calgary
• University of Calgary alumni
• Women in Alberta politics
• Canadian people of Ukrainian descent
• Wildrose Party politicians
• Canadian women journalists