Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills MLA Nathan Cooper is the interim leader of the new United Conservative Party (UCP).
Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills MLA Nathan Cooper is the interim leader of the new United Conservative Party (UCP). He was elected to that post by party reps Monday, July 24, after members of the Wildrose and Progressive Conservatives voted this past weekend to merge into the UCP.
Cooper will serve as interim leader until a leader for the new party is chosen on Oct. 28. He says he's pleased with the vote by members of the Progressive Conservatives and his Wildrose Party to join together in one entity.Wildrose Party members voted 95.4 per cent in favour and Progressive Conservatives voted 95 per cent in favour. Cooper was surprised by those margins, especially in the Wildrose Party, because the threshold for approval in that party was 75 per cent, while the threshold in the PC party was only 50 per cent plus one.
"While I was surprised, because the threshold that we needed to reach was so high, as I spoke to folks around Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills, the vast majority of people who spoke to me were telling me that they were going to be voting 'yes,'" Cooper said during an interview with the Albertan.
"In fact, from the time that the agreement was announced on May 18, I only spoke to five individuals who had said that they were going to be voting 'no,'" he added.
"So while it was an overwhelming result and was surprising on one side of the coin, on the other side, I wasn't surprised, because I'd spoken with so many individuals who spoke positively about the unity agreement."
At press time, a vote was being held to choose an interim leader for the party. Cooper's name was among those being cited as possible candidates. Cooper, the Wildrose Party's house leader, was asked if he would be willing to serve in that capacity.
"You know, the interim leader is a decision of caucus, and so if caucus asks me to serve I'll be more than happy to serve them and Albertans in that capacity, for sure," he said.
When Saturday's vote was announced, pundits said some people on the far right of the Wildrose and PC parties and on the left, were talking about creating their own parties.
In the case of more left-leaning PCs they were believed to be thinking of joining the Alberta Party, said to be in the middle of the political spectrum, because they disagree with policies they expect the new United Conservative Party will espouse.
Cooper said while he sympathized with those feelings, he remained hopeful people will get over that and support the new party when it is officially created.
"Well, certainly a lot of people have given a lot of their time, talent and resources to this party and so for some folks Saturday was a disappointment," Cooper said.
"I'm going to do my level best to reach out to folks and let them know that this is a time to rally around unity; it's a time to bring Albertans together for the conservative movement and I think that that is critical for the process."
Spokesmen for the Progressive Conservatives in Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills could not be reached for comment by press time.
"In fact, from the time that the agreement was announced on May 18, I only spoke to five individuals who had said that they were going to be voting 'no.'" NATHAN COOPER OLDS-DIDSBURY-THREE HILLS MLA
