The A Better Calgary Party (ABC) is a

conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

municipal political party in

Calgary Calgary () is a major city in the Canadian province of Alberta. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806 making it the third-largest city and fifth-largest metropolitan area in C ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

, founded ahead of the city's 2025 municipal election.

History

The A Better Calgary Party was launched on June 19, 2024 and officially founded on October 19, registering with Elections Calgary on March 26, 2025. This followed the introduction of provincial legislation allowing municipal political parties in Calgary and

Edmonton Edmonton is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Alberta. It is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Central Alberta ...

. The party's founding was motivated by dissatisfaction with

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a Municipal corporation, municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilitie ...

Jyoti Gondek Prabhjote Kaur "Jyoti" Gondek (; born 1969) is a Canadian politician serving as the 37th and current mayor of Calgary since October 25, 2021. Early life and education Born in London, England, Gondek is the daughter of Indian Punjabi Sikh ...

and

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, borough counc ...

, with founding members involved in a 2024

attempt An attempt to commit a crime occurs if a criminal has an intent to commit a crime and takes a substantial step toward completing the crime, but for reasons not intended by the criminal, the final resulting crime does not occur.''Criminal Law - ...

to recall Gondek. The party intends to run a mayoral candidate and will run councillor candidates in most wards. However, it is not running candidates in certain wards and is instead endorsing other

candidates, including some running with the

Communities First Communities First was a Government of Wales, Welsh Government programme aimed at reducing poverty. The programme was community focused and supported the most disadvantaged people in the most deprived areas of Wales with the aim of contributing t ...

party.

Positions

The A Better Calgary Party describes itself as "centre-right" and a "big tent, membership-driven organization" consisting of "common sense conservatives". Though it does not have a specific policy platform and does not intend to

whip A whip is a blunt weapon or implement used in a striking motion to create sound or pain. Whips can be used for flagellation against humans or animals to exert control through pain compliance or fear of pain, or be used as an audible cue thro ...

its councillors, figures within the party have expressed opposition to Calgary's

climate emergency declaration A climate emergency declaration or ''declaring a climate emergency'' is an action taken by governments and scientists to acknowledge humanity is in a climate crisis. The first such declaration was made by a local government ( Darebin, Melbourne ...

and blanket rezoning policy.

Candidates in the 2025 Municipal Election

References

External links

* {{Municipal political parties in Alberta Municipal government of Calgary Organizations based in Calgary Municipal political parties in Alberta Conservative parties in Canada Political parties established in 2024 2024 establishments in Alberta