The Alberta political party born from a movement to exit Canada

Wars & Conflicts · Published 16 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: In 2020, two Alberta political groups merged to form the Wildrose Independence Party. Born from the Wexit Alberta movement, the party’s early platform included radical proposals like replacing the Canadian dollar with a new currency and reviving a provincial police force.

A June 2020 unification of the Freedom Conservative Party of Alberta and Wexit Alberta created the Wildrose Independence Party of Alberta. The Wexit movement itself gained significant momentum in October 2019, following the re-election of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal government. Before the merger, Wexit Alberta had already demonstrated its scale, hosting a Calgary meeting that drew approximately 1,700 people. The movement's ambitions were even broader, as the Wexit Alberta constitution proposed abolishing the provincial branch of the RCMP. To achieve official party status, organizers held a rally at the Alberta legislature grounds on January 11, 2020, to collect 8,400 necessary signatures.

The party's early leadership was defined by the turbulent tenure of Paul Hinman. Initially serving as interim leader in July 2020, Hinman was formally elected in July 2021. However, his leadership faced intense scrutiny following the 2022 Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche by-election, where he finished third. A party review accused Hinman of using party funds for personal use and being disconnected from local riding issues, leading to his removal on June 28, 2022. During the 2022 by-election, Hinman argued that the UCP had betrayed Albertans by failing to oppose Ottawa. His campaign performance saw him trailing behind both the NDP and UCP candidates.

The removal sparked a legal and internal crisis. Hinman denied the accusations, alleging the board was compromised by 'agents' opposed to independence, and was eventually reinstated by supporters during a July 2022 annual general meeting. This conflict led to a Court of King's Bench ruling on October 21, 2022, which upheld his removal and appointed Jeevan Mangat as interim leader. The party's internal struggles continued through the 2023 general election, where the party ran only two candidates and endorsed the United Conservative Party in other districts. The party's board of governors even initiated a lawsuit against Hinman for $180,000. Following his removal, Jeevan Mangat took over the interim leadership, though he later joined the United Conservative Party.

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