How is government formed?

The province is divided into 83 constituencies, or ridings. Each riding has a number of candidates from different parties. The candidate in each riding that wins the highest number of votes in an election becomes the Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for that riding. This person represents the constituency in the Legislative Assembly.

Find your constituency

The leader of the political party with the most seats in the Legislative Assembly becomes the Premier of Alberta. The Premier and ministers form the government.

More information: Premier Alison Redford

More information: Government ministries

Elections and by-elections

By law, a provincial general election must be held every five years, though it can be held sooner. In a general election Albertans from across the province vote on who they want to represent them in the Legislative Assembly.

Sometimes a seat in the Legislative Assembly is vacated well before the next provincial election will be held. When this happens, a by-election is called. A by-election is an election held in one riding only. The winner of the by-election becomes the new MLA for that riding until the next general election.

Elections Alberta website