Jim Prentice Progressive Conservative Rachel Notley New Democratic The 2015 Alberta general election was held on May 5, following a request of Premier Jim Prentice to the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Donald Ethell to dissolve the Legislative Assembly on April 7.

The 2015 election is sometimes called the "Orange Chinook", a reference to the province's dramatic swing to the NDP, the NDP's orange colour and the weather shifts occasioned by strong Chinook winds that southern Alberta commonly experiences.

31 PC MLAs lost re-election to the legislature, the largest number in one election in Alberta history.

It also marked the first time in almost 80 years that a left-of-centre political party had formed government in Alberta since the defeat of the United Farmers of Alberta in 1935 and the Depression-era radical monetary reform policies of William Aberhart's Social Credit government.

The Alberta Liberal Party lost four seats, only returning interim leader David Swann to the Legislative Assembly.

[8] In the 2012 general election the PCs lost a portion of their caucus, but were able to continue as majority government, despite their share of the popular vote decreasing to under 50%.

[9] On September 4, 2014, the PCs became the longest serving political dynasty in Canadian history, at 43 years, 5 days.

[10] Prentice, who succeeded former premier and interim leader of the Progressive Conservatives Dave Hancock in September 2014, was not obligated to call an election until 2016.

However, seeking a new mandate to pass his budget, he asked Lieutenant Governor Donald Ethell to dissolve the legislature on April 7.

In accordance with Canadian constitutional practice, Ethell granted the request, beginning a month long campaign.

These included Lesser Slave Lake, Peace River, Edmonton-McClung, Sherwood Park, West Yellowhead and Whitecourt.

The result in Calgary-Glenmore remained unresolved on election night, as incumbent PC MLA Linda Johnson and NDP challenger Anam Kazim finished the vote count in an exact tie of 7,015 votes each,[20] necessitating a recount process.

She told the Canadian Press that she had been sitting in a hotel room in either Calgary or Lethbridge when she saw a very credible poll showing the NDP was poised to rebound from a mere four seats in the legislature – the minimum for official party status – to an outright majority.

Her original plan would have not only resulted in her looking extremely haggard in her first speech as premier-elect, but would have left her without time to begin a transition.

However, their caucus was decimated due to a near-total collapse in the major cities, as well as a more pronounced split in the right-of-centre vote.