Ever since the cabinet shuffle I think things have settled down a bit in the Alberta PC party. They still have a few things to work on but my feeling is that PC support bottomed out in 2009 and has been re-building in the first half of 2010. Stelmach seems to have better control of his ministers right now, and commitments are being lived up to (e.g. Green TRIP transit funding). Things are looking up in Alberta.
I'm hearing lots of rumours that we are headed back to busy times in the oilpatch. By 2012 we might be back to "early 2000's" levels of activity. That was a good sustainable pace and would bode very well for the provincial treasury. In the meantime I think the PCs have done a good job managing the books - holding back where needed but still keeping programs going.
On the other hand, things have been very quiet on the Wildrose front. Big publicity after the leadership and byelection win, but very quiet ever since. They still have much work and organizing to do to be a viable threat. Constituency associations in all 83 constituencies would be a start, but they are not even close in most of the province. The party itself is being run by former Reform party outcasts. They may have some smart people but they are not people people if you know what I mean.
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