Marilyn Burns
Leader of the Alberta Advantage Party
Assumed office
February 2018
Preceded byNew position
Personal details
Political partyAlberta Advantage Party
ChildrenFour
ProfessionLawyer

Marilyn Burns (born 1956 or 1957)[1] is a Canadian lawyer and politician who currently serves as the leader of the Alberta Advantage Party. She was previously active in the Alberta Alliance Party and the Wildrose Party.

Born in Edmonton, Alberta, she was educated at a Christian college in Moose Jaw, at Athabasca University, and then at the University of Calgary Faculty of Law, from which she earned a Bachelor of Laws.[2] She articled with Ogilvie and Company,[2] and since 2001 has been practicing has a personal injury lawyer with McCourt Law Offices in Edmonton.[3] Prior to practicing law, she worked jobs that included farm worker, waitress, piano instructor, deli clerk, school secretary, nurse's aide, and summer camp instructor.[2] She is a single mother of four children.[3]

Burns ran in the 2004 Alberta general election in Stony Plain for the Alberta Alliance Party, and placed third of five candidates. When party founder Randy Thorsteinson stepped down as leader in 2005, she ran in the ensuing leadership contest to replace him. She finished second of four candidates, losing on the third and final ballot to Paul Hinman. She was involved with the founding of the Wildrose Party of Alberta and, when that party joined with the Alberta Alliance to form the Wildrose Party in 2008, she joined the new party and served as president of its Edmonton-South West constituency association.[4] She opposed Wildrose's 2017 merger with the Progressive Conservatives (PCs) to form the United Conservative Party (UCP) on the grounds that she saw it as a takeover of Wildrose by the PCs, and was one of a group of about fifty disaffected Wildrose members who, rather than joining the UCP, founded the Alberta Advantage Party.[4] She was acclaimed as leader of that party at its inaugural convention in February 2018.[4] In the 2019 Alberta general election, she stood for election as the Alberta Advantage candidate in Edmonton-South West, where she finished in fourth place, with 0.9% of the vote.[5]

Electoral record

2023 Alberta general election

2023 Alberta general election: Lac Ste. Anne-Parkland
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
United Conservative Shane Getson 14,923 68.96 +3.22
New Democratic Oneil Carlier 5,868 27.12 +3.71
Alberta Party Janet Jabush 463 2.14 -5.61
Green Vanessa Diehl 205 0.95 –
Advantage Party Marilyn Burns 182 0.84 -0.56
Total 21,641 99.61 –
Rejected and declined 85 0.39
Turnout 21,726 61.27
Eligible voters 35,460
United Conservative hold Swing -0.25
Source(s)
Source: Elections Alberta[6]

2022 by-election

Alberta provincial by-election, 15 March 2022: Fort McMurray-Lac La Biche
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
United Conservative Brian Jean 3,717 63.6% -2.73
New Democratic Ariana Mancini 1,081 18.5% -6.01
Wildrose Independence Paul Hinman 628 10.8% –
Liberal Abdulhakim Hussein 211 3.6% –
Alberta Party Michelle Landsiedel 98 1.7% -4.08
Independent Brian Deheer 57 1.0% –
Alberta Advantage Party Marilyn Burns 25 0.4% –
Alberta Independence Steven Mellott 24 0.4% -1.43
Total valid votes 5,837
Total rejected ballots 0
Turnout 24.27%
Eligible voters 24,048

2019 Alberta general election

2019 Alberta general election: Edmonton-South West
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
United Conservative Kaycee Madu 10,254 44.99 +5.96
New Democratic John Archer 9,539 41.85 -11.97
Alberta Party Mo Elsalhy 2,668 11.70 +9.04
Alberta Advantage Marilyn Burns 208 0.91 –
Green Rigel Vincent 125 0.55 –
Total 22,794 99.29 –
Rejected, spoiled and declined 162 0.71
Turnout 22,956 70.15
Eligible voters 32,726
United Conservative notional gain from New Democratic Swing +8.97
Source(s)
Source: "43 - Edmonton-South West, 2019 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
Alberta. Chief Electoral Officer (2019). 2019 General Election. A Report of the Chief Electoral Officer. Volume II (PDF) (Report). Vol. 2. Edmonton, Alta.: Elections Alberta. pp. 168–170. ISBN 978-1-988620-12-1. Retrieved April 7, 2021.

2005 Alberta Alliance leadership election

1st Ballot
Candidate Votes %
Paul Hinman 485 43.0%
Marilyn Burns 244 21.6%
David Crutcher 211 18.7%
Ed Klop 188 16.7%
Total 1,128
2nd Ballot
Candidate Votes %
Paul Hinman 548 50.0%
Marilyn Burns 312 28.5%
David Crutcher 236 21.5%
Total 1,096
3rd Ballot
Candidate Votes %
Paul Hinman 626 61.2%
Marilyn Burns 387 38.2%
Total 1,013

2004 Alberta general election

2004 Alberta general election: Stony Plain
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Progressive Conservative Fred Lindsay 5,581 44.51% -22.69%
Liberal Bill Fraser 3,381 26.97% 3.38%
Alberta Alliance Marilyn Burns 1,904 15.19% –
New Democratic Ruth Yanor 1,362 10.86% 1.65%
Social Credit Henry Neumann 310 2.47% –
Total 12,538 – –
Rejected, spoiled and declined 44 – –
Eligible electors / turnout 26,086 48.23% -9.71%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing -13.03%
Source(s)
Source: "Stony Plain Official Results 2004 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

References

  1. ^ Ho, Joseph (26 February 2018). "Alberta Advantage Party chooses leader in Springbrook". Lacombe Online. Lacombe, Alberta. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  2. ^ a b c "Meet the Alliance leadership candidates". Alberta Teacher Association News. Edmonton, Alberta. 11 August 2005. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  3. ^ a b "About Marilyn Burns". McCourt Law Offices. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  4. ^ a b c Clancy, Clare (25 February 2018). "Alberta Advantage Party formed by former Wildrose members announces leader". Edmonton Journal. Edmonton, Alberta. Retrieved 13 January 2019.
  5. ^ "Unofficial poll results—Edmonton South-West". Elections Alberta. April 19, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
  6. ^ "67 - Lac Ste. Anne-Parkland". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved June 10, 2023.
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