Danielle Smith wins UCP leadership race, will be Alberta's new premier

Danielle Smith will become Alberta's new premier after winning the leadership of the United Conservative Party.

Smith, a former leader of the Wildrose Party, captured nearly 54 per cent of the vote on the sixth round of the preferential ballot, defeating second-place candidate Travis Toews (TAVES) and five rivals.

``I'm back,'' Smith told a cheering crowd last night at the B-M-O Centre in Calgary.

She says it is time for Alberta to take its place as a senior partner in building a strong and unified Canada, and that Alberta will no longer ask permission from Ottawa to be prosperous and free.

The race was called after Jason Kenney announced in May he was stepping down as premier after receiving just 51 per cent support in a party leadership review.