Maverick Party

Maverick Party - A history from our activist beginnings to where we are now… The Maverick Party was born from the Wexit Movement, a small group of disenchanted Western Canadians that wanted to make a change.

On October 21, 2019, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, led the Liberal Party to a second term as government even though the Conservatives swept Alberta and Saskatchewan with a strong showing in British Columbia and Manitoba. It became clear to the newly formed Wexit[9] Movement that the West could do nothing to save Canada; the only answer was separation. Alberta needed to become its own nation.

Almost overnight Wexit leader Peter Downing found a receptive audience from other angry Albertans. During 2019 Wexit[9] held several meetings starting with 100 supporters, at a small summer meeting in Calgary’s beltline, to over 1700 people a few months later. After the election the Facebook page[10] jumped to 250,000 followers and the movement gained attention and support across Western Canada; people were losing their livelihoods and it seemed none of the governments were fighting to stop it. As well, new federal legislation, Bills C-48[11] the and C-69[12], the carbon tax, and other measures seemed to target the Western provinces.

Wexit[9] moved to create four provincial parties that would push for separation if elected and a federal flagship to lead the way. Thus, Wexit Canada and its provincial counterparts Wexit British Columbia[13], Wexit Alberta[14] (see also Wildrose Independence Party of Alberta[15]), Wexit Saskatchewan[16][17] (see also Buffalo Party of Saskatchewan[18] and Wexit Manitoba were born. As the party was slowly getting established the Wexit leadership floundered. Like many entrepreneurial ventures, the people who start wildly successful companies do not necessarily have the skills to grow and develop them.

Peter Downing continued to fan the flames of discontent and the party aggressively attacked the Federal and Provincial governments in social media. The sole focus was on separation and several provincial separation parties[19] [20] ran in the 2019 Alberta election losing decisively to the United Conservative Party[21] (UCP).

Wexit Alberta[14] began negotiations with those parties to merge joining the Freedom Conservative Party[20] to become the Wildrose Independence Party of Alberta[15] (WIPA) . Later the People's Party of Canada[22] (PPC) Alberta party merged with Wildrose Independence Party of Alberta growing the newly founded provincial party even more.

Just prior to the 2020 provincial election Wexit Saskatchewan[17] asked its members about a name change and they overwhelmingly chose to become the Buffalo Party of Saskatchewan[18]. They ran 17 candidates in the 2020 provincial election and captured the third largest share of votes. For a first-time party they had a great showing coming in second in four ridings[23].

Wexit British Columbia[13] formed in late 2019 to field candidates in the 2020 provincial election. Unfortunately, just after the election call, the leader stepped down and only a handful of candidates moved forward with no leadership or money. Many in the Wexit British Columbia have since given up and are creating a new provincial party in British Columbia to be announced in the spring of 2021.

While Wexit Manitoba never got off the ground there is still interest in some parts for a separatist party provincially.

Wexit Canada was originally formed to be the federal shield while provincial parties led the charge towards separation. However, as a party, it was faltering from lack of focus and in June of 2020 Peter Downing stepped down as leader. Jay Hill[7], with 18 years experience as a Member of Parliament with the Reform Party of Canada[24], and Party Whip with the Conservative Party of Canada[25], stepped up to take the reins. With a small board of committed directors he started the hard work of growing the party.

Shortly thereafter, the Wexit founders, who had trademarked the Wexit name, wanted to focus on the movement rather than be affiliated with political parties directly. Therefore, the first task facing the new board was to change the Party’s name. After gathering suggestions from current members, and debating several suggestions, the board settled on a unique and provocative name. They decided on Maverick[26], a play on the strengths and ingenuity of the West. The name would reflect people like Louis Riel[27] and his Metis during the Red River rebellion fighting for their rights and freedoms, and John Ware[28], an escaped slave who became a respected and renowned western rancher. It would celebrate all the pioneers[29] who created a flourishing agriculture industry from a desert and all the western mavericks who created Alberta's wealth from a fledgling oil and gas industry. Alberta’s historical landscape has been full of Mavericks who worked hard to create a western Canada they were proud of.

The second task was to create a mission and some guiding principles for the party to follow. While most Albertans wanted to be free of federal interference, not everyone was ready for separation. So, true to their Western and political roots, the board came up with a mission statement[30] that would function as a double edged approach to achieve greater fairness and self-determination for western Canadians through (1) constitutional change or (2) the creation of an independent nation. This double edged approach has attracted a wide range of supporters to the party giving it a voice for more Western Canadian voters. It caters to those that want to give Canada one last attempt as well as those who want to form a new nation. The west has always fought for fairness and self determination and the Maverick party will continue that struggle to create the change Westerners are craving.

Expanded the history of the Maverick Party 12 Jan 21

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