Alberta politics tend to stay dormant for 30 years at a time. But when they wake up – watch out! The latest from Angus Reid:

The surging Wildrose Alliance party would form the next provincial government in Alberta if an election were held tomorrow, according to a new poll of decided voters that gives the right-of-centre party a double-digit lead in popular support over the long-ruling Tories.

A new Angus Reid Public Opinion survey of 1,000 Albertans suggests 39% of voters would cast a ballot for Danielle Smith and the Wildrose Alliance.

The fledgling party is pulling away from Premier Ed Stelmach’s Progressive Conservatives, who were tied with David Swann’s Liberals for second place with the backing of 25% of decided voters province-wide, according to the poll.

Brian Mason and the NDP are in fourth spot with the support of 9% of Alberta voters, while 2% said they would vote for another party.

Yup, the PCs are tied for second with the Liberals…ouch.

The good news for Ed Stelmach is he has two years – during which time the price of oil should rise – to recover from this. He’s already survived his leadership vote, but a few more polls like this and we may start seeing some defections.

No one would have called it back in January, but 2009 has proven to be the most interesting year in Alberta politics since the early 90s. Stay tuned.