So we’ve got the PCs with 67 MLAs. The Liberals with 8. The Wildrosers with 4. The NDP with 2. And Raj Sherman doing his own thing.

And now, the Alberta Party joins the big leagues with their first MLA – former Liberal Dave Taylor. Opposition parties are quickly becoming Alberta’s largest industry, after oil and beef.

So what does this mean? Well, the Alberta Party recently launched a leadership race and it now seems a given that Taylor will be their next leader. Taylor quit the ALP after losing to David Swann so I certainly can’t imagine his ego withstanding life as a backbencher in a one-seat party. And given Taylor’s gift of the gab and relatively high profile, it’s hard to see how the Alberta Party wouldn’t want him as their leader.

With a one-man caucus at the moment, it’s unlikely the Alberta Party will be immediately recognized as an official party in the legislature – the unofficial rule seems to be “it takes two”. However, a viable Alberta Party is certainly in the PCs’ best interest, as it carves up the ALP’s vote, so I wouldn’t at all be surprised to see Stelmach’s gang doing all their can to give the AP added legitimacy and resources.