Balance of Power

Can you lose five referendum questions and still declare victory?

In this special live Balance of Power crossover with The Strategists, recorded in Calgary, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips join Stephen Carter and Zain Velji to unpack the aftermath of Alberta's referendum, the successes and failures of the No to the Nine campaign, and what the results mean for Danielle Smith's political future.

First: the referendum results. Who emerged as the real winners and losers, did the No to the Nine campaign accomplish what it set out to do, and how much political...

What happens when Alberta separatists take their campaign south of the border and start fighting with each other along the way?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil and Shannon Phillips look at the Globe and Mail’s reporting on Alberta separatists, Republican operatives, and efforts to win support in Washington.

First: the separatist movement. What does the infighting tell us about the people behind the campaign, how much does foreign attention matter, and why is the bigger problem less about campaign technology than who has access to Alberta’s voter data?

Canada has some of the strongest legal protections for abortion in the world. So why do reproductive-rights advocates say the fight is changing rather than ending?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil sits down with Frédérique Chabot, executive director of Action Canada for Sexual Health and Rights, to talk about where the abortion fight is happening now.

First: abortion may be legal in Canada, but access is shaped by geography, the health-care system and provincial policy. Fred explains why her organization is also watching the politics of trans rights an...

What happens when a government calls a snap election two years early — and the opposition is still trying to figure out who it is?

This week on Balance of Power, Shannon Phillips and Leah Ward are joined by Nikki Hill, co-host of the Left East to West podcast, to break down David Eby’s surprise election call, the collapse and reconstruction of the B.C. Conservatives, and why British Columbians are heading back to the polls on October 24.

First: how did we get here? From the razor-thin 2024 result and the folding of B.C. U...

What happens when a seat everyone assumed was safely Conservative suddenly flips?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips break down the Calgary-Shaw by-election upset, what actually drove the result, and why everyone seems to be taking a different lesson from the same vote.

First: the shock. The NDP wins a seat it had no business winning based on recent history, without an obvious right-wing vote split. Was it candidate quality, ground game, referendum anger, dissatisfaction with the UCP, or some combination of all of it?

What happens when the agency responsible for running Alberta’s referendum is already warning that it is stretched too thin?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips look at growing concerns around Elections Alberta, the referendum process, and what happens when public confidence starts to erode before voting day even arrives.

First: referendum watch. With hundreds of thousands of special ballots already requested, confusing paperwork in the mail, and Elections Alberta itself warning about chronic understaffing, does the agency have the resources it needs to administer one of...

What does it mean to win a referendum if the result still leaves the separatist movement alive and kicking?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips look ahead to Alberta’s referendum and ask what a decisive federalist victory would actually have to look like.

First: turnout. More than 200,000 Albertans have already requested special ballots, but does that tell us anything about who is motivated, which side has the advantage, or how ugly election day could get with ten separate questions on the ballot?

Th...

What happens when a crisis becomes an opportunity to make changes governments and business have wanted for years?

This week on Balance of Power, Shannon Phillips and Leah Ward dig into the politics of “crisitunity,” the Team Canada response to the trade war, and what Canada risks giving up in the name of competing with the United States.

First: the race to the bottom. Environmental protections are being weakened, labour rules are under pressure, and governments are promising to move major projects faster. But if defending Canadian sovereignty means stripping away the things Cana...

What happens when a referendum starts to feel less like a vote and more like a warning?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil and Leah Ward are joined by political scientist Lisa Young to talk about the strange political fall Alberta is heading into, the separation debate, and what happens when a fringe idea becomes a live political question.

First: be careful what you wish for. Lisa explains the thinking behind her recent speculative fiction imagining a future Alberta outside Canada, and why she sees separation as a fundamentally radical leap...

What should politicians actually be doing while everyone else is trying to enjoy August?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips remember Jeff Sloychuk, a longtime labour and NDP organizer whose politics were rooted in working-class people, practical action and getting the job done.

First: summer politics. Is August a time to rest, work the barbecue circuit or quietly prepare for the fights coming in the fall? The panel looks at how Pierre Poilievre used summer advertising to reshape his image, what Danielle Smith’s small private fu...

What happens when politicians and their staff decide the questions are the problem?

This week on Balance of Power, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips break down two spectacular examples of how not to handle the media, and what competent political communication is supposed to look like when the stakes are high.

First: Ontario’s wildfire response. After a ministerial staffer interrupted a live CBC interview to declare that there would be no more questions, Leah and Shannon explain why crisis communication requires more information, more availability, and fewer fights with reporters.

...

What happens when politics stops being a conversation and becomes an ambush?

This week on Balance of Power, Shannon Phillips and Leah Ward dig into the recent political ambush videos in Alberta, the instincts they reveal, and the mistakes politicians make when they forget who is really watching.

First: the confrontation. From Naheed Nenshi’s exchange over a photo with the Israeli ambassador to Danielle Smith’s response to questions about appearing on a separatist podcast, Shannon and Leah look at what these moments actually reveal about political character.

Then: the...

What does it actually take to run for office, and how do you know whether you should?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward, and Shannon Phillips offer a practical guide for anyone thinking about putting their name on a ballot, from the first conversation with a riding association to the realities of campaigning, fundraising, vetting, and family life.

First: forget the myth of the star candidate. A recognizable name might earn attention, but campaigns are built by people willing to knock doors, raise money, recruit a team, learn from...

What happens when conservatives pick a fight with someone who knows exactly how to fight back?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil and Shannon Phillips dig into Calgary’s Stampede noise war, Jeromy Farkas’s escalating feud with Danielle Smith and Pierre Poilievre, and what happens when conservative messaging gets turned back on the people who invented it.

First: the fun police. Why did federal and provincial Conservatives decide to go to war over Cowboys, noise bylaws, and late-night Stampede parties? And did they badly misread both Calgary and the mayor they...

What happens when stepping away from politics creates room to think differently about art, fear, community, and the work still left to do?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward, and Shannon Phillips unpack Shannon’s recent trip to Patmos, Greece, where she joined artists, writers, and musicians including Ani DiFranco, Neko Case, Anaïs Mitchell, and Ann Powers for a ten-day creative salon.

First: art in dark times. What does it mean to create while authoritarianism is rising, politics feels exhausting, and people are searching for beauty, joy, and res...

How many ballots is too many ballots?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil and Leah Ward unpack the staggering logistics behind Alberta’s October referendum vote. With Elections Alberta preparing to print 45 million ballots and recruit 60,000 workers, they explore what happens when direct democracy collides with administrative reality.

First: the ballot problem. The hosts break down Elections Alberta’s largest recruitment drive ever, the challenge of hand-counting tens of millions of ballots, and why a referendum featuring ten questions — and potentially eleven — could test the limits of the province’s electoral machinery...

For years, Alberta's separation movement has talked about what it wants. What happens when it has to talk about what it costs?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil and Leah Ward look at what it means for a political project built on emotion to encounter a spreadsheet. As new estimates put a price tag on Alberta independence, they ask whether the politics of grievance can survive contact with the math.

First: burnout. The hosts discuss political exhaustion, attention scarcity, and what happens when voters are asked to process major constitutional questions...

In a moment when Prairie politics feels increasingly untethered from reality, what happens when governments start making generational decisions while chasing internal political pressure?

This week on Balance of Power, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips are joined by Saskatchewan NDP MLA Aleana Young to unpack Saskatchewan’s stunning $26 billion coal gamble, the politics driving it, and why the fight over energy policy is becoming a proxy for something much bigger across Western Canada.

First: the coal bombshell. Aleana Young walks through the leaked SaskPower documents showing the true cost of rebuilding and operating Sa...

In a province where politics increasingly feels like performance, what happens when the people who understand the stage best start talking openly about persuasion, authenticity, and fear?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward, and Shannon Phillips unpack the politics of communication, the growing international fascination with Alberta separatism, and why the fight over Canada’s future may already be underway.

First: the Wab Kinew factor. Leah reports from the Canadian Labour Congress convention in Winnipeg, where both Naheed Nenshi and Wab Kinew delivered very different kinds of speeches, sparking a...

In a week where Alberta politics somehow got even messier, what happens when the process itself becomes the problem?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil and Shannon Phillips dig into the escalating fallout from the alleged misuse of Alberta’s voters list, the separatist petition, and why a data leak involving nearly three million Albertans is about much more than privacy.

First: the list. Elections Alberta has sent hundreds of cease and desist letters, political names are being searched, and people with real safety concerns are left wondering who has their in...

Balance of Power: Gay Enough?

In a moment when trust in democracy feels fragile, what happens when the basic machinery of politics becomes the story?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward, and Shannon Phillips dig into the Elections Alberta investigation, the alleged misuse of the list of electors, and why a story about voter data is not just procedural, but deeply personal.

First: the list. Who is supposed to have access to voter information, what is it meant to be used for, and why does alleged...

If the problems keep getting worse, are we even solving the right one?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil and Leah Ward take on a set of decisions that feel increasingly out of step with how people actually live. From time changes to family planning to public consultation, they walk through what happens when policy targets miss the mark.

First: daylight saving time. Alberta is moving toward making it permanent—but what does that actually mean for winter mornings, daily routines, and how people function? Is this about convenience, or are we...

In a moment where things feel like they’re slipping, what does control even look like?

This week on Balance of Power, Shannon Phillips, Leah Ward, and Annalise Klingbeil step into a rough stretch for the Conservatives and unpack what happens when a party starts to wobble. From by-election losses to internal pressure, they walk through how instability takes hold and what it really takes to stop it.

First: stopping the bleeding. What actually works when things start to slip? Is this about discipline, tone, or something deeper inside the operation?

...

Balance of Power: Does Anything Matter?

In a political moment where lines are blurring and power is shifting, what actually matters anymore?

This week on Balance of Power, Shannon Phillips, Leah Ward, and Annalise Klingbeil dig into the growing trend of floor crossing. They talk about what it says about political values and whether consistency still counts in modern politics. From party loyalty to power plays, they unpack how decisions are really being made and who they’re serving.

Then: a rapid-fire round on housing, space exploration, and the moments sh...

What happens when a leadership win sparks tension inside the party?

This week on Balance of Power, Shannon Phillips, Leah Ward and Shannon Greer reflect on the legacy of Stephen Lewis, unpack the implications of Avi Lewis’s decisive leadership win, and dig into what it all means for New Democrats across the country.

First: legacy and loss. The panel reflects on Stephen Lewis’ impact on Canadian politics, the NDP movement, and the organizing culture that still shapes campaigns today.

Then: the new leader. What does Avi Lewis’ win signal about...

Is this about rights or strategy?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips talk kettlebells (kettleballs?) before digging into the politics behind the latest waves of anti-trans policy in Canada and what it reveals about how governments choose to fight.

First: the framing. How “parental rights” moved from the margins to the centre of the debate and who it is actually for. Is this persuasion? Base mobilization? Or something else entirely?

Then: the shift from clinical care to political conflict. What happens when decisions that...

Big news.

Serious business.

No press conference.

Just a leak.

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips dig into how this actually works.

Government wants something out there.

Not a scrum. Not a pile of questions.

Their version. First.

So it shows up in a column.

A scoop.

Headline already pointed where they want it.

Why do it this way?

What do they...

How do political campaigns actually win once the voting starts?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips unpack the strategy behind the federal NDP leadership race as voting begins, check in on the budget fight unfolding in Nova Scotia, and talk about the rarely discussed cost of maintaining a political image in the age of constant cameras.

First: the mechanics of a ranked-ballot leadership race. What do campaigns actually do once voting begins? How do second-choice alliances form behind the scenes, and why do turnout and member...

Are Alberta’s immigration referendum questions actually about immigration, or about politics?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil and Leah Ward are joined by Dr. Bronwyn Bragg, a human geographer at the University of Lethbridge who studies labour migration and precarious work.

First, the politics behind Alberta’s proposed immigration referendum. The panel breaks down what the questions actually say and what they imply. How do complicated policy issues become simple political narratives? And what happens when those narratives start shaping public opinion?

Then, the economics beneath the rhet...

Are we governing for the moment? Or reacting to it?

This week on Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips break down three political pressure points, and what they reveal about leadership in high-stakes moments.

First: The fallout from the Tumbler Ridge tragedy in B.C. After reporting revealed OpenAI had flagged violent content from the alleged shooter but did not alert authorities, the panel digs into AI regulation, public safety, and the politics of crisis response. How fast can governments realistically move? And when international media drives the story...

Are we misreading the political moment?

This week, Annalise is away and Shannon Phillips and Leah Ward are joined by pollster and data scientist Kyla Ronellenfitsch, President of Relay Strategies, to cut through three dominant narratives: Alberta separatism, immigration backlash, and the supposed rightward shift among young voters.

First: new reporting reveals Alberta separatist organizers meeting with officials at the U.S. State Department. How seriously should we take the movement? And what happens if it collides with Trump-era trade politics?

Then: immigration. Is public concern rooted in xenophobia, the...

Is Alberta separation gaining ground, and can it be stopped?

In the debut episode of Balance of Power, Annalise Klingbeil, Leah Ward and Shannon Phillips unpack new polling showing 29% of Albertans would vote to leave Canada, and why that number could shift quickly in a referendum. They debate the messaging war behind separatism, the silence from business leaders, and what a Brexit-style shock could mean for the province.

Plus: what an Edmonton community league on the brink of closure reveals about volunteer burnout, third spaces, and the state of democratic participation.