Does the Recall Gondek campaign have covert political backing? One Calgary poli sci prof claims it does

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While it started as an individual endeavour, the petition to recall Mayor Jyoti Gondek has the co-ordinated backing of conservative activists and UCP affiliates, a local political science professor has claimed.

Mount Royal University professor Duane Bratt posted a photographed pamphlet to X on Tuesday about ‘Project YYC’ — a campaign to leverage Calgarian Landon Johnston’s recall petition into the creation of a future conservative party, which would field candidates in the 2025 municipal election.

“Landon Johnston may have been just a disgruntled citizen upset with Gondek and city council. But his recall petition has been co-opted by the conservative movement and has attracted big money (including from outside of Calgary and Alberta),” Bratt wrote in the post, which he has since deleted.

Project YYC intends to create a big-tent coalition to elect a “common-sense conservative Mayor and Counsel” (sic) in 2025, according to the pamphlet. It states the project’s mission is to “champion the creation of a secure and thriving Calgary by advocating for accountable municipal governance dedicated to the well-being of its citizens.”

The pamphlet cites co-operation with Johnston’s recall initiative, referring to it as “the official petition.”

A five-member board of directors is listed on the document, as well as an 11-member “recall campaign core team” and four advisers-at-large.

The names include UCP constituency association presidents, former conservative party campaign managers and affiliates of Take Back Alberta, the political action group.

Bratt deleted his post Wednesday, saying two of the advisers at large listed on the Project YYC pamphlet denied any involvement or knowledge of the initiative.

But though he admitted he shouldn’t have posted to social media before verifying the involvement of all the people listed, Bratt maintained his claim that the petition “has been co-opted by a larger group of conservatives more concerned with data mining for the eventuality of a Calgary Conservative Party.”

Former Calgary mayoral candidate Zane Novak, who is listed as one of the core campaign team members for Project YYC, said he’d never heard of the campaign, nor seen the document before Bratt’s post on Tuesday.

“To the best of my knowledge there is absolutely no participation or co-ordination with either TBA or the UCP,” he said in a message to Postmedia. “This is merely concerned citizens stepping up.”

Bratt could not be reached for comment on Tuesday or Wednesday. Two of Project YYC’s listed directors also did not respond to requests for comment.

Recall petition appears to be ‘a very organized effort,’ says mayor

Gondek addressed Project YYC after city council’s meeting on Tuesday, stating it appears the recall petition has become “much more organized” than one individual’s efforts.

“There are too many ties to ignore the fact that this is being driven by people who want conservatives at municipally elected positions,” she said, adding she suspects the data of those who have signed the petition has “been compromised.”

Johnston, the owner of an HVAC business, has been collecting signatures since early February, with the goal of garnering enough to oust Gondek from office.

The recall is highly unlikely to be successful — under the Alberta government’s recall legislation, Johnston must collect more than 514,000 physical signatures by April 4.

But his campaign has ramped up in recent weeks, and now includes advertisements promoting the petition on roadside billboards throughout Calgary, leading to questions of how the operation is being funded.

“I don’t need to point out to anyone that signs cost money, hats cost money and T-shirts cost money,” Gondek said. “We have no idea where this money is coming from because it doesn’t have to be reported.”

Petition creator denies knowledge of volunteers’ ulterior motives, says his campaign is ‘by the book’

Asked about the involvement of others in his campaign, Johnston told Postmedia he’s received support from hundreds of volunteers since launching the petition in early February, but denied knowing anything about Project YYC.

He said he’s never turned down offers of support, as long as volunteers operate within the boundaries of the recall legislation.

Donations collected through the campaign website funded the billboard ads, according to Johnston, who said he spent his own money on a Recall Gondek hat and T-shirt to promote the petition.

A Facebook page for Project YYC states its website is recallgondekyyc.ca. Johnston’s website is recallmayorgondek.com. The two websites promote similar information, such as a map of where Calgarians can sign the recall petition and a calendar of upcoming events.

If his campaign has indeed been hijacked for ulterior political motives, Johnston insists it happened without his knowledge.

“I’ve been doing this by the book and I can only guarantee that what I’m doing is by the book,” he said. “I’m in my own little bubble and everybody outside of that bubble is doing their own thing.

“The problem with the petition process is that anybody can co-opt it.”