Edmonton city councillor Sarah Hamilton skipped out on council meeting to headline UCP fundraiser
The Ward sipiwiyiniwak councillor's appearance at a March 13 "Politics and Prosecco" event with Minister of Environment and Protected Areas Rebecca Schulz appears to be a Code of Conduct violation.
Tl;dr
Edmonton city councillor Sarah Hamilton left a March 13 council meeting to attend a partisan “Politics & Prosecco” UCP fundraiser for International Women’s Day attended by Premier Danielle Smith.
The event ad touted her appearance on a panel alongside Conservative MP Shannon Stubbs and Calgary-Shaw MLA Rebecca Schulz specifically as the Edmonton city councillor for Ward sipiwiyiniwak.
Under Section G of council’s Code of Conduct, city councillors cannot engage in partisan activity in their capacity as city councillors.
Hamilton says the inclusion of her formal title on the event literature was mere “biographical data” relevant to the topic of discussion.
As Edmonton city council engaged in crucial bargaining discussions with City Service Union (CSU) 52 on March 13, Coun. Sarah Hamilton left the meeting to headline a partisan UCP fundraiser for International Women’s Day, The Orchard has learned.
The “Politics & Prosecco” event at Edmonton’s Royal Glenora Club was hosted by Minister of Environment and Protected Areas Rebecca Schulz, the MLA for Calgary-Shaw, with tickets priced at $125 for adults, and $65 for students and “young professionals.”
An invitation advertised the event as a panel discussion with Schulz, Lakeland Conservative MP Shannon Stubbs and Ward sipiwiyiniwak Coun. Sarah Hamilton.
According to Section G, subsection 6, of council’s Code of Conduct, there’s nothing wrong with city councillors engaging in partisan political activity at any level of government, insofar as “they disclose that such participation is not in their capacity as elected officials.”
Subsection 7, for clarity, reads that a councillor cannot “attend partisan political events” in their capacity as a city councillor.
But the event advertisement explicitly presented Hamilton as participating in her capacity as the Edmonton City Councillor for Ward sipiwiyiniwak, which the code expressly prohibits.
Hamilton, who is serving her second council term, ought to know this. Not only was she on council when the Code of Conduct was passed in 2018, but she sat on the Special Code of Conduct Sub-committee.
Had the UCP fundraiser flyer advertised Hamilton as, say, the former communications director for the Coal Association of Canada, her appearance at the event would have been kosher. Former coal industry spokesperson, however, doesn’t have quite the same ring to it as Edmonton City Councillor.
The March 13 council meeting, most of which was spent in private to discuss issues including negotiations with CSU 52, wrapped up around 9 p.m. The UCP event was advertised for 6 p.m.
Stubbs posted photos from the event on her Facebook page on March 17, which included Hamilton sitting on stage with Stubbs as advertised. Premier Danielle Smith also made an appearance.
“Ask for help, develop the skills you need for whatever role is your goal, and work to find allies, mentors, and ‘connectors’ - and be those yourself,” Stubbs advised young women in her Facebook post.
In response to an email inquiry from The Orchard, Hamilton said the “context is clear that the event was not official council business, nor was I speaking on behalf of the city.”
She said her title as the city councillor for Ward sipiwiyiniwak is simply “biographical data,” which reflects her “own personal perspective and experience” relevant to the topic of women in politics.
Hamilton added that she spoke to the Liberal Party of Canada’s Alberta convention on the same topic in November 2022.
At that event, Hamilton’s co-panelists were then-Liberal Party president Suzanne Cowan, former Barrhead town councillor and federal Liberal candidate Leslie Penny, and former Liberal MLA Laurie Blakeman.
The event program, however, doesn’t list the official title of Hamilton or any other panelist.
Hamilton’s proximity to the governing UCP, and conservative politics in general is well-known at city hall.
In December 2022, Premier Smith went over Edmonton mayor Amarjeet Sohi’s head to appoint Hamilton and Ward pihêsiwin Coun. Tim Cartmell to a 12-person task force on public safety in Alberta’s capital city chaired by Minister of Public Safety Mike Ellis.
"They were handpicked by the UCP government. They are not there to represent city council, because it is not approved by city council," Sohi said at the time.
Prior to her stint as a coal industry spokesperson, which is conspicuously absent from her LinkedIn page, Hamilton served as a deputy press secretary for former Edmonton mayor and then-PC health minister, Stephen Mandel, who used to babysit her as a child.
She chaired Mandel’s unsuccessful re-election campaign to the Legislature in 2015, in which Mandel lost to New Democrat Bob Turner by almost 3,000 votes.
In her 2017 council campaign, Hamilton received endorsements from Mandel and former PC party president Katherine O’Neill.
Hamilton’s apparent decision to prioritize partisanship over council business comes as the UCP plans to add an increased level of partisanship to civic elections in Alberta, with impending legislation to allow municipal candidates to be listed on the ballot alongside a party affiliation.
“This isn’t a takeover of municipalities by our political party or any other one. No one will be allowed to be affiliated with a provincial or federal party if they decide to run in a municipal election as a party,” Minister of Municipal Affairs Ric McIver, a former Calgary city councillor, promised reporters on March 14.
While that legislation has yet to be brought forward, the Code of Conduct is clear — you cannot attend partisan political events as a city councillor.
In her previous council term, Hamilton voted in favour of sanctioning former councillor Mike Nickel — the only councillor to have been found in violation of the code — three times.
Hamilton told The Orchard that questions about the propriety of her attendance at the UCP fundraiser should be directed towards integrity commissioner Jamie Pytel.
The form to submit a Code of Conduct complaint against a city councillor can be found here.