Williams To Lead Municipal Affairs
- Municipal Affairs
- 14 minutes ago
- 3 min read
Welcome to Municipal Affairs.
New names. New faces. New titles. That was the headline coming out of the Alberta Government on Friday afternoon as Premier Danielle Smith unveiled her latest cabinet shuffle — and once again, all eyes were on who would take the reins at Municipal Affairs.
Earlier this week, Ric McIver officially stepped down from the ministry to assume the role of Speaker of the Legislative Assembly. His successor, Joseph Schow, stepped in briefly as interim Minister. But today, in a significant reshuffle, a permanent appointment was made.
Dan Williams becomes Alberta’s new Minister of Municipal Affairs — the 19th person to hold the post in just over 25 years.
Williams, first elected in 2019 in Peace River — unseating then-incumbent Debbie Jabbour of the NDP — secured re-election in 2023. His cabinet career began just last year when he was appointed Minister of Mental Health and Addiction. He's also held key caucus roles, including Deputy House Whip and Chair of the Standing Committee on Private Bills.
Before entering provincial politics, Williams cut his teeth alongside then-federal minister Jason Kenney, working behind the scenes during efforts to unite Alberta's conservative factions under the UCP banner.
His appointment comes amid a broader reshuffling of the Premier’s cabinet team. Among the notable Additions to the cabinet are:
Myles McDougall becomes Minister of Advanced Education.
Andrew Boitchenko steps in as Minister of Tourism and Sport.
Several existing ministers also received new portfolios or titles:
Matt Jones shifts from Jobs, Economy and Trade to become Minister of Hospital and Surgical Health Services.
Rajan Sawhney moves to Indigenous Relations.
Joseph Schow, the interim Municipal Affairs minister, now takes on the expanded role of Minister of Jobs, Economy, Trade and Immigration.
Rick Wilson replaces Dan Williams as Minister of Mental Health and Addiction.
Demetrios Nicolaides will be adding childcare to his portfolio and will become the Minister of Education and Childcare.
Jason Nixon will also see his title changed to the Minister of Assisted Living and Social Services to reflect his oversight of Assisted Living Alberta.
Adriana LaGrange transitions to Minister of Primary and Preventive Health Services.
Grant Hunter steps into the Associate Minister of Water.
And Muhammad Yaseen steps back into an Associate Minister role for Multiculturalism.
But for Alberta’s cities, towns, and villages, all eyes remain on Municipal Affairs.
To talk about what this leadership change could mean for local governments — and how Dan Williams might approach the job — we sat down once again this week with Alberta Municipalities President Tyler Gandam to get his perspective on the road ahead.
Rural Municipalities of Alberta President Kara Westerlund shared her thoughts with us as well on what the appointment of Dan Williams as the new Minister of Municipal Affairs could mean for Alberta’s rural communities. With rural municipalities facing unique challenges — from infrastructure gaps to land use pressures, broadband access, and emergency response — continuity and clarity from the provincial government are more important than ever.
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