Do we like Jason Kenney?
Our score: 4 out of 10. A long record of acts against LGBTQ+ rights, a stated change of view, and a recent run of standing up for unity and against Trump-style politics, with the defamation suit still pending.
Kenney was born in Oakville, Ontario in 1968 and grew up moving between Winnipeg, Saskatchewan and B.C. Believe it or not, he started out working as an aide to Liberal Ralph Goodale and in the Young Liberals, before a philosophy degree in San Francisco (which he didn't finish) pulled him to conservatism. He ran the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, became a Reform MP in 1997, held several Harper cabinet posts including immigration and defence, then won the Alberta premiership in 2019. He quit as premier in 2022 after getting only about 51 per cent in a leadership review.
The LGBTQ+ record is the big mark against him. Xtra, an opinion-leaning outlet, reports he opposed anti-discrimination measures and LGBTQ student groups as a student in San Francisco, voted against same-sex marriage as an MP, and as premier saw older rules reinstated that let schools tell parents about a student's gay-straight alliance membership. When decades-old audio of that San Francisco campaign surfaced in 2019, he said he regrets the remarks and the petition, and that he accepts the new consensus on marriage.
The harm check also covers his pandemic years. In February 2022 he compared judging unvaccinated people to the stigma around 1980s HIV/AIDS patients, then apologised the next morning, calling it an “inappropriate analogy”. Academic Kristopher Wells said the apology “rings hollow and is not sincere” without follow-up action, given Kenney's own history. We found nothing trans-specific from him, and nothing about shady company.
On the planet, he reversed many of the NDP's climate measures and set up a $30 million energy war room that drew criticism for early gaffes. Five environmental groups sued him and the Alberta government, alleging defamation over his posts about a government inquiry. A judge rejected his bid to have the case thrown out in 2023, and it hadn't been heard in court at that point, so the allegations are untested.
The recent run is where he looks better. In April 2025 he mocked “MAGA North types” for swallowing Trump's claims about Canadian fentanyl. In August 2026 he said some Conservative MPs should put the blame for the trade war on Trump, and said he has no plans to run for the leadership. Then came the referendum: he and Notley urged business leaders to back Canada, and he said separatists have infiltrated the UCP, which he co-founded. In May he also threatened legal action after saying his personal details were exposed at a separatist group's meeting.
The good stuff is real if not flashy. Global News reported the UCP pointing to a refugee resettlement program for gay refugees from Iran that he created as immigration minister, and his 2005 support for domestic partnerships, though that's his own party's case. Picking a fight with the separatist wing of his own party is also not free, and he's done it loudly. We couldn't find charity work on the record, so that's honestly the whole list.