Loyalists in Premier Danielle Smith’s party appear to have fended off a challenge to her leadership in the unity referendum’s aftermath.

In the face of a handful of UCP riding associations formally requesting Smith face a leadership review, party president Rob Smith (no relation) has announced that three-quarters of all constituency associations have done the opposite, passing motions that support keeping their current leader and avoiding a review. “That settles it,” the president said in a message to members posted Tuesday.

“There will be NO UCP leadership review before our next general election.”The next provincial election is scheduled for October 2027. According to the premier and other UCP activists, at least five UCP constituency boards have passed resolutions that request Danielle Smith face the sort of snap leadership review that her predecessor Jason Kenney faced in 2022, and which ultimately cost him his job.

That figure is overwhelmed by the 65 ridings out of Alberta’s 87 that have passed resolutions that favour Smith’s continuing leadership, the UCP president stated. One more would make it mathematically impossible for the leader’s naysayers to achieve the 22 ridings that are required to force a special general meeting and leadership review, unless riding boards have sudden changes of heart.

After 75 per cent of Albertans voted in last week’s referendum to keep the province in Canada, Smith has moved to urge United Conservatives on both sides of that divisive question to accept that the public has spoken on the unity issue, and that the governing party is federalist.

Pockets of Smith’s UCP base expressed frustration with her pro-Canada stance during the referendum campaign and her rhetoric after the vote, and have tried to oust her.

That includes separatist leader Mitch Sylvestre, who is president of the UCP association in the Bonnyville-Cold Lake riding. That northeast riding is one of the few that has called for a leadership review, although the riding’s United Conservative MLA has criticized how his local party activists voted.

Sylvestre has also urged party members to elect pro-separation, anti-Smith directors at November’s UCP convention in Calgary. (According to party rules, a two-thirds vote of the party’s provincial directors can force a leadership review.) However, many pro-independence candidates for those positions have said they remain supportive of the current leader, and the party has directed that all candidates sign a declaration stating they will “abide by” the results of the referendum on independence.

The party did not disclose to CBC News which 65 riding associations passed pro-Smith motions. However, several have announced on social media they’ve done so, including Peace River, Calgary-Beddington and Strathcona-Sherwood Park.

More than 6,000 UCP members are registered for the party’s annual convention, being held Nov. 27 and 28 in Calgary.

In addition to electing party directors and hearing a speech from Danielle Smith, they’ll also debate policy resolutions, which this year will include proposals for the government to act on transgender people in bathrooms, limit Indigenous land acknowledgments, and expand the rights of farmers to sell products like raw milk directly to consumers.