Naheed Nenshi is settling in as the leader of an Alberta NDP that is still being

Naheed Nenshi is still  finding his feet — and a seat in the legislature — after six months as leader of  the Alberta Democratic Party.
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"I'm still getting  used to my  new role," the former Calgary mayor said of his new  position during a recent year-end  interview.
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Without a seat in the  House of Representatives, he's watching the provincial legislature  move sideways and  try new  things.
The opposition New Democrats have become more  focused in  their media messaging and approach to debates in the  House of Representatives, in part to avoid the trap of responding to the Conservative Party government with daily outrage, he  said.
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"It's been almost  beneficial for me to have the freedom to go  and talk to  nurses, teachers, parents or  police officers, instead of sitting in  this room watching really, really bad  actors and really terrible drama  in the  hallway," he  said. However, the question of where and when Nenshi might  take up a seat in  this hostile theatre  will likely continue to  haunt him  into 2025.
This year Rachel Notley  announced her resignation as party leader  in January and  more recently  her departure from the  Legislative Assembly on December 30.
In June, Nenshi took  over.
With Notley's seat in Edmonton-Strathcona soon to be vacant, Nenshi  can hope to  be elected in the capital, where he  currently spends much of his  time. He said he  didn't expect Premier Danielle Smith to call a  by-election before the six-month deadline to do so in June,  as the  House traditionally  adjourns for the  summer.
"The prime minister is postponing the  by-election to  exclude herself from participating in the budget  debates," he  said.
In more ways than one,  PKD is still under  construction.
Above Nenshi's head is a steady stream of UCP attack ads accusing the provincial New Democrats of being under the thumb of Jagmeet  Singh's federal  NDP.
Provincial members  are automatically part of the federal party, despite  obvious policy differences between the two,  particularly on the oil and gas  industry. Nenshi has long said he wants to bring the federal membership issue to his party members  for a decision as soon as  possible.
NDP members  can discuss this sticking point in the  party's constitution and potentially change it, as early  as May, at the  upcoming NDP policy convention in  Edmonton.
He must also steer the direction of what  remains largely a blank slate of  plans and  platforms.
In the new year, Nenshi said the focus will continue to be on what he says  are missing from the  UCP legislative agenda:  accessibility, jobs, health care, public safety and  education.
"These are not priorities for this government at  all."
He has moved  forward on one  front, tasking his former health  secretary, Luanne Metz,  to consult and  compile a  health care plan  for the coming year. "(UCP) is improvising as  we go along and we're going to take  our time to get it  right," Nenshi  said.
PKD proposed several priorities in the  fall.
Young Democrats  introduced private  members' bills to protect  frontline workers from  employer pockets, introduce standards for cancer care delivery and take  steps toward reconciliation with Aboriginal people.
A proposal to  reinstate class size reporting was  rejected.
There are UCP policies  that Nenshi hopes to  repeal one  day, including what he calls  "cruel and heinous" legislation that restricts health care  for transgender people and  would introduce a pronoun policy in  schools. And, after the first full year of the  government relaxing ethics rules for  accepting gifts from political  staff, Nenshi has another  proposal.
"Pull back the  curtain so we can see all the  fraud and corruption that has happened under this government to  ensure it never happens again," he said.

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