Mayor Farkas, @JeromyYYC Thank you for the phrase “useful idiots.” It prompted me to take a harder look at the office you now occupy. Today, the limited authority of the Calgary mayor effectively makes the mayor a “useful idiot.” Think about it. Calgarians elect a mayor based on promises to change the direction of the city, but the mayor doesn’t have the executive authority necessary to actually deliver many of those promises. So who is accountable? That’s the problem. And that needs to change. As part of Alberta Renewal, we will be putting forward proposed changes to Alberta’s Municipal Government Act to make municipalities and elected officials more accountable for delivering efficient, affordable government, while giving mayors meaningful executive authority to deliver the mandates voters elected them to implement. If a mayor campaigns on zero tax increases, taxpayers should be able to hold that mayor accountable when taxes go up. If a mayor campaigns on controlling costs while municipal wage costs continue to rise, voters should be able to clearly identify who is responsible. Power and accountability must go together. And Mayor Farkas might want to remember the mandate he actually received. He won 26.12% of the votes cast in Calgary’s 2025 mayoral election, 91,112 votes out of 348,865. That’s just 10.17% of Calgary’s 896,042 enumerated eligible electors. That’s a mandate to govern, not a mandate to insult the people of Calgary who didn’t vote for you. Perhaps an apology for the “useful idiot” rhetoric would be appropriate. Because people remember. And many of those people will have another opportunity to vote. Alberta Renewal will propose a different model: More executive authority for mayors. Stronger council oversight. Measurable commitments. Fiscal accountability. And clear responsibility to the taxpayer. If you want the power to govern, you should have the power, and the responsibility to deliver. Maybe then the mayor won’t have to be a “useful idiot.”