PC fundraising skyrockets in fourth quarter, but party still in third place

The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta saw a rebound in fundraising in the last three months of 2015,collecting$221,959 in political donations.

The fourth-quarter results were a considerable improvement over the $15,575 raised in the previous quarter, which covered the period from July 1 to Sept. 30.

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Former premier Jim Prentice, who led the partyto its historic defeat at the hands of the NDP in May, donated $15,000.

Overall, the PCsraised the most money in 2015, with $1.9 million in donations to the party and constituency associations.The Wildrose raised $1.7 million in 2015, followed by the NDP which tallied $1.3 million in donations.

The Wildrose was the big winner in fourth-quarter fundraising, with $589,002 in donations. The governing NDP came second, raising $552,594 during that same period.

The Alberta Liberals received $59,625 in political contributions, followed by the Alberta Party with $27,710.

Fourth quarter results were filed with Elections Alberta on Jan. 15.

New fundraising rules that came into effect in June, 2015 prohibit corporations and unions from donating to Alberta political parties.

The Alberta PCs long relied on corporate donations to fund its political campaigns.