UCP staffer attended voter data demo by separatist group

Edmonton, Alberta - A staffer from Alberta's governing United Conservative Party caucus attended a virtual meeting on April 16 with the Centurion Project, a separatist group now at the center of investigations into the illegal publication of personal data from nearly three million provincial voters.

The meeting, organized by David Parker of Take Back Alberta, featured a demonstration of a website and app containing names, home addresses, and other details from Alberta's electoral list, which provincial law restricts to registered political parties. Organizers assured attendees the data was obtained legally, according to a UCP caucus statement. The staffer, identified as Arundeep Sandhu, director of stakeholder relations, had no reason to suspect otherwise and believed the discussion concerned a new voter outreach tool, said Premier Danielle Smith's chief of staff, Rob Anderson.

Elections Alberta secured a court injunction last week prohibiting the Republican Party of Alberta, linked to the Centurion Project, from accessing or sharing the list. The agency, along with the RCMP and Edmonton police, launched probes into the breach, which has raised alarms over privacy risks to...