Alberta Finance Minister Nate Horner and Minister of Hospital and Surgical Health Services Matt Jones have both announced they will not seek re-election and will leave the Alberta cabinet.

In a statement posted to X, Horner wrote that when he was first offered his cabinet role, he told Alberta Premier Danielle Smith it was likely his second term would be his last.

“I remain supportive of our United Conservative Party and Premier Smith. In discussing my plans with the premier, we both felt it was important for the election year budget to be built by a member of cabinet who will be running for re-election,” Horner wrote.

Before being elected, Horner was a rancher who ran a cow calf operation. He was formerly Alberta’s agriculture minister. As finance minister, he delivered his third budget earlier this year, which forecasted a $9.4-billion deficit.

Horner said he would continue as Drumheller-Stettler MLA until the next general election.

Jones wrote that he was proud of his work while in government. In addition to hospital and surgical health services, Jones was also previously minister of children’s services, affordability and utilities, and jobs, economy and trade.

Hospital and surgical health services is one of four health-related ministries in the province.

“Working to improve the healthcare of Albertans and promoting Alberta globally to attract investment and jobs have been the highlights of my career,” he wrote in a statement on X.

Jones, a former investment banker, said he would also continue on as Calgary-South East MLA at this time.

Smith thanked both departing ministers on X. She said Horner was “instrumental in strengthening Alberta’s fiscal position,” while Jones has helped “build a healthcare system better equipped to meet the needs of a growing province.”

Having both first been elected in 2019, Horner and Jones were in government during two different eras of the UCP: Smith and Jason Kenney.

New cabinet members to be sworn in Thursday

In a post on social media, Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi suggested Horner and Jones’ resignations were tied to their feelings on a possible Alberta separation referendum.

“Today, they both ‘resigned’ from cabinet,” Nenshi wrote.

Asked for comment on Nenshi’s post, a spokesperson for Horner referred back to his statement posted on X.

Lisa Young, a professor of political science at the University of Calgary, said in some ways, Horner and Jones’ resignations are not surprising.

This is the period of time in which governments start thinking about the next election, she said. If cabinet ministers aren’t thinking of running again, they’re often moved out of cabinet or into less prominent roles so that someone else can gain profile heading into the next election.

“We don’t know their personal circumstances, how long they had planned to stay in politics, whether it was this issue or other things that made them think that it was time to go back to what they did before,” Young said.

“But obviously, we’re in this particular moment where the temptation to speculate is quite strong.”

Rebecca Schulz previously resigned from cabinet, in December 2025, and was replaced by Grant Hunter as minister of environment and protected areas.

New members of Alberta’s cabinet are set to be sworn in Thursday.