View source for Don Getty

{{Short description|Premier of Alberta from 1985 to 1992}}
{{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}}
{{Infobox officeholder
| honorific-prefix    = [[The Honourable]]
| name                = Don Getty
| honorific-suffix    = {{post-nominals|country=CAN|OC|AOE|size=100%}}
| image               = Premier Don Getty.jpg
| alt                 = 
| caption             = Getty in the 1990s
| order               = 11th
| office              = Premier of Alberta
| term_start          = November 1, 1985
| term_end            = December 14, 1992
| predecessor         = [[Peter Lougheed]]
| successor           = [[Ralph Klein]]
| monarch             = [[Elizabeth II]]
| lieutenant_governor = {{plainlist|
* [[Helen Hunley]]
* [[Gordon Towers]]
}}
| office1             = [[Member of the Legislative Assembly|Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta]]
| constituency4       = [[Stettler (provincial electoral district)|Stettler]]
| term_start4         = May 9, 1989
| term_end4           = December 14, 1992
| predecessor4        = [[Brian C. Downey|Brian Downey]]
| successor4          = ''District abolished''
| constituency2       = [[Edmonton-Whitemud]]
| term_start2         = August 30, 1971
| term_end2           = March 14, 1979
| predecessor2        = ''District established''
| successor2          = [[Peter Knaak]]
| constituency3       = [[Edmonton-Whitemud]]
| term_start3         = December 11, 1985
| term_end3           = March 20, 1989
| predecessor3        = [[Robert Keith Alexander|Robert Alexander]]
| successor3          = [[Percy Wickman]]
| constituency1       = [[Strathcona West]]
| term_start1         = May 23, 1967
| term_end1           = August 30, 1971
| predecessor1        = [[Randolph McKinnon]]
| successor1          = ''District abolished''
| office6             = [[List of Alberta provincial ministers#Minister of Energy|Minister of Energy and Natural Resources]]
| term_start6         = March 1975
| term_end6           = March 1979
| predecessor6        = ''Portfolio established''
| successor6          = [[Merv Leitch]]
| office5             = [[List of Alberta provincial ministers#Minister of International and Intergovernmental Relations|Minister of Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs]]
| term_start5         = September 10, 1971
| term_end5           = March 1975
| predecessor5        = ''Portfolio established''
| successor5          = [[Lou Hyndman]]
| birth_name          = Donald Ross Getty
| birth_date          = {{birth date |mf=yes|1933|08|30}}
| birth_place         = [[Westmount, Quebec]], Canada
| death_date          = {{death date and age|2016|2|26|1933|8|30}}
| death_place         = [[Edmonton]], [[Alberta]], Canada
| party               = [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|Progressive Conservative]]
| spouse              = Margaret Mitchell
| children            = 4
| signature           = Donald Ross Getty Signature.svg
| alma_mater          = [[University of Western Ontario]]
| occupation          = Businessman, professional athlete
|module=
{{Infobox Canadian Football League biography|embed=yes
   |name          = Donald Ross Getty
   |image         = 1956 Grey Cup victory.jpg
   |caption       = Getty after winning the [[44th Grey Cup]] in 1956
   |import        = No
   |position1     = Quarterback
   |number        = 27, 87
   |death_place   = 
   |death_cause   = 
   |Height_ft     = 6
   |Height_in     = 2
   |Weight_lbs    = 195
   |College       = [[University of Western Ontario|Western Ontario]]
   |playing_years1 = [[1955 in Canadian football|1955]]–{{CFL Year|1965}}
   |playing_team1 = [[Edmonton Eskimos]]
   |Awards        = 2× [[Grey Cup]] ([[43rd Grey Cup|1955]], [[44th Grey Cup|1956]])<br />Outstanding Canadian, [[Western Interprovincial Football Union]] (1959)<br />Runner up, [[CFL's Most Outstanding Canadian Award|Schenley Award]] ({{CFL Year|1959}})
   |Honors        = Edmonton Eskimos Wall of Honour, 1992
}}}}
'''Donald Ross Getty''' {{post-nominals|country=CAN|OC|AOE}} (August 30, 1933 – February 26, 2016) was a Canadian athlete, businessman, and politician who served as the 11th [[premier of Alberta]] between 1985 and 1992. 

Before entering politics, Getty had been a [[quarterback]] for the [[Edmonton Eskimos]] of the [[Canadian Football League]].  He passed for more than eight thousand yards over his ten-year career. A member of the [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|Progressive Conservatives]], he served as Energy Minister and Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister in the government of [[Peter Lougheed]] before leaving politics for the private sector in 1979.  He returned to politics six years later to enter the Progressive Conservative leadership contest resulting from Lougheed's retirement.  He defeated two other candidates, and became Premier November 1, 1985.

As Premier, Getty was faced with an economic slowdown and falling energy prices, which hit [[Alberta]]'s [[petroleum]]-dominated economy hard.  Faced with mounting government deficits and increasing unemployment, he cut social spending and intervened with government money to prevent businesses from failing.  Several of these interventions backfired in high-profile fashion, failing at their intended objective and costing scarce public funds as well.  While some analysts argue that Getty's fiscal program laid the groundwork for [[Ralph Klein]]'s later balancing of the provincial budget, on Getty's departure from office the government's debt had reached $11 billion, setting the stage for his successor to characterize the Getty years as an era of wasteful and excessive spending.

His efforts at strengthening Alberta's presence in Canada initially appeared more successful, as he won the agreement of Canada's other first ministers in including elements of [[Senate of Canada|Senate]] reform in the [[Meech Lake Accord|Meech Lake]] and [[Charlottetown Accord]]s, but these efforts came to naught when both accords were rejected—the second by the Canadian public, including a majority of Albertans.  Getty was also facing political problems within Alberta, including a defeat in his home [[electoral district (Canada)|riding]] of [[Edmonton-Whitemud]] in the [[1989 Alberta general election|1989 election]] (leading to a successful by-election in [[Stettler (provincial electoral district)|Stettler]], vacated by a P.C. MLA) and leadership machinations from some of his own ministers.  In light of this, he resigned the Premiership in 1992. The same year, Getty was put on the Edmonton Eskimos Wall of Fame.

== Early life ==
Don Getty was born on August 30, 1933, in [[Westmount, Quebec]],<ref>{{Cite encyclopedia|title=Don Getty|date=February 14, 2008|encyclopedia=[[The Canadian Encyclopedia]]|publisher=[[Historica Canada]]|url=https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/donald-getty|access-date=August 27, 2019|archive-date=December 14, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201214074033/https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/donald-getty|url-status=live}}</ref> the son of Beatrice Lillian (Hampton) Getty (1910&ndash;1973) and Charles Ross Getty (1909&ndash;1974).<ref name="pc563">Perry, Craig 2006, pg. 563</ref> His father had dropped out of [[McGill University]]'s medical school due to the [[Great Depression]] and worked a variety of jobs—sometimes more than one at a time—to support his wife, three sons, and two daughters.  Getty's childhood was spent in [[Verdun, Quebec|Verdun]], [[Toronto]], [[Ottawa]], [[London, Ontario|London]], and [[Agincourt, Toronto|Agincourt]], sharing a three-room apartment with his seven-member family in the last.  Returning for London in time for high school, he became an accomplished athlete (drinking [[eggnog]] to gain enough weight to play football) and was elected students' council president.  Sports were his passion, and he was an especially great fan of the [[Montreal Canadiens]] and of [[Toronto Argonauts]] running back [[Royal Copeland (Canadian football)|Royal Copeland]].

=== Football ===
After graduating, Getty enrolled to study business administration at the [[University of Western Ontario]], where he became a [[Canadian football|football]] star and a member of The [[Kappa Alpha Society]].<ref name="Lisac_2004">{{cite book |last=Lisac |first=Mark |editor=Bradford J. Rennie |title=Alberta Premiers of the Twentieth Century |year=2004 |publisher=Canadian Plains Research Center, University of Regina |location=[[Regina, Saskatchewan]] |isbn=0-88977-151-0 |pages=231–232 |chapter=Don Getty }}</ref>  He quarterbacked the [[Western Ontario Mustangs]] to Eastern Collegiate Union Championships in 1954 and 1955,<ref name="60 years">{{cite web |url=http://www.esks.com/Team/60Seasons/Players/tabid/141/Default.aspx |title=60 seasons of Eskimo Greats |work=[[Edmonton Eskimos]] |access-date=2008-06-23|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080801002947/http://www.esks.com/Team/60Seasons/Players/tabid/141/Default.aspx |archive-date = August 1, 2008|url-status=dead}}</ref> and was awarded the Claude Brown Memorial Trophy as the outstanding athlete at UWO in 1955.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.westernmustangs.ca/sports/2009/7/8/GEN_0708093516.aspx?tab=awardsexcellence |title=The Dr. Claude Brown Memorial Trophy and F.W.P. Jones Trophy Winners |work=[[University of Western Ontario]] |access-date=2015-06-07 |archive-date=2015-06-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150607121141/http://www.westernmustangs.ca/sports/2009/7/8/GEN_0708093516.aspx?tab=awardsexcellence |url-status=live }}</ref>  He also played [[basketball]], and was part of championship teams in that sport in 1952, 1953, and 1954.<ref name="60 years"/> In football and basketball, he was coached by [[John P. Metras]].<ref>{{cite news|title=John Metras: Former college coach dies|agency=[[The Canadian Press]]|date=April 14, 1982|newspaper=[[The Sun Times (Owen Sound)|The Sun Times]]|location=Owen Sound, Ontario|page=15|url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-sun-times-metras-1982/169392058/}}</ref> A week after 1955 graduation, Getty married Margaret Mitchell, his high school sweetheart.  The [[Edmonton Eskimos]] had offered Getty a professional contract, so the newlyweds drove out west in an old blue [[Buick]].<ref name="Lisac_2004"/>

While still playing football, Getty was hired by [[Imperial Oil]] in 1955.  He worked for Midwestern Industrial Gas Limited, beginning in 1961 as Lands and Contracts Manager with a promotion to Assistant General Manager following in 1963.  In 1964 he founded his own company, Baldonnel Oil and Gas Company, before entering the world of finance as a partner with Doherty, Roadhouse, and McCuaig investments in 1967.<ref name="AB Heritage">{{cite web |url=http://www.abheritage.ca/abpolitics/people/prem_getty.html |title=The Honourable Donald Getty |work=Heritage Community Foundation |access-date=2008-07-09 |archive-date=2008-03-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080323064707/http://www.abheritage.ca/abpolitics/people/prem_getty.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== MLA and cabinet minister ===

In 1965, Getty was approached by fellow Eskimos veteran and [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|Progressive Conservative]] leader [[Peter Lougheed]] to run in the [[1967 Alberta general election|1967 provincial election]].<ref name="Lisac_2004"/>{{rp|233}}  Getty agreed to run in [[Strathcona West]], and defeated incumbent [[Social Credit Party of Alberta|Social Crediter]] [[Randolph McKinnon]] by more than one thousand votes.  He entered the [[Legislative Assembly of Alberta]] as one of six newly elected P.C.s.<ref>{{cite book |title=Developing Alberta's Oil Sands: From Karl Clark to Kyoto |last=Chastko |first=Paul Anthony |year=2004 |publisher=University of Calgary Press |location=[[Calgary]], [[Alberta]] |page=[https://archive.org/details/developingalbert00chas/page/299 299] |isbn=1-55238-124-2 |url=https://archive.org/details/developingalbert00chas/page/299 }}</ref>  Four years later, in the [[1971 Alberta general election|1971 election]], Getty was re-elected by more than 3,500 votes in the new riding of [[Edmonton-Whitemud]] and was appointed Minister of Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs in the new Lougheed majority government.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|233}}  With Getty and the government both re-elected by increasing margins in the [[1975 Alberta general election|1975 election]], Lougheed appointed him Minister of Energy.  In this capacity Getty partially continued his responsibility for relations with the [[Government of Canada|federal government]], as energy policy was a major sticking point between the two governments (at one point, federal Energy Minister [[Donald Stovel Macdonald|Donald Macdonald]] called Getty "dripping with venom").<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|233}}  Getty did not seek re-election in the [[1979 Alberta general election|1979 election]].<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|233}}

=== Hiatus from politics and leadership fight ===

While out of politics, Getty became the head of an investment firm and sat on the boards of a number of corporations, including the [[Royal Bank of Canada]], Sparrow Energy, Nortek Energy and [[Celanese]] Canada.<ref name="AB Heritage"/> However, when Lougheed stepped down from the Progressive Conservative leadership in 1985, Getty entered the contest to replace him and immediately became the favourite.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|233}} At an October convention, Getty won a second ballot victory against Minister of Municipal Affairs [[Julian Koziak]] and former legislator [[Ron Ghitter]].<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|233–4}}

== Premier ==

Getty was appointed Premier November 1, 1985.  He returned to the [[Legislative Assembly of Alberta|legislature]] just over a month later, winning a by-election in his old riding of Edmonton-Whitemud.  As Premier for nearly seven years, Getty presided over some of Alberta's toughest economic times.  His time in office was characterized by attempts to reduce the government's [[budget deficit]] and interventions calculated to stabilize the economy during the [[recession]] of the 1980s. When Getty became Premier he left his [[Lougheed Ministry|predecessor's cabinet]] completely intact.<ref name="oathprem">{{cite news|title=Getty takes oath as Alberta premier|publisher=Winnipeg Free Press|page=37|work=Vol 113 No 319 |date=November 2, 1985}}</ref>

=== Budget deficit ===

After Getty won the party leadership, Lougheed told him to expect a budget deficit of $2.5 billion in his first year in office,<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|234}} though the figure turned out to be $2.1 billion.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|236}}  Things got worse the next year as a drop in energy prices led to the oil-rich province running a deficit of $3.4 billion, as energy revenues fell by $3 billion.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|237}}  Getty's Treasurer, [[Archibald D. Johnston|Dick Johnston]], reacted by raising taxes by $1 billion and cutting program spending by 6.3%, including decreases of 3% in grants to schools, universities, municipalities, and hospitals.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|237}}  In 1990, due to these measures, Johnston predicted that the government would be in surplus by the 1995 fiscal year.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|250}}  By 1992, program spending was growing at a rate of 2.3% annually, among the lowest rates in Canada.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|249}}  In fact, when adjusted for population growth and [[inflation]], government spending fell over Getty's term in office, with non-health care program spending 40% lower in 1993 than it had been in 1986 (health spending had remained approximately constant over the same period).<ref>{{cite book |last=Taft |first=Kevin |author-link=Kevin Taft |year=1997 |title=Shredding the Public Interest |publisher=University of Alberta Press |location=[[Edmonton]] |isbn=0-88864-295-4 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/shreddingpublici0000taft/page/15 15–17] |url=https://archive.org/details/shreddingpublici0000taft/page/15 }}</ref>  Even so, Getty entered the premiership with no public debt and left with the public debt at $11 billion.<ref>{{cite book |last=Barrie |first=Doreen |editor=Bradford J. Rennie |title=Alberta Premiers of the Twentieth Century |year=2004 |publisher=Canadian Plains Research Center, University of Regina |location=[[Regina, Saskatchewan]] |isbn=0-88977-151-0 |page=261 |chapter=Ralph Klein }}</ref>

=== Economic intervention ===

Getty's government was faced with a combination of a general economic malaise and falling oil prices.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|235}}  The slowdown in the energy sector contributed to a decrease in capital spending, which reduced demand for labour in the construction industry by 50% between 1980 and 1985.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|235}} Many workers left the province, which suppressed [[real estate]] prices and hurt financial institutions; two Albertan banks, the [[Canadian Commercial Bank]] and the [[Northland Bank]], failed in September 1985.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|235}}  [[Credit unions]] were facing similar troubles, and the Lougheed government had, in its last days, injected $100 million into the industry.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|235}}

Getty's response to these issues was interventionist.  During his first budget, he targeted spending at the province's struggling agricultural sector, including a $2 billion loan program meant to address high interest rates.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|236}}  His government tried to stimulate the energy sector by making [[loan guarantee]]s to [[Husky Oil]] ($380 million) and [[Syncrude]] ($200 million) for new and expanded capital projects.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|236}}  The government also provided a $55 million guarantee—in addition to a $20 million loan—to [[Peter Pocklington]]'s [[Gainers]] meat-packing plant; when Pocklington defaulted on the loan, the government seized, and eventually closed, the plant.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|241}}  This incident and others contributed to a perception that Getty's administration was willing to spend public money to support large businesses, but that it was indifferent to the struggles of labour (the Gainers loan had initially been made after the government brokered a labour settlement favourable to the plant's management).<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|241}} In 1986 the price of oil bottomed at $US10 a barrel. Getty responded by providing the oil industry with $250 million in incentives and royalty cuts. By the end of 1986 Alberta had granted another nine-month cut from 12% to 1% in royalties at the Suncor oilsands.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|236}}

Most damaging to the government's reputation was the failure of the [[Principal Group]], an Edmonton-based trust company.  Its investment subsidiaries were ordered shut down June 30, 1987, by court orders obtained at the instigation of Provincial Treasurer Dick Johnston.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|242}}  The parent company went bankrupt August 10 amid accusations of fraud.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|242}}  A court-ordered investigation led by Bill Code found that the company was in trouble as early as 1980 and, though subsequent economic downturns hurt it, "it would not have been profitable in any event".<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|242}}  It also found that Consumer and Corporate Affairs Minister [[Connie Osterman]] had disregarded 1984 warnings from a regulator in her department that the company was likely [[insolvent]].<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|242}}  Though Osterman was fired shortly after the report's release, Getty's immediate offer of an $85 million settlement to investors further hurt the government's reputation in areas of business.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|242}}

A similar incident stemmed from the 1992 privatization of [[Alberta Government Telephones]] (AGT).  NovaTel, a cellular subsidiary of AGT, had made a number of financing deals with local companies in the late 1980s, and many of these deals were collapsing just as the government was prepared to sell AGT.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|250}}  At the last moment, the government removed NovaTel from the AGT [[share (finance)|share]] offering.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|250}}  NovaTel's liabilities eventually cost the government more than $600 million.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|250}}

=== Intergovernmental and constitutional affairs ===

As a former Minister of Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs, Getty had strong views about constitutional matters, and about [[Senate of Canada|Senate]] reform in particular.  He made the cause the centrepiece of Alberta's constitutional policy going into the [[Meech Lake Accord]] discussions.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|238}}  The Accord's final version included a provision whereby the [[Prime Minister of Canada|Prime Minister]] would continue to recommend senatorial appointments to the [[Governor General of Canada|Governor General]], but would have to make their recommendations from lists provided by the provincial governments.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|238}}  Once it became apparent that the Meech Lake Accord would fail, Getty's government introduced the ''Senatorial Selection Act'', which provided for an election process whenever there was a vacant Senate seat for Alberta.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|239–40}}  However, Getty's favoured candidate, Progressive Conservative [[Bert Brown]], was soundly defeated by [[Stan Waters]] of the upstart [[Reform Party of Canada]], which opposed Meech Lake and favoured aggressive senate reform.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|246}}  Though Prime Minister [[Brian Mulroney]] opposed the legislation, he eventually recommended Waters for appointment to the Senate.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|239–40}}  Getty was still more successful at pursuing senate reform during the negotiations for the [[Charlottetown Accord]], when he won the addition of a [[Triple-E Senate]] to the package, against Mulroney's opposition.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|251}}  However, the Charlottetown Accord failed after a national referendum in which a majority of Canadians, including 60.2% of Albertans, rejected it.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/Proposals/charlottetown-res.html |title=Charlottetown Accord Referendum Results |work=The Solon Law Archive |access-date=2008-07-12 |archive-date=2008-10-06 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081006234219/http://www.solon.org/Constitutions/Canada/English/Proposals/charlottetown-res.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 1991, Getty's Progressive Conservatives formally severed ties with the [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada]], which was becoming increasingly unpopular under Mulroney.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|240}}  Getty also broke with Mulroney on a number of issues other than Senate reform, including the new federal [[Goods and Services Tax (Canada)|Goods and Services Tax]], which he fought unsuccessfully against implementing.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|240}}  His government also implemented legislation, against Mulroney's express wishes, that made English the only official language of Alberta.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|240}}  Despite these steps, Getty remained a supporter of the federal Conservatives (and not the Reform Party, to which many provincial P.C.s were defecting), whose unpopularity rubbed off on him.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|240}}

Getty's government also made progress on [[Aboriginal peoples in Canada|aboriginal]] land claims in the northern part of the province.  In addition to creating Canada's first [[Métis people (Canada)|Métis]] land base in 1989, Getty took the lead in an ultimately unsuccessful effort to negotiate a settlement between the federal government and the [[Lubicon Cree]].<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|249}}

=== Political style ===

In contrast to his predecessor, who was actively involved in most elements of his government, Getty preferred to set the government's broad direction and leave lower-level details to his ministers.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|237}}  [[Ralph Klein]], while serving as Environment Minister under Getty, commented that "If you are a minister, you run that portfolio yourself" and expressed an appreciation for the freedom that the Premier gave [[Getty Ministry|his cabinet]].<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|248}}  [[Al Adair]], who served in two different portfolios under Getty, described this approach in his memoirs as "you make the decisions, you run your department, but make mistakes and you're gone".<ref name="Adair 99">{{cite book |title=Boomer: My Life with Peter, Don and Ralph |last=Adair |first=Al |author2=Frank Dolphin |author-link=Al Adair |year=1994 |publisher=Polar Bear Publishing |location=[[Edmonton]] |isbn=0-9698741-0-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/boomermylifewith0000adai/page/99 99] |url=https://archive.org/details/boomermylifewith0000adai/page/99 }}</ref>  Lisac credits him for knowing when to intervene and when not to,<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|247}} but Adair felt that his approach led to ministers working too much in isolation.<ref name="Adair 99"/>

Getty was a private, reserved person, which, combined with his tendency to delegate to ministers, sometimes gave the impression of an uncaring aloofness.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|238}}  During the Principal Group affair, which he left primarily in the hands of Treasurer [[Archibald D. Johnston|Dick Johnston]] and Consumer and Corporate Affairs Minister [[Elaine McCoy]], a photographer captured a shot of Getty playing golf while his press secretary had said that he was "working out of the office".<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|242}}  This was typical of his strained relationship with the media, which Adair attributed to the Premier's awkwardness and the media's unfairness.<ref name="Adair 99"/><ref name="Adair 163">Adair 163</ref>

Although Getty governed with fairly large majorities during his tenure, they were nowhere near as large as the ones Lougheed enjoyed.  His first election as premier saw the return of the [[Alberta Liberal Party|provincial Liberals]] to the legislature after being shut out for 15 years.  That same election saw the [[Alberta New Democratic Party|Alberta NDP]] pick up 16 seats in the legislature.  In contrast, during his last two terms, Lougheed never faced more than six opposition MLAs in total.

=== Decline and retirement ===

Getty called the [[1989 Alberta general election|1989 election]] less than three years into his 1986 mandate to take advantage of the economic optimism prevalent in the province, partly as a result of the [[North American Free Trade Agreement|Canada-U.S. free trade agreement]].<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|243}}  While the P.C.s made spending promises including paving all of the province's secondary highways, the Liberals under new leader [[Laurence Decore]] stressed dealing with the deficit.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|243}}   The overall result was respectable for the government, as it won a sixth term in government with a net loss of only two seats.  However, Getty was defeated in his own riding by Liberal [[Percy Wickman]].<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|244}}  [[Brian C. Downey]] resigned his seat in the rural central Alberta riding of [[Stettler (provincial electoral district)|Stettler]] to allow Getty to run in a by-election, which he won handily.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|244}}  He built a home in the riding on [[Buffalo Lake (Alberta)|Buffalo Lake]], and was later accused of arranging for the lake to be risen so it would be better-suited for fishing (though Adair claimed that the arrangements had been in place since 1979, when he had been Minister of Recreation, Parks and Wildlife).<ref name="Adair 163"/>

Getty's relationship with his own party was often stormy.  Shortly after he lost his riding in 1989, a group of Calgary Conservatives, including party budget director [[John C. Major|Jack Major]] and Getty's old leadership rival [[Ron Ghitter]], began making plans to force party renewal, with or without Getty.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|245}}  They felt that the party was perceived as being tired, directionless, arrogant, and deaf to urban concerns, and that it was in political trouble in the crucial battleground of Calgary.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|245}}  At the 1989 party convention, recently retired cabinet minister [[Marvin Moore]], who had organized Ghitter's 1985 leadership campaign, advocated for a [[leadership review]]; after a speech by Getty, the convention voted to refer the recommendation to a committee for months of study.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|246–7}}  Cabinet ministers, including Treasurer [[Archibald D. Johnston|Dick Johnston]] and Education Minister [[Jim Dinning]], began to consider leadership bids in the event that Getty retired or was pushed out.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|247}}

In 1992, as the national referendum on the [[Charlottetown Accord]] and the release of a report on the NovaTel incident loomed, Getty decided to leave politics.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|251}}  In his last months, he deliberately refrained from taking measures that he knew would be popular, such as shrinking cabinet, in order to leave them for his successor.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|230}}  After a party leadership election chose [[Ralph Klein]] to succeed him, Getty resigned as party leader December 5 and as Premier several days later.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|252}}

=== Political legacy ===

As Premier, Klein positioned himself in contrast to Getty, asserting that the government had "a spending problem",<ref>Barrie 262</ref> and stating that he had become Premier at a time of "uncontrolled spending".<ref>Taft 25</ref>  Given Klein's aggressive spending cuts, which shaped the political climate of Alberta for much of the 1990s, Getty's legacy with respect to public finances has been criticized.  However, [[Kevin Taft]], writing four years before entering politics, challenged this view, asserting that Getty was running "the tightest government in Canada".<ref>Taft 23</ref>  Besides its management of the deficit, Getty's government is remembered for the creation of [[Family Day (Canada)|Family Day]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/PREMIERS/getty.htm |title=The Honourable Donald R. Getty, 1985-1992 |work=Legislative Assembly of Alberta |access-date=2008-07-17 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080113011955/http://www.assembly.ab.ca/lao/library/premiers/getty.htm |archive-date=2008-01-13 }}</ref>  For the most part, however, Getty dropped quickly from the public view and public memory.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|230}}  Lisac suggests that this is because, unlike his predecessor and successor, he lacked a central message:
{{cquote|Lougheed had booming prosperity and a constant fight for provincial rights against the federal government.  Klein was to be associated with balanced budgets and paying down debt.  Getty never had an effective central story to tell.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|237}}}}

==Professional football career==
Getty played 10 seasons with the [[Edmonton Eskimos]] as a [[quarterback]]. For the first part of his career, he backed up [[Jackie Parker]] and filled in for him when he was moved to [[running back]].<ref name="CFLapedia">{{cite web |url=http://cflapedia.com/Players/g/getty_don.htm |title=Don Getty |work=CFLapedia |access-date=2008-07-10 |archive-date=2011-10-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111004150007/http://cflapedia.com/Players/g/getty_don.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Eskimos coach [[Pop Ivy]] surprised many observers when he started Getty at quarterback in the third game of the 1956 western final (which was a three-game series at the time) during the [[44th Grey Cup]], with Parker at running back.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.cfl.ca/page/his_legends_ivy |title=Don Frank (Pop) Ivy |first=Ted |last=Soutar |access-date=2015-06-07 |work=CFL.ca |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150607135652/http://www.cfl.ca/page/his_legends_ivy |archive-date=2015-06-07 }}</ref> However, it bore results as Parker tied the record for most touchdowns scored in a Grey Cup game, at three.<ref name="1956 Cup">{{cite web |url=https://www.cfl.ca/page/his_greycup_recap1956 |work=CFL.ca |title=1956 – Edmonton Eskimos 50, Montreal Alouettes 27 |access-date=2008-07-10 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091126183348/http://www.cfl.ca/page/his_greycup_recap1956 |archive-date=2009-11-26 }}</ref>  Getty also handed the ball to [[Johnny Bright]] for two touchdowns and scored two himself on quarterback keeps from the one-yard line, as the Eskimos won their third consecutive championship over the [[Montreal Alouettes]] by a score of 50–27.<ref name="1956 Cup"/>  He continued with Eskimos until 1963, and also made three appearances in the 1965 season.<ref name="CFLapedia"/>

Getty was one of the most successful Canadian-born quarterbacks in the history of the [[Canadian Football League]] and sits at third on the all-time passing yardage list of Canadian quarterbacks, behind [[Russ Jackson]] and [[Gerry Dattilio]], with nearly nine thousand yards. He was declared the outstanding Canadian player in the [[Western Interprovincial Football Union]] in 1959, and was the runner up (to Jackson) for the [[CFL's Most Outstanding Canadian Award|Schenley Award]] as the league's most outstanding Canadian player the same year.<ref name="CFLapedia"/> He was placed on the Eskimos' Wall of Honor in 1992.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.esks.com/page/history-woh |title=Eskimo Wall of Honour |access-date=2015-06-07 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101028173300/http://esks.com/page/history-woh |archive-date=2010-10-28 }}</ref>

===Career statistics===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"|<ref name="CFLapedia"/>
!colspan="6"|Passing
!colspan="5"|Rushing<sup>1</sup>
|-
!Season
!Team
!PA
!PC
!Pct
!Yds
!TD
!Int
!Car
!Yds
!Avg
!TD
!Long
|-
|1955
|[[Edmonton Eskimos|Edm]]
|align="right"|63
|align="right"|35
|align="right"|55.6%
|align="right"|558
|align="right"|7
|align="right"|5
|align="right"|32
|align="right"|35
|align="right"|1.1
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|18
|-
|1956
|Edm
|align="right"|44
|align="right"|18
|align="right"|40.9%
|align="right"|256
|align="right"|3
|align="right"|3
|align="right"|11
|align="right"|-24
|align="right"|-2.2
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|8
|-
|1957
|Edm
|align="right"|122
|align="right"|83
|align="right"|68.0%
|align="right"|1,359
|align="right"|11
|align="right"|8
|align="right"|17
|align="right"|-15
|align="right"|-0.9
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|8
|-
|[[1958 CFL season|1958]]
|Edm
|align="right"|60
|align="right"|23
|align="right"|38.3%
|align="right"|334
|align="right"|1
|align="right"|2
|align="right"|15
|align="right"|29
|align="right"|1.9
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|6
|-
|[[1959 CFL season|1959]]
|Edm
|align="right"|198
|align="right"|116
|align="right"|58.6%
|align="right"|2,080
|align="right"|10
|align="right"|11
|align="right"|29
|align="right"|134
|align="right"|4.6
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|17
|-
|[[1960 CFL season|1960]]
|Edm
|align="right"|82
|align="right"|39
|align="right"|47.6%
|align="right"|674
|align="right"|3
|align="right"|4
|align="right"|11
|align="right"|44
|align="right"|4.0
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|16
|-
|[[1961 CFL season|1961]]
|Edm
|align="right"|126
|align="right"|69
|align="right"|54.8%
|align="right"|1,276
|align="right"|8
|align="right"|8
|align="right"|16
|align="right"|67
|align="right"|4.2
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|18
|-
|[[1962 CFL season|1962]]
|Edm
|align="right"|163
|align="right"|92
|align="right"|56.4%
|align="right"|1,465
|align="right"|8
|align="right"|9
|align="right"|11
|align="right"|35
|align="right"|3.1
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|11
|-
|[[1963 CFL season|1963]]
|Edm
|align="right"|125
|align="right"|64
|align="right"|51.2%
|align="right"|913
|align="right"|6
|align="right"|8
|align="right"|7
|align="right"|14
|align="right"|2
|align="right"|1
|align="right"|11
|-
|[[1965 CFL season|1965]]
|Edm
|align="right"|9
|align="right"|4
|align="right"|44.4%
|align="right"|37
|align="right"|1
|align="right"|2
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|0
|align="right"|0
|-
|colspan="2"|'''Total'''
|align="right"|'''992'''
|align="right"|'''543'''
|align="right"|'''54.7%'''
|align="right"|'''8,952'''
|align="right"|'''58'''
|align="right"|'''60'''
|align="right"|'''149'''
|align="right"|'''318'''
|align="right"|'''2.1'''
|align="right"|'''1'''
|align="right"|'''18'''
|}
<sup>1</sup>Until and including the 1958 season, a tackle for a loss on a passing play was registered as a rushing attempt.

==Retirement and death==
Getty kept a low profile after leaving politics. He assumed several corporate directorships and spent time with his grandchildren.<ref name="Lisac_2004" />{{rp|230}}  Unlike Lougheed, he rarely commented on political matters. He was appointed as an Officer to the [[Order of Canada]] in 1998.<ref name="AB Heritage"/>

In July 2008, after [[Ed Stelmach]] announced $2 billion in funding to industry to develop [[Carbon capture and storage|carbon capture]] technology, Getty's company sought some of the funding to bury [[carbon dioxide]] in salt caverns near [[Two Hills, Alberta|Two Hills]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=a4caf2d3-54c4-4ad6-98c0-eaaeedd11ccf |work=Calgary Herald |first=Jason |last=Fekete |title=Getty's company plans storage venture |date=July 11, 2008 |access-date=2008-07-11 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121104160123/http://www.canada.com/calgaryherald/news/story.html?id=a4caf2d3-54c4-4ad6-98c0-eaaeedd11ccf |archive-date=November 4, 2012 }}</ref>

After years of declining health, Getty died from heart failure at a hospital in Edmonton, on February 26, 2016, at age 82.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://globalnews.ca/news/2542140/former-alberta-premier-don-getty-dies-at-82/ |title=Former Alberta Premier Don Getty dies at 82 |website=Globalnews.ca |access-date=2016-02-27 |archive-date=2016-02-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160226135937/http://globalnews.ca/news/2542140/former-alberta-premier-don-getty-dies-at-82/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Honours==
He was appointed as an Officer of the [[Order of Canada]] on 21 October 1998. He was appointed as a Member of the [[Alberta Order of Excellence]] in 1999. He received the Canadian version of the [[Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal]] in 1977, the [[125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal]] in 1992, the Canadian version of the [[Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal]] in 2002 and the [[Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal]] in 2012.

In 2012 he was inducted into the London Sports Hall of Fame in [[London, Ontario]], in recognition of his achievements in Canadian football.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://londonsportshalloffame.com/inductees/don-getty/ |title=Don Getty |publisher=The London Sports Hall of Fame |date=1933-08-30 |access-date=2016-02-27 |archive-date=2016-03-11 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160311055139/http://londonsportshalloffame.com/inductees/don-getty/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

On 19 November 2013 he received the [[honorary degree]] of [[Doctor of Laws]] from the [[University of Alberta]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.senate.ualberta.ca/HonoraryDegrees/PastHonoraryDegreeRecipients.aspx#G |title=Past Honorary Degree Recipients - University of Alberta |website=Senate.ualberta.ca |access-date=2016-02-27 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304185921/http://www.senate.ualberta.ca/HonoraryDegrees/PastHonoraryDegreeRecipients.aspx#G |archive-date=2016-03-04 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<div class="center">
<br />
[[File:CAN Order of Canada Officer ribbon.svg|100px]]
[[File:Alberta Order Excellence ribbon bar.svg|100px]]
[[File:UK Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|100px]]
<br />
[[File:125canada ribbon.png|100px]]
[[File:UK Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|100px]]
[[File:QEII Diamond Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|100px]]</div>

{| class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto;"
|-  style="background:silver; text-align:center;"
|Ribbon || Description || Notes
|-
|[[File:CAN Order of Canada Officer ribbon.svg|40px]] || [[Order of Canada]] (OC) || 
* Officer 21 October 1998.
<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gg.ca/honour.aspx?id=3913&t=12&ln=Getty |title=The Governor General of Canada > Find a Recipient |website=Gg.ca |access-date=2016-02-27 |archive-date=2016-03-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307073517/http://www.gg.ca/honour.aspx?id=3913&t=12&ln=Getty |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|[[File:Alberta Order Excellence ribbon bar.svg|40px]] || [[Alberta Order of Excellence]] (AOE) ||
* 1999
* <ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.lieutenantgovernor.ab.ca/Aoe/business/donald-getty/index.html |title=Donald Ross Getty &#124; The Alberta Order of Excellence |website=Lieutenantgovernor.ab.ca |date=2011-03-30 |access-date=2016-02-27 |archive-date=2016-03-28 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160328131437/https://www.lieutenantgovernor.ab.ca/aoe/business/donald-getty/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|[[File:UK Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|40px]] || [[Queen Elizabeth II Silver Jubilee Medal]] ||
* 1977
*Canadian version of this medal
|-
|[[File:125canada ribbon.png|40px]] || [[125th Anniversary of the Confederation of Canada Medal]] ||
* 1992
|-
|[[File:UK Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|40px]] || [[Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal]] ||
* 2002
* Canadian version of this medal
* <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gg.ca/honour.aspx?id=42112&t=6&ln=Getty |title=The Governor General of Canada > Find a Recipient |website=Gg.ca |access-date=2016-02-27 |archive-date=2016-03-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307072943/http://www.gg.ca/honour.aspx?id=42112&t=6&ln=Getty |url-status=live }}</ref>
|-
|[[File:QEII Diamond Jubilee Medal ribbon.svg|40px]] || [[Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal]] ||
* 2012
* Canadian version of this medal
* <ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.gg.ca/honour.aspx?id=103028&t=13&ln=Getty |title=The Governor General of Canada > Find a Recipient |website=Gg.ca |access-date=2016-02-27 |archive-date=2016-03-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160307072534/http://www.gg.ca/honour.aspx?id=103028&t=13&ln=Getty |url-status=live }}</ref>
|}

== Electoral record ==

=== As party leader ===

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan=10|[[1989 Alberta general election|1989 Alberta provincial election]]
|- style="background:#ccc;"
! rowspan="2" style="text-align:left;" colspan="2"|Party
! rowspan="2" style="text-align:left;"|Party leader
! rowspan="2" style="text-align:left;"|# of<br />candidates
! colspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|Seats
! colspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|Popular vote
|- style="background:#ccc;"
| style="text-align:center;"|[[1986 Alberta general election|1986]]
| style="text-align:center;"|'''[[1989 Alberta general election|1989]]'''
| style="text-align:center;"|% Change
| style="text-align:center;"|#
| style="text-align:center;"|%
| style="text-align:center;"|% Change
|-
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Progressive Conservatives|row}}
| [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|Progressive Conservative]]
| '''Don Getty'''
|align="right"|  83
|align="right"| 61
|align="right"| '''59'''
|align="right"| -3.3%
|align="right"| 367,244
|align="right"|  44.29%
|align="right"|  -7.11%
{{Canadian party colour|AB|NDP|row}}
| [[Alberta New Democratic Party|New Democrats]]
| [[Ray Martin (politician)|Ray Martin]]
|align="right"|  83
|align="right"| 16
|align="right"|  '''16'''
|align="right"|  0%
|align="right"|  217,972
|align="right"|   26.29%
|align="right"|   -2.93%
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Liberal|row}}
| [[Alberta Liberal Party|Liberal]]
| [[Laurence Decore]]
|align="right"| 83
|align="right"| 4
|align="right"|  '''8'''
|align="right"|  +100%
|align="right"|  237,787
|align="right"|   28.68%
|align="right"| +16.46%
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Social Credit|row}}
| [[Social Credit Party of Alberta|Social Credit]]
| [[Harvey Yuill]]
|align="right"|   6
|align="right"| *
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| *
|align="right"| 3,939
|align="right"| 0.47%
|align="right"| *
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Communist|row}}
| [[Communist Party (Alberta)|Communist]]
| [[Norman Brudy]]
|align="right"| 2
|align="right"| -
|align="right"|  -
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| 85
|align="right"| 0.01%
|align="right"| -0.02%
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Independents|row}}
| colspan=2|Independent
|align="right"|  10
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| 2,162
|align="right"| 0.26%
|align="right"| -0.60%
|-
| colspan=3|'''Total'''
|align="right"|267
|align="right"| 83
|align="right"|  83
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| 829,189
|align="right"| 100%
! {{center| &nbsp;}}
|-
!colspan=10|[[1986 Alberta general election|1986 Alberta provincial election]]
|- style="background:#ccc;"
! rowspan="2" style="text-align:left;" colspan="2"|Party
! rowspan="2" style="text-align:left;"|Party leader
! rowspan="2" style="text-align:left;"|# of<br />candidates
! colspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|Seats
! colspan="3" style="text-align:center;"|Popular vote
|- style="background:#ccc;"
| style="text-align:center;"|[[1982 Alberta general election|1982]]
| style="text-align:center;"|'''[[1986 Alberta general election|1986]]'''
| style="text-align:center;"|% Change
| style="text-align:center;"|#
| style="text-align:center;"|%
| style="text-align:center;"|% Change
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Progressive Conservatives|row}}
| [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|Progressive Conservative]]
|'''Don Getty'''
|align="right"|  83
|align="right"| 75
|align="right"| '''61'''
|align="right"| -18.7%
|align="right"| 366,783
|align="right"|  51.40%
|align="right"|  -10.88%
{{Canadian party colour|AB|NDP|row}}
| [[Alberta New Democratic Party|New Democrats]]
|[[Ray Martin (politician)|Ray Martin]]
|align="right"|  83
|align="right"| 2
|align="right"|  '''16'''
|align="right"|  +700%
|align="right"|  208,561
|align="right"|   29.22%
|align="right"|   +10.47%
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Liberal|row}}
| [[Alberta Liberal Party|Liberal]]
|[[Nicholas Taylor (politician)|Nicholas Taylor]]
|align="right"| 63
|align="right"| -
|align="right"|  '''4'''
|align="right"|  &nbsp;
|align="right"|  87,239
|align="right"|   12.22%
|align="right"| +10.41%
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Representative|row}}
| [[Representative Party of Alberta|Representative]]
|[[Raymond Speaker]]
|align="right"|   46
|align="right"| *
|align="right"| '''2'''
|align="right"| *
|align="right"| 36,656
|align="right"| 5.15%
|align="right"| *
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Western Canada Concept|row}}
| [[Western Canada Concept]]
|[[Jack Ramsay (politician)|Jack Ramsay]]
|align="right"|20
|align="right"| -
|align="right"|  -
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| 4,615
|align="right"|  0.65%
|align="right"| -11.11%
{{Canadian party colour|AB|CoR|row}}
| [[Confederation of Regions Party|Confederation of Regions]]
|[[Elmer Knutson]]
|align="right"|   6
|align="right"| *
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| *
|align="right"| 2,866
|align="right"| 0.40%
|align="right"| *
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Independents|row}}
| [[Heritage Party of Alberta|Heritage]]
|[[Mike Pawlus]]
|align="right"|   6
|align="right"| *
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| *
|align="right"| 601
|align="right"| 0.08%
|align="right"| *
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Communist|row}}
| [[Communist Party (Alberta)|Communist]]
|[[Norman Brudy]]
|align="right"|  6
|align="right"| -
|align="right"|  -
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| 199
|align="right"| 0.03%
|align="right"| -0.01%
{{Canadian party colour|AB|Independents|row}}
| colspan=2|Independent
|align="right"|  20
|align="right"| 2
|align="right"| -
|align="right"| -100%
|align="right"| 6,134
|align="right"| 0.86%
|align="right"| -3.01%
|-
| colspan=3|'''Total'''
|align="right"|333
|align="right"| 79
|align="right"|  83
|align="right"| -
|align="right"|  713,654
|align="right"| 100%
| {{center| &nbsp;}}
|}

<nowiki>*</nowiki> Party did not nominate candidates in the previous election.

=== As MLA ===
{{1967 Alberta general election/Strathcona West}}
{{1971 Alberta general election/Edmonton-Whitemud}}
{{1975 Alberta general election/Edmonton-Whitemud}}
{{1985 Alberta provincial by-elections/Edmonton-Whitemud}}
{{1986 Alberta general election/Edmonton-Whitemud}}
{{1989 Alberta general election/Edmonton-Whitemud}}
{{1989 Alberta provincial by-elections/Stettler}}

=== Party leadership contest ===
{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan=3|[[1985 Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta leadership election]]
|-
! colspan="3" style="text-align:left;"|Second ballot
|-
! Candidate
! Votes
! Percentage
|-
|'''Don Getty'''
|align="right"|1,061
|align="right"|56.2%
|-
|[[Julian Koziak]]
|align="right"|827
|align="right"|43.8%
|-
! colspan="3" style="text-align:left;"|First ballot
|-
! Candidate
! Votes
! Percentage
|-
|'''Don Getty'''
|align="right"|913
|align="right"|48.4%
|-
|[[Julian Koziak]]
|align="right"|545
|align="right"|28.9%
|-
|[[Ron Ghitter]]
|align="right"|428
|align="right"|22.7%
|}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{cite book |last=Perry |first=Sandra E. |last2=Craig |first2=Jessica J. |title=The Mantle of Leadership : Premiers of the Northwest Territories and Alberta |year=2006 |publisher=Legislative Assembly of Alberta |location=[[Edmonton]], [[Alberta]] |isbn=0-9689217-2-8 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/centennialseries03perr }}

==External links==
* {{Commons category-inline}}

{{ABPremiers}}
{{PC Alberta}}
{{Getty Ministry}}
{{Lougheed Ministry}}
{{43rd Grey Cup}}
{{44th Grey Cup}}
{{EskimosQuarterback}}

{{Good article}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Getty, Don}}
[[Category:1933 births]]
[[Category:2016 deaths]]
[[Category:People from Westmount, Quebec]]
[[Category:Anglophone Quebec people]]
[[Category:Canadian men's basketball players]]
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[[Category:Canadian football quarterbacks]]
[[Category:Western Mustangs football players]]
[[Category:Edmonton Elks players]]
[[Category:Canadian sportsperson-politicians]]
[[Category:Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta MLAs]]
[[Category:Members of the Alberta Order of Excellence]]
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