Premier
Getty was appointed Premier November 1, 1985 and returned to the legislature just over a month later in an Edmonton-Whitemud by-election. As Premier for nearly seven years, Getty presided over some of Alberta's toughest economic times. His government was re-elected twice with reduced majorities, in the 1986 and 1989 elections, though Getty lost his own Edmonton-Whitemud seat in 1989 and had to run in a by-election in Stettler, which was vacated by Progressive Conservative victor Brian C. Downey. Getty's 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 predecessor's cabinet completely intact.
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