Premier Don Getty knew that the Tories faced a general election in 1993, and Albertans support of the Progressive Conservatives was dropping. Getty inherited a government with no provincial debt, and ran average deficits of $2.6-billion per year, resulting in an $11-billion debt in 1993. With polls showing the Liberals far ahead, Getty support hovered around 30 per cent, and he decided to retire from politics in 1992. Under former Edmonton mayor Laurence Decore, the Liberals had made major gains by criticizing the Progressive Conservatives' fiscal responsibility, the province's rapidly rising debt, and the government's involvement in the private sector which had seen some companies defaulting on government loans.