Alberta votes on whether to start process toward a separation referendum
In short
Alberta voters were asked on Oct. 19 whether the province should remain in Canada or begin the legal process toward a future referendum on separation. It was not a direct vote on independence. Premier Danielle Smith called the vote but supports staying in Canada, and AP reported that more than 1.35 million Albertans had already cast advance or special ballots.
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Voters in Alberta were deciding on Oct. 19 whether the province should remain in Canada or begin the legal process toward a future referendum on separation, AP reported. The vote is not a direct referendum on independence. Polls were to close at 8 p.m. local time, with results on the independence question expected in the hours afterward. [ 1 , 9 ]
Premier Danielle Smith called the vote but supports remaining in Canada. UPI reported that she called it in May after about 300,000 people signed a petition demanding a binding referendum on secession, while a rival group opposing independence collected more than 400,000 signatures. UPI also reported that Smith said a binding referendum could be held as early as 2027 if Albertans voted for the proposal. Smith said support for starting the separation process was still too high for her liking. AP first cited a recent poll at around 23% and later cited 22%. [ 1 , 9 , 14 ]
More than 1.35 million Albertans, or 43% of eligible voters, cast advance or special ballots, AP reported, well above the 810,000 who voted early in the 2023 provincial election. AP said separatist leaders argue that even if Albertans reject the proposal, the movement has turned a fringe cause into a force in provincial politics and is not going away. Reuters's headline said the separatist movement was likely to outlast an expected defeat. [ 9 , 13 ]
Prime Minister Mark Carney asked for a decisive result in favor of unity. He told a pro-Canada rally in Edmonton on Friday: "Vote like Canada's future depends on it because it does." UPI quoted him saying that some outside Canada's borders are working to break the country so they can own it, which UPI described as an apparent reference to trade skirmishes with the United States. [ 9 , 14 ]
AP reported that Alberta has long feuded with the federal government over oil and federal power, and that separatist parties typically drew only 1% or 2% of the vote, according to former Premier Jason Kenney. Kenney told AP that the Freedom Convoy movement "naturally morphed into separatism." Jeff Rath, a leader of the independence movement, said federal vaccine rules were his breaking point. [ 1 , 2 , 4 ]
The New York Times reported that Smith, by hedging her position on secession, risked a backlash from both her conservative base and pro-Canada voters. AP also reported that the vote came as Alberta reeled from a grass fire at Canadian Forces Base Wainwright that killed four service members and injured 39. [ 9 , 18 ]
Why it matters
The vote was the first step in a possible path toward a separation referendum and, in AP's words, a test of national unity. AP reported that separatist leaders say the movement is not going away even if the proposal is rejected.
Key facts
- Alberta voters were asked on Oct. 19 to choose between remaining in Canada and beginning the legal process toward a future referendum on separation. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 9 ]
- The vote is not a direct referendum on independence. [ 1 , 9 ]
- Premier Danielle Smith called the vote but supports remaining in Canada. [ 1 , 2 , 4 , 9 , 14 ]
- More than 1.35 million Albertans, or 43% of eligible voters, cast advance or special ballots, against 810,000 early voters in the 2023 provincial election, AP reported. [ 9 ]
- Polls were to close at 8 p.m. local time, with results expected in the hours afterward. [ 9 ]
- Prime Minister Mark Carney urged Albertans to vote for unity at a rally in Edmonton on Friday. [ 9 ]
- UPI reported that Smith said a binding referendum could be held as early as 2027 if Albertans voted for the proposal. [ 14 ]
Confirmed by several sources
Still unclear
- The result of the vote. Bloomberg's headline, published at 05:00 local time, says 68% back staying in Canada, before the 8 p.m. poll close reported by AP. No other document gives a result, and the Bloomberg text is not available.
- Whether the referendum is binding. Fox News calls it a non-binding separation referendum and a PBS photo caption calls it non-binding. A CBS summary says it would begin the process for a binding referendum. UPI says the ballot asks whether the government should initiate the process for a legally binding referendum.
- How much support separation has. AP's earlier report cited a recent poll at around 23%. AP's later report cited 22%. A CBS summary says around 20% of residents want to separate.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- AP publishes a report headlined that Alberta votes on whether to start the process to separate from Canada. [ 7 ]
- Bloomberg's headline says 68% back staying in Canada and separatists vow to fight on. [ 12 ]
- Polls are to close, with results on the independence question expected in the hours afterward. [ 9 ]
- The New York Times says electors were asked whether to remain in Canada or hold another vote on breaking away, in a referendum that left both sides unhappy. [ 20 ]