Albertans Reject Separation Question, With About 76 Percent Voting to Remain in Canada

Albertans voted overwhelmingly to remain in Canada in Monday’s provincial referendum, with about 76 percent backing the option to stay on the separation question, early results show.

The question, known as Question 10, asked voters whether Alberta should remain a province of Canada or have the government begin a legal process toward a future binding referendum on separation. It was not binding in itself. Global News reported that the result is early, and Al Jazeera said about 1.8 million votes have been counted, with roughly 24 percent backing the move toward separation.

Turnout and counting
More than 1.35 million votes were cast in advance polls and by special mail-in ballots, Global News reported, compared with about 810,000 such ballots in the 2023 provincial election. The outlet said Elections Alberta hired more than 48,000 workers to count ballots around the clock and counted Question 10 first. Global News reported that results on the other nine questions, covering immigration and constitutional issues, were expected on Wednesday. NordoVista could not find final results for those questions and does not report them here. The counts are unofficial.

What leaders said
Premier Danielle Smith, who said she voted against independence, said, “Albertans have voted for a stronger Alberta in a united Canada,” Global News reported. Prime Minister Mark Carney wrote on X that Albertans made a clear choice. “They chose unity, to build together, and to take care of each other,” he said, as quoted by Al Jazeera.

Jeffrey Rath, co-founder of the Alberta Prosperity Project, said his movement “isn’t going anywhere” and that he is pushing for a special United Conservative Party general meeting to test Smith’s support, Global News reported. Thomas Lukaszuk, a former deputy premier who organized the Forever Canadian campaign, said the vote showed the country “cannot be broken up.” Alberta NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said the result “saved Canada” and that attention should now turn to saving Alberta.

Al Jazeera also noted that U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had called Alberta a natural partner for Washington and that Elon Musk had posted that Alberta should separate during the campaign.

Wainwright and polling
Smith said election authorities redirected voters in the area affected by the CFB Wainwright fire to other polling stations, Al Jazeera reported earlier in its coverage of the fire.

What the result may mean for bargaining with Ottawa
A decisive result on Question 10 removes the threat of a separation process from the room, which changes the leverage both governments bring to talks. Al Jazeera reported that Carney and Smith have worked together on a new pipeline to export more Alberta bitumen, and that anger over how the oil industry has been managed fed the separatist movement. Whether the federalist result softens or hardens Alberta’s demands will depend on the nine remaining questions, including proposals to opt out of federal programs, the priority of provincial laws, and what Smith says in the days ahead. Rath’s push for a party meeting suggests right-wing pressure on her will continue.