EDMONTON – Alberta rejected a plan to hold a binding independence referendum, results showed on Oct 20, in a win for unity as Canada faces worsening ties with the US.
Public broadcaster CBC and private network CTV projected a comfortable victory for the federalist side, with official results showing more than 76% support for Alberta remaining in Canada with nearly 45% of ballots counted.
Prime Minister Mark Carney welcomed the result, saying Albertans had made a “clear choice” in favour of unity.
“They chose unity, to build together, and to take care of each other,” he said in a statement on social media platform X.
Carney, who grew up in Alberta, had urged the province to reject separatism and argued that Canada needed stability as it confronted US President Donald Trump’s trade war and annexation threats.
A sombre mood took over a restaurant in the provincial capital Edmonton, where a leading separatist group watched the returns.
Jeffrey Rath, a top leader of the separatist Alberta Prosperity Project, told reporters that his push for an independent Alberta will “absolutely” continue, despite the result of the Oct 19 vote.
“As far as I’m concerned, we’ve already won. We’ve created a massive movement in this province,” Rath said.
“We’ve been educating Albertans on the benefits of independence, and we’re continuing to move forward.”
Separatist supporter Roger Hodkinson, an 82-year-old retired doctor, told AFP that “this movement is not going to stop”.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, a conservative who opposed independence, praised the “widespread support for remaining in Canada” on Oct 20.
Smith, who called the referendum, had said a win for the federalists would settle the secession issue that had divided the province.
Thomas Lukaszuk, who leads the pro-unity group Forever Canadian, said it was “amazing to see the enthusiasm and resolve among Canadians”.
Foreign influence?
Alberta has the world’s fourth-largest proven oil reserves, and much of the separatist momentum has been driven by anger over the management of the oil industry.
Smith has blamed Carney’s predecessor Justin Trudeau for igniting the separatist fire, accusing him of trying to crush oil production to advance his pro-climate agenda.
Alberta’s independence push has also drawn sustained interest from Trump allies.
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent called Alberta a “natural partner” for the US. Elon Musk, the world’s richest person and a top Trump supporter, posted on X in October that Alberta “should separate”.
Rath also held meetings at the US State Department, while separatists received advice from Republican political operatives.
‘Rash decisions’
Carney has worked to improve relations between the province and Ottawa since taking office in 2025.
He has partnered with Smith on advancing a new pipeline to export more Alberta bitumen overseas, a project considered a non-starter during Trudeau’s tenure.
Alberta Prosperity Project leader Mitch Sylvestre told AFP on Oct 19 that Carney had “threatened” the province in the closing days of the campaign.
Carney’s message was “voting against Canada is dangerous”, Sylvestre said, calling that “very unreasonable”.
Haley Erdegard, a 44-year-old who voted in Edmonton, voiced discomfort with the idea advanced by some separatists that Alberta is forced to share too much of its oil revenue with the rest of Canada.
“I think we probably need to put some more work towards cooperation before making rash decisions about trying to start our own country,” she said.
