About 75% Remain, and Premier Danielle Smith Tells Separatists in Her Party to Stand Down
In Monday's referendum, about 75 per cent of voters across the province cast ballots in favour of Alberta remaining a province of Canada, according to preliminary results — a three-to-one decision against holding a formal separation vote. The numbers are preliminary.
Premier Danielle Smith is calling on separatists within her own party to stand down. Members can form their own opinions, she said, but those who keep publicly calling for separation won't be welcome as candidates or as members of local boards ahead of the 2027 election.
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Smith publicly backed the remain option during the referendum, and the opposition NDP still criticizes her for letting the question move ahead in the first place — which makes the closing-the-file moment look more like cleanup than conversion. And the file may not stay closed: some prominent separatists have floated greater participation inside the UCP as the next step after their projected loss this week.
Separatists aren't the only count that matters. The UCP riding association for Highwood passed a motion last month calling for a leadership review, and at least 22 associations must support it for the motion to come forward at the party's AGM in late November.