(LifeSiteNews) — Alberta Premier Danielle Smith says she will respect the outcome of a fall referendum asking Albertans if they want to hold a future vote on whether the province should leave Canada.
Smith reiterated that she will be an active participant in the campaign for the stay in Canada side of the referendum, which will be held on October 19, 2026, but will respect the outcome regardless.
In speaking to reporters recently, after announcing the separation question, Smith said she and her United Conservative Party (UCP) caucus will advocate for staying in Canada.
“I have been clear with Albertans from the start that I support remaining in Canada, and that has and will continue to be the position of my government and my caucus,” she told the media
“I believe Albertans should remain in Canada, and I would ask that all Albertans join me in voting to remain a province of Canada.”
As reported by LifeSiteNews, Smith recently announced that despite her “personal support for remaining in Canada,” she will let Albertans decide if there should be a vote on Alberta leaving Canada.
The question to be put to Albertans reads, “Should Alberta remain a province of Canada or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?”
Smith told reporters that should the “Leave” side win the referendum question, she would start “the legal process to advance it to a binding referendum,” but admitted this could take years.
She admitted that the separatists have legitimate frustration with how the federal government has treated Alberta for decades.
“Just because you acknowledge frustration, it doesn’t mean it goes away if you ignore it,” she said about those with separatist ideals.
“I look at 400,000 people who signed a [petition] saying that they wanted to vote to remain in Canada. And I look at 300,000 people who signed a petition saying the opposite. That’s 700,000 Albertans,” said Smith.
She added the number of people who signed the petitions was 25 percent of all voting-age Albertans in the province.
“Clearly, they want to have this debate,” she noted.
Her announcement of adding the question of separation to a fall referendum comes days after a judge blocked the approval of a group’s petition to have Alberta separate from Canada and become its own nation. The group now says it will appeal the decision. Smith had blasted the ruling as “incorrect in law and anti-democratic.”
As reported by LifeSiteNews, Stay Free Alberta said a few weeks ago that it had garnered enough signatures to trigger a referendum on the issue, as allowed by provincial law.
Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, as well as all of the federal Conservative Party and the local Alberta NDP party, will support the stay in Canada side.
Recent polls show about 29 percent support for a free and independent Alberta. However, the true number could be higher, as the majority of UCP members support independence.
Former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s 10-year reign in Canada only increased calls from many Albertans to separate from Canada.
The calls for Alberta’s independence have grown since Liberal Prime Minister Mark Carney defeated Conservative rival Pierre Poilievre in the 2025 federal election. In Alberta, almost all of the seats, except two, went to the Conservatives.