Alberta votes to stay in Canada, about three in four reject path to separation
Alberta has voted decisively to remain in Canada in its first referendum on separation, with about 76% backing the status quo, according to a CTV News projection. Separatist leaders vowed to keep fighting.
Archive image · Photo: Chris Woodrich / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped and resized)
Voters in the Canadian province of Alberta decisively rejected a path toward separation in their first-ever referendum on the issue. A CTV News projection showed 76.4% voting to remain in Canada and 23.6% backing a second, binding referendum on leaving. The nonbinding vote was held Monday; Elections Alberta said it expected to complete the count on the question by 4 a.m. local time. More than one million votes had been counted overnight.
Prime Minister Mark Carney said Albertans had made a "clear choice" for unity, Al Jazeera reported. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, who called the referendum, said she voted to stay in Canada. She had said a federalist win would settle the secession question and that there would be no further referendum during her government's mandate.
Jeffrey Rath, a leading figure in the separatist Alberta Prosperity Project, said the push for independence would "absolutely" continue. The vote came amid a trade war with the United States; U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent had called Alberta a "natural partner" for the U.S. Results of nine other ballot questions on immigration and the constitution are due Wednesday.