Oil-rich Alberta to hold a vote on whether to separate from Canada
A view of the Syncrude refinery at its Mildred Lake facility, which has a capacity of bitumen conversion to synthetic crude oil of 350,000 barrels
A view of the Syncrude refinery at its Mildred Lake facility, which has a capacity of bitumen conversion to synthetic crude oil of 350,000 barrels per day, in the Wood Buffalo municipality of Alberta, Canada, on May 5, 2026. Alberta Premier Danielle Smith has announced plans for the oil-rich province to hold a non-binding vote in the fall on whether its residents wish to remain a part of Canada — or move ahead with a second binding vote on separation.
The move marks the first time in Canadian history that a province other than Quebec has put the question of separation to the public and comes after months of campaigning from a group of separatists. Speaking during a televised address on Thursday evening, Alberta's Smith said she supports the province remaining in Canada and would vote as such in a provincial referendum. "However, despite my personal support for remaining in Canada, I'm deeply troubled by an erroneous court decision that interferes with the democratic rights of hundreds of thousands of Albertans," Smith said.
An Alberta judge had previously thrown out a petition seeking for the province to separate from Canada. Backers of the citizen-led group Stay Free Alberta said that they'd collected more than 301,000 signatures in support of their campaign, which is partly driven by the view that the province has long been overlooked by decision-makers in Ottawa. Opinion polls indicate that separatism in Alberta lacks broad appeal, however.
A separate petition calling for the province to stay in Canada says it has gathered more than 404,000 signatures.
The BriefWire