Separation vote exposes divide in small-town Alberta

Residents in one central Alberta riding are reflecting on the province’s separation referendum result after it became one of only two ridings to vote in favour of moving toward a referendum on leaving Canada

In the provincewide vote, 75 per cent of Albertans chose to remain in Canada, rejecting an option that would have started the process toward a second, binding referendum on separation.

However, voters in Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre narrowly backed a future separation vote, putting the spotlight on communities such as Sundre, where residents remain deeply divided on Alberta’s place within Confederation.

“I don’t think anybody wanted to leave Canada. I think we just wanted to go, ‘Hey, we need a better deal,'” one Sundre resident said.

Another resident echoed concerns about western representation in federal politics.

“I think we need more say being out west. We’re totally underrepresented.”

Not everyone agrees that separation or the threat of it is the right way to push Ottawa for change.

“I don’t think that’s how you do it,” another resident said. “You don’t go about it by threatening to break up your country, especially when Trump’s in office and wants our water and our oil and our food and everything else that we do.”

The referendum campaign sparked heated debate in some communities. In Sundre, the issue even led to the cancellation of a long-standing community parade in July.

While residents expressed differing views on separation, many framed their concerns as frustration with the direction of the country rather than a desire to leave it altogether.

“Am I proud to be Canadian right now? Not so much. I’m not sure. There’s a lot of things that are happening in our country right now that I’m not too proud of,” said one resident when asked if they felt national pride.

Others were more unequivocal.

“I am Canadian. I was born Canadian. My mother was Canadian,” another resident said.

The referendum result has also intensified political tensions within Alberta’s United Conservative Party.

Premier Danielle Smith has repeatedly stated that the UCP is a pro-Canada party and said any members who want to actively campaign for separation should leave the party.

Smith said this week she does not want divisions within the party that could help the Opposition NDP ahead of next fall’s provincial election. She has also pledged not to hold a binding separation referendum while she remains premier.

That position has angered some members of the separatist movement, some of whom are now calling for Smith’s resignation or a leadership review at the UCP’s annual general meeting next month.