By Tristan Oram, 24 May 2026
Flag of Canada (photo credit: TheDigitalArtist via pixabay)
Premier Danielle Smith announced Thursday night that Albertans will vote this fall on whether Alberta should remain part of Canada, introducing a new referendum question designed to sidestep a court ruling that temporarily halted the province’s separatist petition process.
In a televised address on Thursday May 21, Smith said the proposed referendum question would ask Albertans whether Alberta should remain a province of Canada or whether the provincial government should begin the constitutional process required to hold a binding referendum on separation.
A separatist petition is currently held up in the courts after a Justice Shaina Leonard ruled on Wednesday, May 13 that the Stay Free Alberta petition should not have been approved by Elections Alberta, as the province had a duty to consult First Nations peoples.
Smith announced shortly afterwards her government would be appealing Leonard’s ruling. She said during her televised address the new question is designed as a way to hold a referendum on the issue while they wait for their legal appeal to be heard.
Read the full article here: The Albertan