CTV News is your Alberta Referendum headquarters. Live results. Expert analysis. Everything you need to know is here. CTV News is projecting Albertans have voted to remain in Canada in the province’s historic referendum on Monday night. Preliminary figures from Elections Alberta shows more than 990,000 of 1.3 million votes cast in favour of the province remaining in Canada, a culmination of a year-long campaign from pro-federalist and separatist groups. Those votes are part of what’s estimated to be a record-breaking turnout as voters lined up to cast their ballots on the questions that will shape how the United Conservative government guides future policies. Questions 1 through 9 of the Alberta referendum focus on a variety of issues, from immigration rules to Senate choices and other concepts the government suggests would improve Alberta’s status in Canada. Question 10, meanwhile, asked voters whether the province should remain a part of Canada or if the province should hold a second, legally binding, referendum on whether Alberta should leave Confederation. None of the questions on Monday’s ballot are legally binding. Results for all 10 questions will continue rolling in throughout the night. The final count of the votes for Question 10 will be announced at 4 a.m. M.T. 2.1 million votes cast: Elections Alberta It was a steady stream of people casting ballots on referendum day on the questions that could lead to a decision on the province’s future within Canada. Though while some polling stations saw lineups on Monday, it was nothing compared to the crowds during advance voting. More than 1.35 million Albertans had already voted before polling stations opened Monday morning. According to preliminary Elections Alberta figures, approximately 838,000 people cast ballots during advance voting, while another 519,000 voted by special ballot. Together, those votes represent 43.1 per cent of eligible voters. An update from the agency after polls closed said more than 2.1 million valid votes were cast in the referendum. During the 2023 provincial general election, approximately 27.5 per cent of eligible voters had cast ballots through advance voting and special ballots. Results for other questions split While Elections Alberta is unofficially reporting a landslide of support for remaining in Canada, results on the first nine questions posed to voters are divided. The five questions on immigration are seeing slightly higher support than the four constitutional questions. Official results on the nine question are expected to come in over the coming days. Politicians sound off Alberta Premier Danielle Smith thanked Albertans for coming out to the polls on social media late Monday, saying she was “very pleased” to see the results showing support to remain in Canada. “Thank you to all Albertans who took time to vote on these critically important referendum questions,” Smith wrote. “Albertans have voted for a stronger Alberta in a united Canada.” Prime Minister Mark Carney, who visited Alberta last week to rally voters to cast their ballots to remain in Canada, said the results allow Albertans and all Canadians to “move forward with a renewed purpose and high ambition.” “Canada is so much greater than the sum of its parts,” Carney wrote on social media. “Now it is our opportunity to take all that we have been given as Canadians — and we have been given the greatest country in the world — and make our country better for all of us.” Earlier in the day, the mayors of Alberta’s two biggest cities joined voters at their polling stations — each of whom said they cast a ballot for the pro-Canada camp. “This is a really big day for Calgary, for Alberta, for our country,” Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas said at his polling station. Edmonton Mayor Andrew Knack, meanwhile, added he voted no to the first nine questions. Edmonton Centre MP and Minister of Emergency Management Eleanor Olszewski says a 50 per cent plus one vote for Alberta to stay in Canada would not be sufficient. “In my view we need a resounding rejection of separatism” Olszewski told CTV News on Monday evening. Jason Stephan, the MLA for Red Deer-South, publicly stated he voted in favour of a second, binding referendum on Alberta separating from Canada. Stephan announced Monday night he wouldn’t seek re-election in the 2027 provincial election. Voters divided over Alberta’s future Among voters interviewed Monday, there was agreement on the importance of participating, even as opinions differed on the referendum itself. “This is a turning point in Canada’s history,” said Calgarian Marge Sawinski. “It’s a major decision to think about a divorce or a reconciliation, but something has to happen.” Also in Calgary, Cara Anderson said she was casting her ballot in support of Alberta remaining in Canada. “It’s very important for me to vote because I am an Albertan, but I’m also Canadian, and I think it should have never gotten this far,” Anderson said. Anderson also questioned why the province was holding a separate referendum rather than putting the questions to voters during a regular provincial election. “They shouldn’t have called an extra election and paid more money for us to get these questions answered,” she said. Questions raised about Smith’s future The separation debate has raised questions for what the future looks like for Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and her governing United Conservative Party. An Abacus Data poll conducted last week has shown adding Question 10 to the ballot has divided UCP voters, with 44 per cent of respondents saying the referendum should not take place. Smith’s party didn’t campaign on holding a separation vote when it won the last provincial election in 2023, but some Albertan’s anger with the state of affairs under former Liberal prime minister Justin Trudeau boiled over. That frustration prompted hundreds of thousands of people to sign petitions both for and against Confederation. In the months leading up to Monday’s historic vote, Smith has said she supports a “sovereign Alberta in a united Canada.” She has also said she will vote for Alberta to remain a part of Canada, and appeared with Prime Minister Mark Carney at federalist events last week. But one of Smith’s chief critics says by “forcing” the referendum, the premier committed one of the biggest political blunders of the year and has become the “least trusted” and “least liked” politician in Alberta. “The UCP is in free-fall,” NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi told reporters at a results party in Calgary. Earlier in the day, Nenshi said his battle will be to “get into the hearts and minds of Albertans” — especially disenfranchised UCP voters — should the federalist side win. Separation debate unlikely to end with referendum While the referendum will provide a measure of public opinion on Alberta’s future within Canada, Mount Royal University political scientist Duane Bratt believes the separation debate will continue regardless of the outcome. “We’ve always had a separation movement, and now they’ve been legitimized by having a referendum; now they’re organized,” Bratt said. “Now they’re networked. Now they’ve got a fundraising channel, and they have said they’re not going to end this. They’re not going to quit.” Bratt said the margin of victory for whichever side prevails could be as significant as the result itself. “There’s a huge difference between a 60-40 ‘remain’ victory and an 80-20 ‘remain’ victory,” he said. “But no, this is not going to bed anytime soon.” The referendum has also created political alliances that cross traditional party lines. Bratt said the issue has brought together Albertans who disagree on other political questions but share a position on the province’s place in Confederation. “In the Quebec referendums, we saw something similar. Because this bridges the left-right divide, right? This is about Alberta’s place in Canada,” Bratt said. He said the issue has also exposed divisions within Alberta’s conservative movement, with some conservatives supporting separation while others remain firmly opposed. Farkas said that whatever the result, Albertans will need to find ways to move forward together. “We move forward together as one city, one province and one country,” he said.
