The prospect of Alberta leaving Canada is such a hot topic that the other potential “leavers” have been overlooked.
These are folks who would flee the province if independence goes forward in a serious way.
Probably ex-Torontonians who would prefer living in China’s 24th province..
Amid ongoing debate about provincial sovereignty, most Albertans would vote to stay in Canada, according to a new survey from the Angus Reid Institute.
Fewer than three in 10 Albertans, 29 per cent, said they would vote for separation if a referendum were held today. Most of those respondents said they are leaning toward that position rather than firmly committed.
While Quebec parties have long sought independence, the secret meetings by unelected Albertans with US officials have been branded treasonous by some
A separatist push for a referendum on independence from Canada. Meetings with foreign officials perceived to be sympathetic to their cause. Accusations of treason and sedition.
Ahead of a 1995 referendum, leaders of Quebec’s independence movement made a string of provocative overtures to foreign governments, including a trip by the province’s premier to France. In a move that outraged anglophone Canada, the mayor of Paris gave Quebec’s Jacques Parizeau a welcome befitting a national leader.
As if U.S. tariffs and annexation threats weren’t enough, Albertan separatists are reportedly seeking a $500 billion loan from the United States to bankroll their independence movement. Former U.S. Congressional staffer Brandon Weichert, platformed by U.S. far-right provocateur Steve Bannon, has suggested that Alberta could become part of the United States. Make no mistake: this isn’t about what’s good for Albertans. As Weichert wrote, it’s because the United States would not “abide an independent, energy rich Alberta indefinitely at its border.” It’s ironic that, in the name of independence, the Alberta Prosperity Project (APP) seems willing to subordinate Alberta and its people to the whims of the United States.
With petition drives for Alberta separatism gaining steam across the province, it’s perhaps more important than ever that Canadians outside Alberta understand the province’s important role in the federation and policymakers find a compromise on key issues fuelling separatist sentiment.
While an Alberta separatist group confirms it had meetings with U.S. officials over the past year, its leaders won’t say which members of U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration they have spoken with directly.
“We’re meeting at a very high level,” Alberta Prosperity Project legal counsel Jeffrey Rath said in an interview with CTV’s Question Period airing Sunday.
When asked by host Vassy Kapelos whether those officials would be recognizable to Canadians, Rath said “probably,” but would not confirm whether Stephen Miller, Trump’s homeland security adviser, was among them.
Welcome to January 2026, where the Canadian national pastime has shifted from hockey to the casual branding of fellow citizens as traitors. As federal leaders clutch their pearls in Ottawa this week, BC Premier David Eby has helpfully updated our national dictionary: apparently, when Albertans have a coffee with US State Department officials to discuss their economic future, it isn’t “diplomacy” — it’s a high crime against the Crown.
OTTAWA — British Columbia Premier David Eby called reported meetings between Alberta separatists and the U.S. administration “treason” on Thursday, as premiers and Prime Minister Mark Carney met in Ottawa to discuss the Canada-U.S. trade relationship.
“Now I understand the desire to hold a referendum to talk about the issues you want to talk about, in Canada we have free speech and that’s important,” Eby told reporters.
Related: Mark Carney expects Donald Trump to ‘respect Canadian sovereignty’ after Alberta separatists met with U.S. officials
And … Doug Ford urges Danielle Smith to denounce Alberta separation: ‘Either you’re with Canada or you’re not’
Speaking of foreign interference …
UPDATE: One of the Canadian politicians funding anti-ICE protests in the U.S. has been positively identified as Burnaby Board of Education chair Kristin Schnider, after she urged her Instagram followers to send money to Minnesota organizers.https://t.co/KlCX6XPYwC pic.twitter.com/QswycXon8q
— Cosmin Dzsurdzsa (@cosminDZS) January 29, 2026
h/t Mauser
The Days Inn in west Edmonton has a large Canadian flag hung behind the front desk. Throughout the lobby, a visitor can’t escape the signs declaring that the hotel is “proudly Canadian owned and operated,” with red maple leaves to match.
But, on Tuesday night, the conference rooms were filled with separatist supporters. One room was reserved to sign a Stay Free Alberta petition that calls for the province to hold a referendum on independence. In the neighbouring room, lawyer Jeffrey Rath, one of the loudest voices of the “leave” movement, spoke to about 100 supporters.
United States government officials have held talks on three separate occasions with organizers of an Alberta separatist movement, according to reports.
The information, which was published in the Edmonton Journal and the Financial Times, comes at a time of increased tension between Prime Minister Mark Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump, and as the Canadian government tries to reduce its exposure to the U.S. on matters of trade, defence and foreign policy.
More … Trump Officials Held Secret Meetings With Prominent Canadian Group Seeking To Secede
A new bombshell report in Financial Times says that US officials have held recent talks with Canadian separatists seeking to break Alberta, Canada’s oil-rich western province, away from Ottawa.
“Officials in the [US President] Donald Trump administration discussed loaning Alberta $500 million to break up Canada and make it the 51st state,” one source told the FT.
h/t patthedog
EDMONTON — Canada is careening towards multiple constitutional crises at once and virtually no one, least of all the prime minister, is making the argument for this country to stick together.
Mark Carney is far too busy stirring tensions with U.S. President Donald Trump to concern himself with the threat of Alberta separatism, too ambivalent to recognize the threat posed by Indigenous land claims and far too inept to manage rising separatist sentiments in Quebec. When it comes to actually asserting sovereignty over Canada, Carney could hardly be bothered, and that’s before we even consider the threat posed by the Chinese.
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent needled Canada over the prospect of an independence referendum in Alberta this week, as President Donald Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney are locked in a clash over Ottawa’s role in the hemisphere.
“Alberta is a natural partner for the U.S.,” he told conservative podcaster Jack Posobiec in an interview Thursday. “They have great resources. The Albertans are very independent people. Rumor that they may have a referendum on whether they want to stay in Canada or not.”
Scott Bessent discussing ALBERTA 🇨🇦
“Albertans are very independent people. There's a rumor they may have a referendum on whether they want to stay in Canada or not” 👀
Canada *could* be prosperous, but our Liberal policies hold us back. BIG TIME pic.twitter.com/gSvy3vx193
— Melissa 🇨🇦 (@MelissaLMRogers) January 23, 2026
Oh, my GOODNESS! This is some wild news coming out of Canada, and I’m not talking about that loser Carney sucking up to Xi Jinping the Pooh.
A little over a week ago, the first stops on the petition drive for to force a referendum on separating from Canada began.
It was an ordinary Saturday night in my hometown of Calgary. Nothing about the evening announced itself as historic. No banners. No blaring slogans. Just a community hall, a few speakers, and a petition on a table.
I had invited my wife, of decidedly unpolitical temperament, to join me at the Queensland Community Hall to hear speakers on Alberta independence and to add our names to the referendum petition. Full disclosure: I had already signed on as a canvasser. My wife, who had never attended anything remotely like this before, agreed simply to come along and sign.
(Incognito)
CALGARY/DIDSBURY, Canada—The Canadian province of Alberta is known for its oil rigs, cowboys, cattle runs, and strong traditions. Like Texas, these features have shaped Alberta’s unique history and culture.
Here, endless prairies roll toward the rugged Rockies, and a spirit of resilience pulses through both the land and its people, fueling a desire for more autonomy from the federal government.
Some Albertans want to go further by holding a public referendum on making Alberta independent from Canada. A petition question on separation was approved under the province’s new laws earlier this year.
