Alberta Referendum Results: About 76% Vote to Stay in Canada

What happened

Albertans have voted decisively to stay in Canada. In the Alberta referendum held Monday, Oct. 19, about 76% of voters chose to remain and about 23% chose to start the legal process toward a binding separation vote, with more than 1 million ballots counted, the Associated Press reports. CTV News projected an emphatic win for the remain side overnight.

Results came later than planned. Polls were set to close at 8 p.m. MT, but more than 100 polling stations opened late and had to stay open longer, which pushed the first numbers back by more than three hours, according to AP and Global News.

The separation question was the last of 10 on the ballot. Counts for the other nine, on immigration and the province’s powers, were still underway Tuesday morning.

The result by the numbers

The outcome landed close to what surveys pointed to all year. Here’s the early count at a glance.

Put another way, for every Albertan who chose the separation path, roughly three chose to stay. Global News reports that the mail-in total was about 10 times as many as in the 2023 provincial election, and that Elections Alberta hired more than 48,000 people to count around the clock.

Who says what

• Premier Danielle Smith, who said she voted to remain, wrote that Albertans “have voted for a stronger Alberta in a united Canada,” Global News reports. She had promised a simple majority of 50% plus one would decide the question, and that there would be no follow-up separation vote while she leads the province.
• Prime Minister Mark Carney said Albertans “chose unity,” and that the country could now move ahead with “renewed purpose.”
• Thomas Lukaszuk, a former deputy premier who led the Forever Canadian campaign, celebrated at an Edmonton watch party. He also told Global News the vote cost $130 million and argued the government could have settled the matter in the legislature.
• Jeffrey Rath, a separatist leader, said “Our movement isn’t going anywhere.” Separatists told AP they had turned a fringe cause into a lasting movement.
• Naheed Nenshi, leader of the opposition Alberta NDP, posted: “We saved Canada. Now, we save Alberta.”

Why it matters

The vote was never a direct independence question. A win for the second option would only have started a path toward another, binding referendum, followed by constitutional talks under the federal Clarity Act. A clear “remain” result closes that path for now.

It also matters beyond Alberta. The province holds the world’s fourth-largest proven oil reserves, and the vote came during President Trump’s trade war and talk of annexation, AP notes.

What happens next

• Tuesday evening, Oct. 20: Smith is scheduled to address Albertans, according to Global News.
• By Wednesday, Oct. 21: Results on the other nine questions are expected. Smith has asked for “yes” votes on them to strengthen her position in talks with Ottawa. CTV describes early returns on those questions as split.
• Inside the governing party: Rath is pushing for a special general meeting of Smith’s United Conservative Party to test her leadership, Global News reports.

Quick answers

Did Alberta vote to separate from Canada?

No. Early results show about 76% voted to remain in Canada and about 23% voted to start a process that could have led to a separation referendum.

What was the voter turnout in the Alberta referendum?

A final turnout figure hasn’t been released. More than 1.35 million people, about 43% of eligible voters, voted before election day by advance poll or special ballot.

Will there be another Alberta separation referendum?

Not while Smith is premier, she has said. Separatist leaders say they’ll keep organizing.