CTV News is your Alberta Referendum headquarters. Live results. Expert analysis. Everything you need to know is here. As Albertans prepare to vote on whether the province should begin the process toward a future referendum on independence, divisions within the governing United Conservative Party are becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. Premier Danielle Smith has said she will vote to keep Alberta in Canada, while UCP MLA Jason Stephan has publicly confirmed he voted in favour of moving toward a future independence referendum. Meanwhile, Transportation and Economic Corridors Minister Devin Dreeshen declined to say how he would vote when asked Friday by CTV News Calgary, prompting renewed questions about where members of Smith’s cabinet stand on the issue. The contrasting positions have put a spotlight on the party’s approach to a referendum that could have significant implications for Alberta’s future. Melanee Thomas, a political science professor at the University of Calgary, says Albertans have received little of the public debate they would typically expect from elected officials ahead of a major political decision. “Have we seen anything that looks remotely close to any kind of campaign that we would see in a general election?” Thomas said. “The answer is no.” She argues the lack of a clear, public campaign reflects the divisions within the UCP itself. “I think it’s because it would break the party if they actually had a campaign on it,” Thomas said. “Because those divisions would be clear and public, and they’d fight about it.” Different positions within the UCP Smith has said her party’s position remains clear, despite individual MLAs being free to express their own views. Speaking after Stephan publicly disclosed his vote, the premier described the UCP as a “big-tent party,” adding that MLAs can hold different opinions while the party, caucus and government maintain their stated position. Smith has said she will vote for Option 1, which supports Alberta remaining a province of Canada. She is also attending a pro-Canada rally on Friday. But Stephan, the MLA for Red Deer-South, has taken a different position. He confirmed he voted for Option 2, which would direct the Alberta government to begin the constitutional process required to hold a future binding referendum on whether the province should separate from Canada. Stephan has argued that supporting Option 2 does not necessarily mean supporting independence itself. He has previously said he wants Ottawa to address Alberta’s concerns and that his preferred outcome would be a united Canada. In a lengthy statement posted to social media, Stephan argued that Alberta’s relationship with the federal government needs to change. “Alberta is locked in a constitutional straitjacket which guarantees removal of equalization will never happen,” he wrote. He also described Option 2 as a way to pressure Ottawa to address what he views as longstanding problems with the federation. “Option 2 puts Ottawa on notice. That is the right way,” Stephan wrote. Thomas says the debate over the referendum has become deeply tied to partisan politics, with support for Option 2 concentrated among conservative voters. She also argues Smith’s political coalition includes people with differing views on Alberta’s place in Canada, making it difficult for the premier to campaign forcefully for one side without risking further division within her own party. “If we had a party leader during an election campaign refuse to campaign and say, ‘But I’ve made my position really clear on a website. Just go read that. Would we accept that as voters? I don’t think we would,” Thomas said. Thomas added that if Smith were required to campaign openly for Option 1, as a party leader would during a general election, she believes the resulting internal conflict could have serious political consequences. “I don’t feel badly for Premier Smith. I feel like this is this is what it looks like when you court separatists and the chickens come home to roost. Like, there is a line here that you could walk. I feel like at a certain point, it was going to go one way or the other.” Dreeshen declines to say how he will vote The uncertainty over individual positions was on display when CTV News Calgary asked Dreeshen how he planned to vote on Friday. “Are you in favour of staying in Canada or Alberta separation?” reporter Mark Villani asked the minister. Dreeshen dodged the question and responded by encouraging Albertans to participate in the referendum and pointing to the number of people who had already submitted mail-in ballots. “We’ve seen hundreds of thousands of people with mail in ballots, so it’s good to see this amount of enthusiasm and people wanting to vote,” he said. When asked again how he would vote, Dreeshen did not provide an answer. His press secretary, Husam Khalo, then stepped in to end the exchange. “Thanks guys, I appreciate the question, thanks for the question, we have to go,” Khalo said. Villani followed up by asking whether it was fair to assume Dreeshen supported separation if he would not answer the question. Khalo again intervened. “We already discussed this, we’re running out of time.” Dreeshen, who represents Innisfail-Sylvan Lake, previously worked on Donald Trump’s 2016 U.S. presidential campaign and has been photographed wearing a Make America Great Again hat and attending Trump rallies. Thomas said it was reasonable for voters to expect cabinet ministers to clearly state their positions on a question with such significant consequences. She pointed to the contrast between the direct question put to Dreeshen and his response, arguing that elected officials owe Albertans greater clarity. “It’s a very clear question and we can ask cabinet ministers to give a clear answer, but if they’re unprepared to give their stance, it means that they know that they actually might be coming up against an electoral sanction,” said Thomas. “Which is why I think it’s reasonable to feel like they should say it, like show Albertans the respect of saying it, and we should have seen from elected officials the respect to Albertans for the kind of robust campaign that we see when they want our votes in an election, and we haven’t seen that.” Thomas also said the reluctance to campaign openly reflects a concern about internal party factions and the potential consequences of alienating parts of the UCP’s support base. CTV News has repeatedly asked Dreeshen how he will vote in the referendum. He has never provided a clear answer. NDP accuses UCP of fueling division Former Alberta NDP deputy leader Sarah Hoffman, who is now the party’s shadow minister for hospital and surgical facilities, has accused the UCP of allowing separatist sentiment to grow while failing to provide clear leadership on the province’s future in Canada. Hoffman said the referendum risks deepening divisions between Albertans at a time when the province faces other economic and political challenges. “Even asking these questions, even fanning the flames of separatism jeopardizes our economy,” Hoffman said. “It jeopardizes our place within this country, and I don’t think it’s worth it.” She has criticized Smith for supporting a referendum process that Hoffman argues creates unnecessary uncertainty, even as the premier says she wants Alberta to remain in Canada. Hoffman also questioned the cost of the referendum, arguing that public money would be better spent on health care and education. She said Albertans should be clear about their positions and urged voters to support remaining in Canada. “The best way to get more results for Alberta is to be part of Team Canada,” Hoffman said. Hoffman added that the province’s concerns can be addressed through negotiations with Ottawa rather than by pursuing a process that could ultimately lead to separation. What happens after vote? The referendum question is not a direct vote on whether Alberta should become independent. Instead, voters are being asked whether the provincial government should begin the constitutional process required to hold a future binding referendum on separation. A vote for Option 2 would not itself make Alberta independent, but it would set in motion a further process, with another referendum required before Albertans could vote directly on whether to leave Canada. That distinction is central to Stephan’s position. He has argued that Albertans can support remaining in Canada while also wanting the option of a future independence referendum as leverage to secure changes from Ottawa. For Thomas, however, the lack of clear campaigning from political leaders risks leaving voters without a full understanding of the stakes. She expects tensions within the UCP to continue even after the referendum, regardless of the result, as competing factions debate the party’s direction. “I think we should anticipate that it’s going to get a lot worse before it gets better,” Thomas said. She argues the referendum has exposed a difficult balancing act for Smith: maintaining support among voters who want Alberta to remain in Canada while keeping together a party that includes members who favour pursuing independence.
