The motivations that have contributed to the separatist movement and Alberta’s sense of grievance in recent years are not especially discrete; it’s more like a nebulous Venn diagram. Simple politics have pushed some people toward separatism. Indeed, the paucity of separatist talk during the time when Stephen Harper was prime minister suggests there’s a significant political component to the idea; when Liberals are in power, people feel more inclined to talk about leaving. Culture also plays a role. When Angus Reid pollsters talked to separatists in February 2026, 86.5 percent said they thought Canada forced Alberta to take in too many immigrants, and 96 percent believed that an independent Alberta would better protect personal freedoms.
But … separatists tend to find the economic arguments particularly seductive. Angus Reid polling shows 96 percent of respondents who want an independent Alberta believe they would be free from economically damaging federal government policies. Separatist leaders promise the elimination of the personal income tax while creating a new provincial sales tax of 5 percent. They also claim Alberta would save $75 billion from no longer paying federal taxes.
Not all separatists promise immediate prosperity, but the argument remains persuasive. Cameron Davies is the leader of the Republican Party of Alberta. “I don’t paint an immediate rosy, utopian picture of what independence looks like,” he says. “Will it be difficult? Yes. Will it be immediate sunshine and rainbows? Probably not. But will it be worth it? Five, ten, fifteen years down the road for your kids and your grandkids? One hundred percent yes.”
I could care less if a bunch of rednecks want to leave Canada, the problem is it immediately becomes part of the US. They are not saying that part loudly enough.
I can imagine a mass exodus too. I live here. I’d rather be homeless and jobless made destitute with a mortgage on a made worthless house than American.
As an American, I’d be jealous of your homelessness especially when you don’t get imprisoned for said homelessness.
Oops sorry gotta go back to working for pennies at the child labor factory!
Maybe not jailed but left outside to die in winter instead.
In 2021, the Canadian Taxpayers Federation pegged Albertans’ contribution to equalization as $650 per capita.
Lol. Lmao even.
Let’s risk a very unclear future, sold to us by utopian libertarians over $650 per person.
I’m Albertan. I’m also quite Liberal, so kind of rare in these parts.
Anyway, I just can’t wrap my head around the logic of the separatist have. Cut off ALL federal programs. Make your own programs, which is more than likely going to be blindingly more expensive due inefficiencies in starting from scratch. Cut all income tax (are you stupid?). Institute PST, something that is political sepukku in Alberta. Oh. And don’t forget to base your economy on a marginal product, with no access to foreign markets, whose commodity prices are controlled by a cartel.
Get the fuck out, and come back to me with some valid logic
Do you know how much Alberta oil money winds up in Quebec social programs and subsidized university tuitions?
This comment is so fucking ignorant. No one talks about “EqUaLiZaTiOn pAYmEnTs” outside of Alberta. Why does Alberta have a deficit? Alberta has a deficit cause all the oil profits go to private companies and Alberta doesn’t have refineries.
It’s Canadian oil money going to Canadian citizens.
When the Alberta economy collapses because the idiots refuse to diversify, you’ll be begging for those equalization payments from the other provinces.
Yes. Equalization payments from Alberta to Quebec, while Quebec gets special considerations not offered to Alberta. There’s a reason the separatist movement is sitting at a shocking 20%. Is your answer to simply label the 20% as ‘idiots’? That doesn’t sound productive to me.
Albertan here, yea, they are idiots. Fuck em.
“Honestly, I hate this country right now. If I could leave, I would.”
Darling, If I could throw you out, I would.
Call me a conspiracy theorist, but it really feels like the separation thing is mostly a guise so that the US can step in and “save” the struggling and destitute Alberta.
USA funded Brexit, USA funded the fucker kkklownvoy, USA is funding Alberta “separatism”.
You mean that they can simply annex it without first ng a shot.
This is basically just a civil type of invasion of the province
More likely some ill advised Canadian Oil exec that thinks that they will be better off in the US.
Albertan separatists tend to forget that nobodies want their oil, it’s too costly to transform. The only reason they have a place at the table is that the Federal government massively finance it.
At Trump first term their were talks about passing TransMountain down to the US, they refuse because even TM didn’t respect the American safety standards which is fucking low.
Thinking that thing will change in the US or as Independent nation is fucking laughable, at best Trump or the US will use Alberta to spearhead an invasion of the North for their critical mineral
If Alberta becomes the 51st state, all the Newfies will head home leaving a large labour shortage in the oil fields. Being an American state, Alberta will have to follow American immigration practices. It would be a real shock for people in Alberta. Lots of Americans would flood in and take Albertians’ jobs, just by the shear volume of people in the States, they have almost 350million people.
When one of the people being interviewed leads the Republican Party of Alberta, it’s hard to believe they’re anything but American shills. But there will be Albertans who think it was purely a coincidence that led to such a catchy name.
Back in the day Civilization had a scenario where the US was supporting Quebec in a war of independence.
Alberta sounds a lot more likely.
I’m sure it has nothing to do with their oil.
The thing that really gets me is, Alberta doesn’t like how hard it is to build a pipeline that would run into other provinces, and how in the world is being a separate country supposed to help with that? Do they think building across an international border will be easier than building across an interprovincial one?
Alberta separatists are illogical and unwise - never underestimate the depths to which they have not thought about a particular issue. Unfortunately, this is equally true of the current provincial government as well.
Can we use “separatists” instead of “albertans”?
The loudmouth morons are a very small percentage of Albertans. A lot smaller than Quebec’s loudmouth morons.
Quebec separatism would still end poorly for everyone, but at least they have access to the ocean.
I doubt they do much thinking
Nah the separatists think that dealing with the US would be easier. By “dealing”, they mean annexation. Sigh…
The obvious answer is the pipeline would go through the states.
…and for Canada
That’s why the shitheads are funding it
Carney needs to start a loud public investigation into foreign money. Expose these jerks.
It’s obviously the USA. Why would Carney upset his overlords?
skidmark isn’t going to do a fucking thing other than fill his pockets.
… Cameron Davies is the leader of the Republican Party of Alberta
Jfc. :/
So is like Alberta the Mississippi of Canada?
It’s more like the Texas of Canada.
Given the UCP just voted to rig the electoral map…more than ever.
Could merge well with Greater Idaho
I wonder if they included the cost of armed forces, border and customs agencies, foreign embassies, aviation and environmental regulatory agencies, national pension systems, and federal service staffing in their calculations? Or are they assuming the two behemoths landlocking them would just… let them be…? Both Canada and the US could decimate Alberta economically and I can see the current US administrarion doing it purposefully with the intention of annexing them.
Sometimes I wonder if separatists really just want Alberta to be a part of the US since we all know that’s how this would play out in the end.
That’s the plan, that’s why they meet with US officials.
For any article to put zero weight on how Liberal governments have treated Alberta is just disingenuous. Of course that has had an effect on the separatist movement.
Waaaah more fake Albertan butthurt. It’s your own fucking fault your province didn’t build refineries. No one else’s.
Yes the record heights of oil production under Trudeau Jr were the federal gov’t treating AB badly.
Also the $35B pipeline the feds paid to construct, fuck them, am I rite.
