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As we wait to hear from the premier today, and Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi, there are still details we don’t know.

Those outstanding questions include the format of the ballot – whether it will be a yes or no question, or laid out like a multiple choice selection.

We don’t know what kind of support Smith and her cabinet would need to get for holding a binding referendum on separation to consider calling that referendum, or the timing of when Alberta might hold such a referendum.

Smith said she believed the route she’s chosen would ensure the October question doesn’t run afoul of Leonard’s ruling. Do some lawyers see it differently? Might Indigenous groups or communities try to challenge the referendum question in court, anyway?

Alberta’s Referendum Act allows for both constitutional and non-constitutional questions. Only the results of constitutional questions are considered binding on the government that called the question. Does Smith consider the result of this vote to be binding?

We’ll also be watching to see how the phrasing of the question affects support for Smith among members of her United Conservative Party. Many of the groups advocating for an independence vote want a binding constitutional vote on independence. And polling has suggested that more than half of Albertans who describe themselves as UCP voters say they’d vote for separation.

Hello, I’m Janet French, a provincial affairs reporter who covers Alberta politics from Edmonton.

To recap what we know so far, the question Alberta Premier Danielle Smith announced in a recorded video address Thursday night that Albertans will vote in October on whether to hold a binding referendum on separating from Canada.

The question Alberta’s premier announced in her video address will be added to nine other referendum questions on immigration policy and constitutional matters that Smith had already slated for provincial votes on Oct. 19.

Smith’s decision follows a court ruling last week in which Justice Shaina Leonard declared a pro-Alberta independence citizen initiative petition to be invalid. Leonard’s ruling said the Alberta government failed in its duty to consult First Nations before the chief electoral officer issued the pro-separation petition.

The premier’s announcement also came on the same day an all-party legislative committee – albeit, a divided one – opted to recommend the federalist Forever Canadian citizen petition be put to Albertans in a referendum.

It looks like we know who one person will be leading the charge for Alberta to stay in Canada.

Monte Solberg served as an MP for 15 years, first elected as part of the Reform Party surge in 1993, and later serving as a cabinet minister in Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s government. 

He has launched Vote to Stay, an organization that will advocate against separation in the months to come.  Former Alberta premier Jason Kenney is also part of the group, as is former Alberta finance minister Travis Toews and Calgary-based journalist Jen Gerson.

“Alberta’s greatest moments have always come from building a bigger future, not from turning our backs on the wider world,” Solberg said in a news release.

I’m Jennifer Keiller, reporting from Calgary. There’s been some pushback among some separatists after Premier Smith’s announcement last night. Jeffrey Rath, the lawyer representing the separatism push, posted on X that “Smith just lost her base” and “it’s time for Danielle Smith to go.”

Anderson said the United Conservative Party is “a big tent” that includes many in favour of separation. But Anderson said separatists are not in control of the party.

He also said he, like Smith, would support Alberta remaining within Canada. 

PM says Alberta plays 'essential' role in building Canada after Smith announces referendum question

Prime Minister Mark Carney, speaking in Ottawa after Premier Danielle Smith announced voters in Alberta will be asked to cast a ballot on whether the province should hold a binding referendum on separation, says Canada is working in a 'spirit of co-operative federalism' — and that Alberta is central to that and the effort to build a better country.

I'm Cat Tunney, reporting from Ottawa where Prime Minister Mark Carney tread lightly into the debate this morning.

The looming vote puts enormous pressure on Carney to keep the country together while not further inflaming regional rancor.

While on a construction site tour of the Library of Parliament Friday morning, the prime minister leaned on the backdrop to push a metaphor.

"We're renovating the country as we go and Alberta being at the centre of that is essential," he said, advocating for national unity. 

"Canada is working in a spirit of co-operative federalism to make the country better."

Carney pointed to the energy deal he and Smith signed just last week as proof of Alberta's value in the federation. 

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi are speaking in Calgary today, talking about the referendum question Smith announced Thursday evening.

In an address to the province, the premier announced Albertans will vote in a referendum about whether or not to have a separation referendum.

Specifically, she said voters will be asked: “Should Alberta remain a province of Canada or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?”

Nenshi has a scheduled news conference at 11 a.m. MT, while Smith has a scheduled event at 12:30 p.m. MT.

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