Commentary
Alberta’s growing independence movement has been focused for months on fulfilling the requirements set out in the province’s Citizens’ Initiative Act to trigger an independence referendum. A May 13 court ruling quashing Elections Alberta’s approval of Stay Free Alberta’s 301,000-signature petition has put Premier Danielle Smith in a difficult position. Smith has maintained a balance by stating that she supports what she calls a “sovereign Alberta within a united Canada” while also respecting the right of independence advocates to pursue a citizens’ initiative referendum. Now she is forced to take a more definitive stance.
Premier Smith called the ruling by Alberta Court of King’s Bench “anti-democratic” and has vowed to appeal the decision. An appeal could take months, though, and the anticipated date for a referendum, if it is to be held, is less than six months away. The campaign period for a referendum would be stunted even if a court of appeal reverses the Justice Shaina Leonard’s decision before the fall. Smith can’t politically afford to have the question of holding a referendum in limbo that long….