Prime Minister Mark Carney received loud cheers and applause at a pro-Confederation rally in Edmonton Friday night as he urged Albertans to vote for their province to stay in Canada.
“The stakes are high,” he told a large crowd during his speech at Edmonton’s Expo Centre. “This referendum comes at the worst possible time. The world is becoming more dangerous and divided.”
“There are some outside our borders who are working to break us.”
Friday’s speech came ahead of Monday’s provincial referendum, in which Alberta’s place in Canada is one of 10 questions on the ballot. The other nine questions ask Albertans to vote on issues relating to immigration, services for newcomers to Alberta and constitutional matters.
In his speech, Carney told Edmontonians he believes voter turnout will play a massive role in the outcome of the referendum and pleaded with rally attendees to encourage their friends and family to show up on voting day.
“Vote like Canada’s future depends on it, because it does,” he said.
Carney spoke about his government’s desire to work with Alberta to build major infrastructure projects, such as the Pacific Link oil pipeline. He said voting in favour of a binding referendum on Alberta independence simply to “send a message” is a “dangerous bluff that will lead to years of deep uncertainty and lost opportunities for Albertans and Canadians.”
Before Carney took to the stage, Edmonton Mayor Andrew Knack, pro-Confederation campaigner Thomas Lukaszuk and Edmonton Oilers hockey legend Kevin Lowe spoke to the crowd.
A crowd gathers at Edmonton’s Expo Centre on Friday where Prime Minister Mark Carney urged Albertans to vote to stay in Canada in a provincial referendum. (Emma Zhao/CBC News)
Lukaszuk, a former deputy premier of Alberta who leads the Forever Canadian campaign, said he believes separation is not the answer to the province’s challenges and said future generations will judge Albertans for how they voted in the referendum.
“Send a strong signal to the world that Canada is united, independent and will never become a 51st [U.S.] state,” he said. “The world right now is looking to Canada for leadership.”
Carney emphasized how proud he is to have grown up in Edmonton and Alberta.
“I grew up here,” he said. “This city, this province, this country, have given me everything — my family, my education and my values.”
Carney and Smith make joint pitch for unity
Earlier in the day, Carney appeared with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith at a pro-unity event at a brewery in Red Deer.
Smith said she and the prime minister are on the same page when it comes to staying in Confederation.
“We often disagree quite publicly on several things,” she said. “But today we can all agree that on Question 10, we are voting for Option 1 to remain in Canada.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith are seen at a national unity rally in Red Deer, Alta., on Friday. (Lina Elsaadi/CBC News)
Albertans are set to get to polls on Monday for a 10-question referendum. On Question 10, Albertans will choose either Option 1, to remain in Canada, or Option 2, to begin the process to hold a second, binding referendum on separation.
Smith joined Carney in Red Deer as he passed through central Alberta on his way from Thursday’s Forever Canadian rally in Calgary to Friday’s rally in Edmonton.
“This is now a time, a moment in Canadian history, where we are going to be able to work side by side,” Smith said. “I feel for the first time in a long time, Alberta and Canada are walking together.“
Carney said Alberta’s trust in the federal government has been tested, but the interests of the province and Ottawa are now aligned.
“As a country, we are co-operating again,” he said. “Canada is working again. We are coming together. “
At a campaign stop with Prime Minister Mark Carney, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith said she and Carney can agree on voting to remain in Canada in the upcoming referendum, but ‘there is still more to come’ and she is going to vote yes to the nine other questions on the ballot. ‘I have bad news for you, prime minister – all of the premiers are interested in talking about immigration reform,’ Smith said.
Both leaders urged Albertans to vote and listed examples of what their recent co-operation has achieved, including the announcement of the Pacific Link pipeline and agreements on water, housing and defence.
There are more shared wins to come, Smith said, noting the Supreme Court of Canada agreed Thursday to hear an appeal of the federal ban on single-use plastics.
Smith and Carney split on other referendum questions
While Carney and Smith agree on a united Canada, Smith wants Albertans to vote “yes” on nine referendum questions that would give the province more control over immigration and a mandate to pursue constitutional changes to wrest power from Ottawa.
Prime Minister Mark Carney attends a national unity rally in Red Deer alongside Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on Friday. (John Ulan/The Canadian Press)
Carney, meanwhile, has urged Albertans to say “no to the nine.”
Smith said Friday she will work to change his mind.
Near the end of his brief comments, Carney held up a pair of red, knitted mittens, calling them a symbol.
They were made in Red Deer with a pattern by an Ontario designer and yarn from New Brunswick. He cited the mittens as an example of the “threads that link us as a country.”
“What we’re facing on Monday is, in part, a reflection of that.”
Both leaders called out notable politicians in the crowd, including former Alberta premier Ed Stelmach and former MP Monte Solberg, who served in Stephen Harper’s cabinet. Matt Jeneroux, the MP for Edmonton Riverbend, was also there.
A number of current and former municipal leaders also attended the event, like Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas, former Edmonton mayor Amarjeet Sohi, Sylvan Lake Mayor Megan Hanson, Airdrie Mayor Heather Spearman and Red Deer Mayor Cindy Jefferies.
Red Deer residents weigh in
“I don’t think Red Deer’s seen this kind of attention for some time,” Jefferies said.
She added that when she attended a Liberal caucus retreat a month ago, she told federal politicians that she had noticed them paying more attention to Alberta recently and that she doesn’t want that to stop when the referendum is over.
Prime Minister Mark Carney is seen at a national unity rally at a brewery in Red Deer, Alta., on Friday. (Lina Elsaadi/CBC News)
Jefferies had co-signed a statement with Edmonton Centre MP Eleanor Olszewski last month calling for Albertans to vote for Option 1 on Question 10.
“I hesitated to take a position on it,” she told CBC News. “But listening to businesses in the community, many of them were having concerns around recruiting and retention of staff because of the uncertainty created in our province with respect to this referendum and the discussion that’s going on.”
“I want stability,” she said.
While the brewery was filled with people who support Alberta staying in Canada, some people could be seen across the road waving an “Alberta strong” flag, and one person told CBC News they support the idea of an independent Alberta.
Red Deer resident Kelsie Petersen said she came because she “never had a chance to see a prime minister before.” She said she will vote for Option 2 on Question 10 because, even though she would rather not separate, she wants to get “a better deal for Alberta.”
Pro-remain supporters gather outside of Red Hart Brewing in Red Deer, Alta., on Friday. Prime Minister Mark Carney and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith spoke inside the brewery, making a pitch for unity before the Alberta referendum on Monday. (Lina Elsaadi/CBC)
Smith was later expected to head to Calgary to speak at the Canada Strong and Free Network conference. Earlier Friday, Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre made his pitch for unity at the same conference.
