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With the countdown on to the Alberta referendum, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre was the latest Friday to make a last-minute case for Confederation, telling Albertans to “lock arms” with others across the country: “Don’t leave your fellow Canadians behind.”
It’s easy to focus on a country’s flaws, but we must not ignore what Canada has done for Alberta, he added.
Being part of Canada “means that we have more room to travel, more room to breathe, more room to trade, more room to grow than we would have if we were isolated and alone.”
Poilievre was speaking to a crowd in Calgary, the morning after Prime Minister Mark Carney headlined a rally in support of Alberta staying in Canada, as campaigns on both sides kicked into overdrive.
On Monday, Albertans will go to the polls to vote on 10 questions. The key one is on whether or not the prairie province should go forward with a binding referendum on leaving Canada.
The resurgence of separatism in Alberta has presented a particular challenge for the Calgary-born Poilievre. Polling suggests that separatist sentiment is more common among conservative voters, which has put party leadership under scrutiny.
WATCH | Turning Alberta referendum polling data into art:
Turning Alberta referendum polling data into art
Polling data helps us understand where Albertans stand on the issue of separation. But it can also help us understand the people and perspectives that help shape their opinions. One polling company went elbows deep into the data to figure out what all those numbers would like if they added up to a real person.
Former premier Jason Kenney has also referred to Battle River-Crowfoot, the sprawling rural riding Poilievre represents, as “ground zero” for the movement.
But Poilievre has spoken in favour of a united Canada, while being sympathetic with those angry at the current government. In July, he named Alberta MP Dane Lloyd as the party’s referendum lead. In his speech, Poilievre said that the group had knocked on thousands of doors.
Lloyd is listed as the primary contact for a third party advertiser established in early September. The group, which is allowed to advertise on the referendum question, has raised $37,000 so far, a fraction of what some other groups have.
On Friday, Lloyd announced a new ad urging Albertans to vote to stay in Canada, saying in a release that his group, Conservatives for Canada, remains “laser focused” on getting Albertans out to vote.
In his speech, Poilievre also spoke directly to those who planned to vote to go forward with a referendum, not to ultimately separate but to send a message to Ottawa.
“I know what you’re thinking — that the vote on Monday is a chance to sound the alarm, to put out a distress signal,” he said.
“Your frustration is understandable, but your problem, our problem, is not with our fellow Canadians.”
For a politician who once campaigned on the idea that Canada is “broken,” Friday’s speech was a shift in tone.
“We need to be more Canadian than we’ve ever been, freer than ever, stronger than ever, prouder than ever, richer and more affordable than ever,” he said.
“Quitting is the easy way out, and Albertans are not quitters. We don’t take our ball and go home.”
Carney tours the province
Later on Friday, Carney visited Red Deer with Premier Danielle Smith and is set to speak at an evening rally in Edmonton with the federalist group Forever Canadian.
Carney spoke Thursday at one of the group’s rallies in Calgary, telling the crowd of roughly 5,000 that a vote against Canada is a dangerous bluff that could lead to years of lost opportunities.
WATCH | Ottawa and Alberta engaged in ‘tough collaboration,’ says Carney:
Ottawa and Alberta engaged in ‘tough collaboration,’ says Carney
At a campaign stop in Red Deer, Alberta with Premier Danielle Smith, Prime Minister Mark Carney said when the federal and provincial governments are ‘open and honest with each other’ about challenges, they can ‘find solutions.’ The two leaders urged Albertans to vote ‘no’ to a referendum on separation.
Polls have suggested a strong majority of Albertans will vote to stay, but leaders stress that voter apathy could open the door to a winning vote for separation.
Albertans have been voting by mail and, for more than a week, at advance polls in numbers that suggest the final count could set a record.
Smith called the referendum earlier this year.
She said bubbling discontent with past federal policies reached a boiling point with hundreds of thousands signing petitions for and against staying in Confederation.
She said a referendum is needed to resolve the issue once and for all and that she has voted for Canada to stay.
Critics, however, say Smith isn’t resolving a broad-based grievance. They say she has instead inflamed and validated latent fringe separatist sentiment, rolling the dice on the future of the country to appease hardliners in her United Conservative Party.