![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/indicator-big.gif\")
<\/p>\nAlong with the Stampede staple \u201cYahoo!\u201d were scattered boos for Smith.<\/p>\n
\t<\/p>\n
One man along the route shouted: \u201cDanielle suuuuucks!\u201d Another responded, \u201cSo do you, sir.\u201d<\/p>\n
Smith has promised to support Confederation as the province barrels toward an Oct. 19 referendum on whether it\u2019s time to kick-start the process for a binding vote on quitting Canada, which she announced in May.<\/p>\n
\u201cCa-na-da! Ca-na-da!\u201d some chanted as Smith rode past.<\/p>\n
In the province\u2019s separation debate, Smith has been viewed both as an arsonist and a firefighter, standing up for a united country while simultaneously validating a movement to dismember it.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s been a divisive issue, leading to a threats, abuse and the cancellation of a parade in the town Sundre earlier this summer over a float of Alberta flags viewed as a separatist stalking horse.<\/p>\n
Smith has said separation is a real issue in Alberta, arguing that with hundreds of thousands signing petitions about it, the province needs to put the issue to bed with a vote.<\/p>\n
Parade watcher Darrell Siemens, who cheered for Smith in the parade, agreed.<\/p>\n
\u201cI like that she\u2019s just standing up for what she feels,\u201d said Siemens.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe citizens of Alberta deserve to hear from both sides of the whole debate about separation or not separation and allow both sides to have a voice.\u201d<\/p>\n
Nicky Currie was among those who booed the premier.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think she is an absolute disgrace for Albertans, I think she\u2019s doing an absolutely terrible job of governing in Alberta. I think she\u2019s obviously a separatist,\u201d Currie said.<\/p>\n
Smith has enjoyed strong poll support in her term, though those numbers have slipped a bit during the separation debate.<\/p>\n
On Thursday, she announced alongside Prime Minister Mark Carney what she calls a major nation-unifying project \u2013 a proposed new bitumen pipeline to the west coast.<\/p>\n
When asked about her thoughts on the proposed new pipeline, parade attendee Andrea Byrns replied, \u201cDrill, baby, drill.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI was born and raised Calgarian, and I think (Smith) really gets to the root of what the heart of Albertans really want,\u201d Byrns added.<\/p>\n
\u201cI grew up in more of a conservative oil and gas household, and I just think she has very realistic views that I align with very well.\u201d<\/p>\n
The parade fires the starter\u2019s pistol on 10 days of rodeo, midway rides, concerts and parties. The Stampede is also a major summer meet-and-greet for politicians and stakeholders at barbecues and pancake breakfasts.<\/p>\n
Calgary Mayor Jeromy Farkas said a lot of deals get done during Stampede and, when it comes to politicians, they tend to leave their agendas at the door.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is probably the world\u2019s premier politician petting zoo,\u201d Farkas said.<\/p>\n
National pride was embodied in Friday\u2019s parade marshals: Olympic medallists Mikael Kingsbury, a Quebec-born moguls skier, and Courtney Sarault, a short-track speedskater from Moncton, N.B.<\/p>\n
Both received training before saddling up to lead the 90-minute parade, learning that while the rider is in the saddle, the horse sets the pace.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe maybe had 30 minutes, 45 minutes with the horse,\u201d said Sarault.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were good. By the end I was trying to go faster, but (the horse) was like, \u2018Nope. You\u2019re only walking,\u2019\u201d she said with a laugh.<\/p>\n
This report by The Canadian Press was first published July 3, 2026.<\/p>\n
Dayne Patterson and Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Along with the Stampede staple \u201cYahoo!\u201d were scattered boos for Smith. One man along the route shouted: \u201cDanielle…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":779692,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194293],"tags":[879,49,2798,48,2467,2461,2468,2460,2462,2463,44,2464,2465,2466,82],"class_list":["post-779691","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-calgary","tag-breaking-news","tag-ca","tag-calgary","tag-canada","tag-central-vancouver-island","tag-nanaimo","tag-nanaimo-breaking-news","tag-nanaimo-news","tag-nanaimo-news-now","tag-nanaimonewsnow","tag-news","tag-oceanside","tag-parksville","tag-qualicum","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/779691","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=779691"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/779691\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/779692"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=779691"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=779691"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=779691"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}