Central Peace-Notley voters narrowly back pursuing Alberta separation

While Alberta voters rejected a move toward separation from Canada, the results were much closer in some rural parts of the province, including Central Peace-Notley in the province’s northwest.

The riding, which includes Fairview, Spirit River and Valleyview, had 51.1 per cent of voters support pursuing separation as of midday Tuesday, with 88 per cent of polling locations reporting. The result put Central Peace-Notley among the handful of Alberta ridings where support for separation edged past the halfway mark, despite the provincewide outcome.

One of the other rural ridings where support for pursuing a separation referendum exceeded 50 per cent was Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre, which also narrowly favoured the option at 50.4 per cent, with about 93 per cent of polls reporting.

For Valleyview businessman Ron Perron, the result reflects years of frustration with the federal government and what he sees as the consequences of Ottawa’s decisions for Alberta businesses. Perron, whose company works largely in oilfield rentals and trucking, welcomed the local result even as the broader separation movement fell short of its goal.

“Happy to see this Notley riding cross the 50 per cent line. It is exciting, too bad the rest of the province didn’t do the same. Alberta is tired of being beat up by the federal system that isn’t working for this province,” said Perron on Tuesday afternoon.

Perron, also an elected official in Valleyview, whose business is largely involved in oilfield rentals and trucking, said federal political decisions have had direct consequences for his operation. He said the effects of the pandemic and political decisions took a toll on the company, with cuts necessary to avoid bankruptcy. Recovery has taken years, and he said the business is only now getting back into full swing.

“Young people back now — take a number of years to get back on board,” he said, describing the process of turning inexperienced workers into trained, capable employees. Perron pointed to Prime Minister Mark Carney and Premier Danielle Smith speaking about an alliance and making promises to improve relations.

“Any proof will be in the pudding. Is Prime Minister Carney going to allow Western provinces to work and pipelines and building jobs and al low free enterprise between provinces? If not, back to looking for autonomy, and a better deal.”

Perron sees the Central Peace-Notley result as evidence a significant part of the region still wants a different relationship with Canada. Despite area voters’ frustration with Ottawa, Perron said he believes Canada remains a great country and wants governments to find a way to work together. He pointed to comments from Ontario Premier Doug Ford about the need for provinces to remain united, saying cooperation would be preferable to continued conflict.

“If we can get along, great. Something is wrong when businesses in Alberta find it easier to deal with the United States or foreign countries than with neighboring provinces. Hopefully this has been enough of an awakening,” Perron said, adding he hopes the referendum has drawn attention across Canada and internationally.

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