The official page says this is not itself a vote to separate, just the beginning of a legal process that might lead to a later binding referendum. That is technically true, in the same way lighting the fuse is not technically the explosion.
But the important decision has already been made. By putting separation on an official provincial ballot, the government has turned Alberta's future in Canada into an open political question. That creates uncertainty for Albertans, investors, employers, governments, and everyone else whose future depends on Alberta remaining a stable part of Canada.
This is not happening because most Albertans are demanding independence.
Recent polling puts support for starting the separation process at less than one in four Albertans. Support for actually leaving Canada is even lower. The overwhelming majority want Alberta to remain in Canada.
So why are we voting on this?
Because Danielle Smith faces separatist pressure inside her political party and her own caucus, and she has decided to make it everyone else's problem too.
