Just as Canada tries to exit one crisis, another one looms.
But now the western province of Alberta is laying the groundwork to hold a referendum asking voters whether they support seceding from Canada.
Many Albertans have long felt disgruntled with their place in Canada’s federal system, which they see as unfairly limiting the province’s vast oil-and-gas resources while dutifully collecting taxes.
Its most recent referendum, in 1995, narrowly failed to win a majority in favor of breaking away from Canada.)
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Another crisis threatens Canada as it attempts to escape the previous one.
In the face of President Trump’s tariffs and threats to national sovereignty, the nation is stabilizing following a drawn-out political transition to a new leader.
However, the western province of Alberta is currently preparing to hold a referendum in which voters will be asked if they favor breaking away from Canada.
Although there is little chance that such a divorce will ever occur—among other things, Canada’s Constitution would need to be changed—the drive to put the issue on the ballot suggests that long-standing grievances are rising to the surface. In fact, some Albertans would rather become U.S. S. state. . ).
The federal system in Canada has long caused dissatisfaction among many Albertans, who believe that it unfairly restricts the province’s abundant oil and gas resources while obligingly collecting taxes.
There is a tiny but devoted minority of separatists in the province, which is frequently referred to as “Canada’s Texas” due to its politics and oil. Mr. Trump’s calls to annex Canada and the reelection of a liberal federal government, which many in traditionally conservative Alberta see as antagonistic to their concerns, have contributed to the amplification of their voice.
(In recent months, a long-running secessionist movement in Quebec, a French-speaking province, has waned. The country’s most recent referendum, held in 1995, narrowly lost the vote to secede from Canada. ).
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