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(Image Credit: Curtis Galbraith.)
By Curtis Galbraith
Alberta Separation

NDP leader talks about opposition to separatism during stop in Grande Prairie

Jun 3, 2026 | 5:54 PM

The leader of Alberta’s Official Opposition talked to about 100 people about an NDP effort to counter separatism Wednesday night in Grande Prairie. 

It is called For Alberta, For Canada. 

Naheed Nenshi says people have been asking how they can help, and he asked those in attendance to join in. 

“This referendum will be won and lost around people’s dinner tables and in lunch rooms in people’s workplaces, and so, we need folks to really talk to one another, but the other thing is, we need people to vote.” 

“Especially in an area like this, where sometimes, federally and provincially, it may feel like your vote doesn’t matter, that the result is already in. In this case, it’s one person, one vote.”  

“It’s one of those rare times in Canadian politics where the vote of somebody in Sexsmith counts exactly the same as somebody in downtown Calgary.”  

Nenshi says he wants to see a high voter turnout in the referendum on Oct. 19 and that he does not want the result taken for granted. 

He calls it a “privilege, duty and honour” to save Canada. 

“A lot of proud Canadians are really upset right now that they’re forced to do this. All of us have other things we would rather be doing this summer and fall (like) looking after our families, enjoying the long, long, long summer nights here, and now we have to go and knock on doors and try and save the country.” 

“Although we didn’t ask for this battle, proud Canadians are ready for this battle, and we’re going to win.” 

The party says that anyone is welcome to join, and they do not have to be NDP members. 

Some people in the crowd asked about health care and AISH. Nenshi says AISH is a concern for people across Alberta. 

“People are really concerned about the changes to funding for people with disabilities that are taking people who are living in poverty into deeper and deeper poverty.” 

“The premier calls AISH benefits and seniors’ benefits overly-generous. They’re not overly generous. Putting someone into poverty is not overly generous.” 

Nenshi worries that going from AISH to ADAP will “make life very difficult for a lot of people.” 

Others in the crowd challenged Nenshi to talk more about NDP policies. 

Nenshi says the party’s energy policy has already been released, with others on healthcare, the economy and affordability coming out over the next couple of weeks.  

“There are a number of things that we’ve already proposed that the UCP has turned down, including acting on the minimum wage, allowing servers to keep their tips and not have them taken by their bosses, to really common sense things we can do to control grocery prices, which is encouraging more grocery competition (and) removing incentives that manufacturers have to shrink the size of their products.”  

Nenshi says the NDP will have more to say on the cost of utilities and auto insurance in the fall.

by Curtis Galbraith