West of Centre

It’s crunch time to sway conservative voters ahead of Alberta’s referendum. But are federalist leaders doing enough? So far, separatists have reported raising nearly three times as much money as federalists and Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre has pushed the unity file to another Alberta MP. Host Kathleen Petty and former Conservative MP Damien Kurek look at what needs to happen in the final weeks and what’s at stake if federalist get-out-the vote efforts fall flat.

Plus, journalists Alex Boyd and Matthew Scace on why separatists seem to be more organized when it comes to fundraising, online dialogue and big public events — and, how getting out the vote could matter more than any of that. And will a new ad campaign championed by Premier Danielle Smith do anything to sway voters ahead of the referendum?

Host: Kathleen Petty
Guests: Damien Kurek, Alex Boyd and Matthew Scace
Producers: Emily Senger, Emily Williams, Diane Yanko, Josh Pagé

Separatists think they’ll win a vote they’re poised to lose by a wide margin, according to an exclusive new poll. With a little more than five weeks to go before Alberta’s fall referendum, host Kathleen Petty explains how the heck we got here and where we’re headed next.

David Coletto, CEO of Abacus Data, does a deep dive into Alberta public opinion. His numbers say if the referendum was held today, Albertans would vote decisively to remain. Motivations for the other side aren’t clearcut. Do they actually want to leave? How many just want to send Ottawa a message? Danielle Smith says she wants to have this vote and move on, but can we?

University of Calgary political scientist Lisa Young has also been tracking the rise of separatist sentiment and western alienation in Alberta since it flared up following the 2019 re-election of Justin Trudeau. She helps analyze the data, and questions whether polls might be systematically under-estimating separatist support.

Background listening:
Here’s a link to the episode we mentioned: “Is a trade war good for separatists?” — we interview one Alberta separatist leader, Keith Wilson, on why not everyone voting Option 2 is looking for full independence.
https://link.mgln.ai/P987Bo

Host: Kathleen Petty
Guests: David Coletto, Lisa Young
Producers: Emily Senger, Emily Williams, Diane Yanko, Josh Pagé

Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Ontario Premier Doug Ford are using very different tactics in the ongoing Canada-U.S. trade war. As Smith travels to Nashville, we ask whether her kill them with kindness approach is working. And Alberta’s senior representative in Washington, Nathan Cooper, weighs in on the delicate dance of diplomacy in Donald Trump’s America.

To put it all in context, two conservative insiders join host Kathleen Petty. Evan Menzies worked with the United Conservative Party, and before that with Smith during the early days of the Wildrose Party. Cole Hogan helped get both Doug Ford and former Alberta premier Jason Kenney elected. Together, they break down the politics behind the premiers' actions and whether these strategies will make headway toward renewed trade talks or at least less punishing tariffs.

Host: Kathleen Petty
Guests: Nathan Cooper, Evan Menzies, Cole Hogan
Producers: Emily Senger, Emily Williams, Diane Yanko, Josh Pagé

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