Athabasca Barrhead Westlock NDP CA

06/04/2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 4, 2026

ALBERTA NDP CALLS ON ALL UCP MLAS TO MAKE SEPARATISM POSITION CLEAR

EDMONTON – Alberta’s New Democrats are calling on 36 UCP MLAs to make their position on the separatism referendum question clear to their constituents and to all Albertans. In January, every Alberta NDP MLA individually and publicly denounced separatism, sharing how they will fight to remain in Canada.

Even after Smith put a question on separatism on the October 19 referendum ballot, the vast majority of Premier Danielle Smith’s UCP caucus has yet to individually declare their stance. Only 10 MLAs besides Smith have said how they will vote.

“Mindlessly repeating the nonsense phrase that they support a ‘sovereign Alberta in a united Canada’ doesn’t cut it anymore,” said Rakhi Pancholi, Deputy Leader of Alberta’s NDP. “Every single UCP MLA needs to say publicly and unequivocally which option they will be voting for on October 19.”

The 36 UCP MLAs who have not said how they will vote in the separatism referendum are:

Deputy Premier Mike Ellis
Minister Grant Hunter
Minister Justin Wright
Minister Mickey Amery
Minister Andrew Boitchenko
Minister Tara Sawyer
Minister Todd Loewen
Minister Martin Long
Minister Joseph Schow
Minister Tanya Fir
Minister RJ Sigurdson
Minister Searle Turton
Minister Rick Wilson
Minister Devin Dreeshen
Associate Minister Muhammad Yaseen
MLA Scott Cyr
MLA Jason Stephan
MLA Eric Bouchard
MLA Shane Getson
MLA Angela Pitt
MLA Glenn van Dijken
MLA Peter Singh
MLA Ric McIver
MLA Matt Jones
MLA Jackie Lovely
MLA Chantelle de Jonge
MLA Nate Horner
MLA Tany Yao
MLA Jackie Armstrong‑Homeniuk
MLA Nolan Dyck
MLA Ron Wiebe
MLA Jennifer Johnson
MLA Brandon Lunty
MLA Scott Sinclair
MLA Chelsae Petrovic
MLA Garth Rowswell

“Fighting for Canada and denouncing separatism is easy for me and every member of the Alberta NDP caucus,” added Pancholi. “It’s because of Danielle Smith and the UCP that Albertans have to answer this question. So it’s time for UCP MLAs to get a spine and answer it themselves.”

06/03/2026

For immediate release
June 1, 2026

UCP MOVES FORWARD WITH HEALTH CARE PRIVITIZATION PLAN

Sarah Hoffman, Shadow Minister for Hospitals and Surgical Services, issued the following statement:

“Today’s announcement leads to more American-style privatization of our health-care system. Activity-based funding pushes hospitals towards quicker, less complex procedures at the expense of comprehensive care, proper follow-up and better health outcomes.

“Instead of fixing the health-care system they broke, this government has been pandering to separatists. That focus has taken attention away from the real issues Albertans face every day. Now, this is their backup plan – pushing further privatization instead of strengthening our public system.

“If this government truly wanted to fix health care, it would invest in public surgical capacity, address bottlenecks across the system, and work with patients, providers, and communities on real solutions.

“Albertans deserve a strong public health-care system that’s focused on patient outcomes, not privatization.”

06/01/2026

05/29/2026

Just a little note:

We’re not just on Facebook… we’re on Instagram, Threads and BlueSky too.

Get social with us and never worry about missing all the tea in our constituency and across the province.

Keep connected, we may have some fun things around the corner.

🙂

05/28/2026

For our constituents in Barrhead County, please be safe.

A wildfire has been detected in your area. Please do not hesitate to reach out for help. We are here for you and we will keep you guys informed.

Stay safe and follow instructions from local emergency personnel.

05/26/2026

Alberta separation? 🐶
That’s some real off-leash behaviour.

The rest of us are just trying to sit, stay, and remain part of Canada. 🍁🐾

No need to growl at the whole pack because one pup didn’t get the ball they wanted.

05/22/2026

It doesn’t have to be this way.

Alberta’s New Democrats are proudly Pro-Canadian, and we do not want to separate from Canada.

05/21/2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 21, 2026

Naheed Nenshi issued the following statement:

“Two cabinet ministers ‘resigned’ yesterday, a week after they broke with the premier and opposed the government’s plans to force Albertans into a separatist referendum. Now, Premier Smith is finalizing the membership of her new separatist cabinet.

This cabinet shuffle does nothing for Albertans.

It’s still the largest cabinet in Alberta history. It still has four health ministers overseeing the destruction of public health care. It still has an energy minister allowing for coal mining in the Eastern Slopes. The Indigenous relations minister that recently had every First Nations Chief vote non-confidence in this government is the same. And it still has a municipal affairs minister that is hiring library inspectors.

This government doesn’t care about the needs of Albertans. It’s doing nothing about the cost-of-living crisis. It’s not creating jobs for the future. And it's destroying public services.

No cabinet shuffle can fix that.”

05/19/2026

After court defeats and growing concerns from economists, Indigenous leaders, and businesses, separatists are still pushing for a risky referendum. Albertans deserve stability, investment, and unity — not uncertainty and division. 🚫➗

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🔖:

05/13/2026

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 13, 2026

JUDICIAL CONCERNS DISREGARDED AS UCP WASTES $450,000 ON ELECTORAL BOUNDARIES RE-DO

Kathleen Ganley and Christina Gray, members of the Select Special Committee on Electoral Boundaries, issued the following statement:

“Yesterday, at the second Select Special Committee on Electoral Boundaries meeting, Alberta’s New Democrats tried once again to increase transparency, reduce partisanship, and limit the damage caused by this illegitimate electoral maps re-do process. We were systematically blocked by the UCP.

In normal times, the courts are involved in identifying and recommending candidates for the Chair of the Electoral Boundaries Commission. However, in a May 6 letter sent to the committee, Alberta’s Acting Chief Justice advised that the Court would not play any role in the selection of a Chair for the Advisory Panel because of the irregularity of the UCP’s electoral boundary process.

The UCP blocked the public release of the Acting Chief Justice’s letter. The UCP also refused to address the concerns raised in that letter and rectify the process by committing to nominate a Chair for the Independent Advisory Panel recommended by the Acting Chief Justice.

The UCP committee members then moved to waste $450,000 in taxpayer money to keep this illegitimate process going – after blocking Alberta’s New Democrats from shutting it down over the Acting Chief Justice’s concerns.

These actions are a direct attack on fair, independent elections in Alberta. The UCP is trying to cheat and rig the next election by controlling the process and blocking transparency. Albertans deserve to know what’s going on – the UCP is doing everything they can to keep them in the dark.”