Here are some other comments about Referendum Lite.
Paul Wells thinks its basically a nothingburger. I’m not so sure, but here’s his argument:

…The referendum question she proposed adding to the previous nine is a kind of exquisite annoyance. Here it is:

“Should Alberta remain a province of Canada or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?”

…Let’s look at how well Smith’s proposed question satisfies the interests of various Albertans.
Federalists: Probably dissatisfied. If you want Alberta to remain a province, you know this goal is best addressed by letting Alberta remain a province. No referendum is needed, certainly not from a premier who didn’t run on holding a referendum.
Separatists: Probably dissatisfied. If you want Alberta to separate from Canada, you’d like to get started. We will see whether the purported leaders of this movement seek revenge on Smith for thwarting them, and whether they have the cards, but I’m pretty sure they feel thwarted.
People who want to help Danielle Smith last longer as UCP leader than Jason Kenney: Probably OK with all this.
I’m just not sure the third group is as large as the first two. In fact I’m quite sure I ranked them correctly here, [federalists]>[separatists]>[fans of preserving Smith’s political hide.]
I can’t work up too much anger over all this. Even if it somehow led to a Yes vote to secession on some distant day… look, at some point, a country that could manage to step on that many rakes is one whose descent into bickering would be hard to mourn. But it’s a bit pathetic, isn’t it? This behaviour of Danielle Smith’s, I mean. All this stalling and hedging. A leader could have said, “I want no part of this pointless adventure. You want to take Alberta out of Canada and deliver it to the United States, you’re going to have to go through me.” A leader of a very different kind could have said, “To hell with this country, we’re out, let’s go.” The person who says, “Please just let me hang on for a few more months” is… not leading.

Regardless of Smith’s motivations, her actions are damaging Alberta. Her contempt for reconciliation is profound:

We also spoke with Treaty Six Grand Chief Joey Pete tonight. He says while the premier says this approach to a referendum may not violate Justice Leonard’s ruling, the Alberta government is still showing a “total disregard to First Nations.”
#Ableg

— Janet French (@jantafrench.bsky.social) May 21, 2026 at 8:33 PM

“Albertans are now seeing Danielle Smith’s government for what it is: undemocratic, authoritarian, and willing to bend to the whims of a loud, angry minority.”

Sturgeon Lake Cree Nation would also like a word.

#abpoli #ableg #cdnpoli

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— The Breakdown AB (@thebreakdownab.bsky.social) May 21, 2026 at 7:59 PM

“Now, all Albertans know what we have always known: you can’t trust Danielle Smith. She’s a traitor and a separatist.”

Mikisew Cree First Nation responds.

#abpoli #ableg #cdnpoli

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— The Breakdown AB (@thebreakdownab.bsky.social) May 21, 2026 at 7:55 PM

MAGA and the Trump administration will be delighted

On her What Now!?! An Alberta Politics Newsletter, Lisa Young asks

…So who wants this sad orphan referendum? Possibly Donald Trump, who can use it to poke at Canada on days when he loses interest in Greenland, Cuba, and Iran. Some bot farmers in Moscow, perhaps.
But Premier Smith has backed herself into a corner, so she will go on TV tonight to tell Albertans that 700,000 of them have signed petitions calling for a referendum (glossing over the fact that you wouldn’t want to put a random subset of that 700K in a room together, because it could get ugly).
And so it is that we are going to spend the next five months going through the motions of an orphan referendum, because it’s consequential enough that it can’t be ignored, but not truly consequential.

In Fly Straight, John Ivison writes

…Most polls show support for Alberta independence at between 27 and 30 percent. But when pressed, only about half of those people are committed secessionists – the other half are upset because they feel the province has been mistreated within Canada. Those people can be won back.
A sustained, patriotic Unity Rally, such as the one that attracted tens of thousands to Montreal in the days before the 1995 independence referendum in Quebec, would be the perfect antidote to the toxic cycle of negativity and half-truths that is already emanating from useful idiots like Jeffrey Rath, and his inciters in Russian military intelligence. Canadians from out of province should flock to this year’s Calgary Stampede and hug an Albertan.
I’m convinced, the Remain side will be lifted by its love of country, which is quite different from the narrow nationalism of the Leavers, who rely on hatred of shadowy enemies to motivate their voters.
But Canada is not Alberta’s enemy, no matter how much some Russian intelligence officer and his network of paid influencers try to make it so. Long may it live strong and free, within Canada.

A referendum on Canadian unity is divisive enough. Holding a referendum to have another referendum will divide us and will kill our economy. It is now more important than ever that all supporters of #ForeverCanadian sign up at Forever-Canadian.ca so we can stop this insanity.

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— Hon. Thomas A. Lukaszuk (@lukaszukab.bsky.social) May 21, 2026 at 8:30 PM

Edmonton mayor Andrew Knack has issued a statement on the referendum referendum (no, that’s not a typo), calling it “reckless” by the provincial government. Excerpt:

“Premier Smith and the UCP Government’s separatist agenda is catastrophic for Edmontonians, Albertans, and all Canadians… ” #AbLeg

— Janet French (@jantafrench.bsky.social) May 21, 2026 at 8:16 PM

Farwell to Stephen Colbert