Banff, Canmore Mayors Reject Alberta Separation

The mayors of Banff and Canmore are publicly rejecting Alberta separation ahead of the province’s Oct. 19 referendum, with Banff’s mayor urging local residents to vote for Alberta to remain in Canada and Canmore’s mayor saying he will personally vote to remain.

Both mayors said they would normally hesitate to publicly weigh in on a provincial vote, but described the referendum as an exceptional circumstance.

Banff Mayor Corrie DiManno shared her position in a statement posted to Instagram this week.

“Normally, I would hesitate to speak publicly about a provincial referendum. How you vote is ultimately your choice. But this issue is too important for silence,” DiManno wrote.

“On Oct. 19, I will be voting for Alberta to remain in Canada and I urge Banffites to do the same. If a message is being sent to Ottawa, then let it be this: we are inseparable from Canada.”

DiManno also described Banff as “integral to our country’s identity, culture, and economy,” adding that the town “holds a special place in the hearts of Canadians.”

In the same statement, she referenced Treaty 7 territory, noting the treaty predates both Banff National Park and the province of Alberta.

“We all share a responsibility to respect the spirit and obligations of the treaties that created Canada,” she wrote.

Canmore Mayor Sean Krausert provided Bow Valley Insider with an emailed statement outlining his own position on the referendum.

“As an extremely proud Canadian and 4th generation Albertan, on October 19th I will be voting in the provincial referendum for Alberta to remain a province of Canada,” Krausert wrote.

“Under normal circumstances, I would hesitate to speak publicly as a Mayor on a provincial vote. However, these are anything but normal circumstances.”

“I am Albertan. I am Canadian. We’re better together.”

The comments come after Premier Danielle Smith confirmed Alberta will hold a referendum related to separation later this year.

Voters will be asked to choose between two options:

Recent polling suggests a majority of Albertans currently oppose beginning that separation process.

A survey released May 25 by the Angus Reid Institute found 60% of respondents said they would vote “No” on the referendum question, while 35% said they would vote “Yes.”

When respondents were instead asked a simpler “stay or leave” version of the question, support for remaining in Canada increased to 67%, while 30% said they would support leaving.

The polling organization also reported that 51% of respondents found the official referendum wording confusing, while 56% said Smith had handled the issue poorly.

According to the polling, Edmonton respondents were the most supportive of remaining in Canada, while rural Alberta respondents were evenly split.

The referendum is scheduled for Oct. 19.