Alberta Premier Danielle Smith told the province on Tuesday night, Oct. 20, that the previous day’s referendum vote gave her government a mandate to keep Alberta in Canada. In a pre-recorded address that CBC News says aired Tuesday night and that Global News says ran during airtime paid for by the Alberta government, Smith said, per the text posted on alberta.ca: “And the resulting vote from Albertans has given our government a clear mandate. Alberta will remain a province of Canada. Albertans will continue to be Canadians.”

She then repeated a pledge that CBC News says she had made to it earlier this month: “And I want to make it clear tonight that for as long as I am Premier, I will honour this mandate from Albertans and will not be holding another referendum on this issue,” per the transcript. CBC News notes that the original citizen-initiative petition that called for a vote on separation remains stalled before the courts, pending an appeal, and its live page quotes CBC reporter Alex Boyd writing earlier this month that if an appeal succeeds, that petition “could again move forward, potentially reviving the referendum conversation, legal experts say, whether Smith wishes it to be or not” (CBC live page).

The count on the separation question stayed unofficial on Tuesday. CBC News says about three-quarters of voters wanted to remain in Canada, according to preliminary results. Global News says Albertans rejected leaving by roughly 75%, with 1.9 million ballots counted for that question as of late Tuesday afternoon, and that nearly half a million ballots went to continuing toward leaving; it says the leave side narrowly led in some ridings, naming Central Peace-Notley and Rimbey-Rocky Mountain House-Sundre.

Smith said Alberta would keep pushing Ottawa, but inside Canada’s institutions. “We will use every legal and political tool at our disposal to protect and advance the interests of Albertans. And when Ottawa interferes with those rights, we will be unrelenting in our response,” she said, per the transcript. “But those disputes will be settled within the political and legal institutions of our nation rather than pursuing the option of separation.” She also said she remains “convinced that the federal government is no longer targeting and trying to phase out and eliminate Alberta’s largest economic sectors as they attempted to do under the previous Prime Minister.”

On the nine other questions, Smith spoke ahead of final results. “Although results are still coming in, it appears that Albertans have directed the provincial government to take greater control over immigration so we can moderate the extraordinary population growth our province has experienced and prioritize jobs and opportunities for Albertans and Canadians,” she said, per the transcript, adding that voters also backed having temporary residents pay a portion of the cost of public services and requiring proof of Canadian citizenship to vote. She said her government still waited on Elections Alberta for the questions on judges, abolishing the Senate and provincial rights: “We will know the answer to those questions in a couple of days.” A CBC News video caption says final results on all 10 questions should come by Oct. 21.

Global News says that, as of Tuesday afternoon, the yes side led on all five immigration questions with roughly 54% to 58%, except question five on proof of citizenship, which led with about two-thirds; it says question eight, on opting out of federal programs without losing federal funding, trailed 51% no to 49% yes. CBC News says Smith has said she would seek majority rule, a 50% plus one threshold, on those questions, and that as of 6:45 p.m. MT the only question below that line concerned opting out of federal transfers. CBC adds that abolishing the Senate would need the support of all 10 provinces, the House of Commons and the Senate itself.

Smith also spoke directly to those who voted to leave. “I recognize you as loyal Albertans,” she said, per the transcript and the CBC live page. “So tonight I want to invite every Albertan who may still feel hopeless or frustrated with the past direction of our country, to believe and hope in Canada again.” She credited the new Alberta-Ottawa energy agreement and the Pacific Link oil pipeline, which she said “has been fast tracked as a Project of National Interest by the federal government” and stays on track for permits by September 2027; Global News says the project received that designation on Oct. 1, with construction targeted to begin next September.

Smith opened the speech with the CFB Wainwright incident, naming four soldiers who died, Private Aidan Goulding, Private Shaun Farrell, Private Hayden Lykkemark and Sergeant Morgan Wong, and saying she had updated Prime Minister Mark Carney on 27 soldiers who continue to receive care in Alberta hospitals, per the transcript. Global News says the speech ran pre-recorded, so Smith took no questions, and that she has an 11:30 a.m. media availability scheduled in Calgary on Wednesday.

Others reacted to the result and the speech. CBC News quotes Alberta Prosperity Project co-founder Jeffrey Rath: “There needs to be a serious discussion within the party as to whether or not we want to continue to be led by a federalist.” Global News says Rath told it he will push for a special general meeting of the United Conservative Party to remove Smith. Kathy Flett of Alberta Women for Independence told CBC that the pledge would not silence the debate: “It might go on the backburner for a little bit. I’m not sure. We’ll see,” she said. “But it’s not done.” Monte Solberg of the Vote to Stay campaign called the remarks “refreshing,” per CBC. NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi, speaking before the address, said the vote came at a “tremendous financial and mental cost,” per CBC. Carney said constitutional change would take a difficult, lengthy process but that disputes over areas such as immigration could get resolved without it, per CBC News and Global News.