Now it’s time for Canada to choose Alberta; separatists vow to continue fight; and more

A sign indicating a voting location for the Alberta referendum in Calgary on Monday, Oct. 19, 2026. Photo by Jim Wells/Postmedia

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It’s Tuesday, October 20. Here are the top stories we’re following today.

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Carson Jerema: Albertans choose Canada. Perhaps Canada could choose us back

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Given that the separatists could not grow their support, their efforts “would be best focused on helping Alberta to assert itself within Canada,” Jerema writes. “As for the rest of the country, please note that Albertans have clearly and forcefully chosen Canada. After more than a decade of direct attacks from Ottawa, and after more than a century of being forced to demand the same treatment as other provinces, it would be nice if other Canadians also chose us.”

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Alberta Prosperity Project CEO Mitch Sylvestre, right, speaks with a supporter during a referendum watch party in downtown Edmonton. When it started looking like his side would lose on the separatism question, he said he was “not happy.” Photo by Megan Albu/AFP via Getty Images

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Alberta separatists vow to fight on after referendum loss

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“They can underestimate us. They can throw every obstacle imaginable in our way, and believe me, they have, but they cannot stop what has already started. Tonight isn’t the finish line,” said Alberta Prosperity Project co-founder Mitch Sylvestre. Meanwhile, separatist leader Jeffrey Rath re-emphasized the need to take control of the United Conservative Party from Premier Danielle Smith, whom he said conspired with “fake news” and the “entire Canadian political establishment” to campaign against independence.

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Alberta separatist supporters react as referendum results are projected at The Parlour in downtown Edmonton on Oct. 19, 2026. Photo by Megan Albu/AFP via Getty Images

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Colby Cosh: Failure was inevitable for Alberta separatists

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By Tuesday morning, Alberta separatists were claiming their 24 per cent of the referendum vote as a victory. However, Cosh argues that the most logical interpretation of the outcome is that “an overwhelming majority of Albertans do not want any further entertainment of secession by their government. They don’t want a vote, and they don’t want a top-level intergovernmental negotiation.” He then asks, “How would the ‘Referendum’ side go about doing better in a binding referendum that only a quarter of us want at all?”

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From left: Alberta Premier Danielle Smith, Prime Minister Mark Carney and Fort McKay First Nation Chief Raymond Powder speak following the federal government’s announcement to list the Pacific Link pipeline as a project of national interest, in Fort McMurray, Alta., on Oct. 1, 2026. Photo by Itoro Umanah/Postmedia

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Mark Carney’s West Coast pipeline project could run into legal pitfalls

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The federal government has promised to have construction started in less than a year on the new Pacific Link pipeline from Alberta to the West Coast. But lawyers and legal academics are warning the project could face legal challenges in court, particularly where the fast-tracked regulatory process might clash with potential Indigenous rights.

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The number of Canadian homeowners who fell seriously behind on payments has doubled from its 2022 low, Benchmark Canada says. Photo by Adobe Stock

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Canadians quickly falling behind on their mortgages: Benchmark Canada

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Benchmark Canada is a new project from the Macdonald-Laurier Institute that brings together more than 40 different metrics that measure this country’s performance. National Post will be examining many of those findings. Today, a look at why the sharp rise in mortgage delinquencies is a warning sign for Canada’s housing market.

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