Lorne Gunter: Premier Smith is facing pressure from Alberta separatists. It's of her own making

Advertisement 1 This advertisement has not loaded yet, but your article continues below. Breadcrumb Trail Links HomePoliticsOpinionColumnists Lorne Gunter: Premier Smith is facing pressure from Alberta separatists. It's of her own making In an effort to please her party’s and caucus’s irritable minority, Smith’s government made it much easier for discontented groups to force citizen-initiative referendums Author of the article: By Lorne Gunter Published Sep 21, 2026 3 minute read Join the conversation Alberta Premier Danielle Smith speaks during Alberta Day celebrations at Heritage Park in Calgary on Sunday, Aug. 30, 2026. PHOTO BY DARREN MAKOWICHUK /Postmedia Article content In equestrian circles it’s called “roman riding.” The rider stands with one foot on the back of each of two horses that are running side-by-side. Article content Since becoming leader of the United Conservatives in October 2022, Premier Danielle Smith has been roman riding. She has one foot on the backs of her mainstream conservative supporters and the other on the backs of the people who toppled former leader (and premier) Jason Kenney — the separatist, anti-vax, Take Back Alberta crowd (who largely elected Smith). Article content Article content Article content Except the horses Smith is riding seldom run in parallel. She often has to do the splits as one horse or the other veers off in a radically different direction. Article content Headline News Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns. Sign Up By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. Article content Taking from Kenney’s demise a what-not-to-do lesson, Smith has approached her party-unity task more deliberately. Article content Kenney shunned placating the local riding associations, particularly their concerns during the pandemic. Perhaps it was a no-win situation. The urban associations were mostly in favour of pandemic restrictions and mandatory vaccines before Albertans could visit restaurants, theatres, stores and public spaces. Article content Article content Meanwhile, many rural associations were skeptical. Why should Albertans in sparsely populated areas, who had reservations about government mandates, put up with compulsory vaccines and pub closures, as examples. Article content Kenney was tripped up by refusing to reach out to discontented rural supporters who eventually got together and dumped him…