Banff-Kananaskis voted strongly to stay in Canada in the Oct. 19 referendum, the Rocky Mountain Outlook reports. The riding also went against the provincial trend on immigration.
Based on unofficial Elections Alberta results at 9 a.m. on Oct. 20, with 47 of 64 polling locations reporting, 20,581 people in the riding voted to stay in Canada. Another 4,793 wanted to move ahead with a future binding referendum on separation. That works out to almost 82 per cent for a united Canada. Province-wide, it was 75 per cent.
On the five immigration and citizenship questions, the "no" vote led in Banff-Kananaskis while the provincial vote was trending "yes". Counting was still continuing.
Banff Mayor Corrie DiManno told the Outlook she was relieved at the decisive result on separation. She said she went to bed with a "heavy heart" over the early immigration numbers, and was glad to wake up to the riding's result. She pointed out that one in three Bow Valley residents is foreign-born, and that they make up a large part of the local workforce.
MLA Sarah Elmeligi said she wasn't surprised, given how many temporary foreign workers and non-permanent residents live and work here. She also questioned spending more than $200 million on the referendum, and said she will take the riding's results to the legislature.
Senator Karen Sorensen, who lives in Banff, said she was grateful Albertans voted definitively for a united Canada.
The constitutional questions were still close and counting continues. For the latest numbers, check Elections Alberta.