Political Alienation: Does Alberta's Voice Matter in Ottawa?

The Issue

The West Wants In was a rallying cry decades ago. The feeling that Alberta is structurally marginalized fuels separatist sentiment.

By the Numbers

Alberta has 37 of 338 House seats (10.9%) with 11.7% of the population. All Western provinces combined have 24 Senate seats - the same as Ontario alone.

The Decided Before We Vote Problem

Federal elections are often called before Alberta polls close. This is psychologically demoralizing even if mathematically the same seats are at stake.

Pro-Independence View

Alberta will never have the population to match Central Canada's influence. 37 seats versus Ontario's 121 means Alberta can be ignored indefinitely.

Federalist View

Alberta has roughly proportional representation. Expecting more than 11% influence with 11% of the population is expecting privilege, not equality.