Incumbent UCP President Rob Smith and candidate Darell Komick clashed over how the UCP should approach the topic of Alberta independence ahead of the UCP board vote at Saturday’s AGM.Smith and Komick appeared on the Chris & Kerry YouTube show for a debate moderated by host Chris Scott. Alberta’s independence was a key topic in the debate, and both sides agreed that Alberta should pursue independence, but they disagreed on how the party should publicly address the issue. Smith believes that the party should not officially take a stance or push the issue out of fear of alienating a faction within the party that disagrees with it.“I'm even giving up to 75% of our members that I think may be pro-independents,” said Smith. “They also recognize that the party taking a position on it is actually trying to make the horse that we're leading to water to drink, and I think that our job as a party is to support all of our members.”Smith and Komick agree that if an independence referendum were held today, the majority of Albertans would vote in favour. The number could even be over 75% among UCP members, but Smith believes that an official party action might deter voters on the fringe and cause division among UCP members. “I'm okay with recognizing that we can find common ground on 60% of the stuff, or seven out of 10 things, and that's enough to move forward,” said Smith. “But as we are now, two years to our provincial election, October 2027, it is of critical importance to me that we ensure that all of our members are feeling that the Conservative Party is working for all of them.”Smith believes that if the province were to hold an independence referendum and the majority favoured it, then the party should adopt an official policy. In the meantime, he supports grassroots education efforts, such as the Alberta Prosperity Project. .Komick believes the party should hold open discussions on Alberta’s independence because a large majority of party members support independence. “You know, party to me ties into this whole idea of representing a large segment of of our association,” said Komick. “And to have the discussion is not a choice. To have the discussion says that we will have the discussion.”“I mean it's the number one topic on everybody's lips.” He also fears that avoiding the discussion could result in the independence debate being overshadowed by other issues in the future. “I once heard a wise man say when people stop talking and stop having discussions, bad things happen, and a bad thing happened to him,” Komick said. “And when that happened, it shifted my worldview to be much less concerned about being unified and more concerned about standing on principle and morals.”Having a public discussion about independence also helps maintain trust in Komick’s opinion. “We can't just short shift difficult topics in a political environment because right now trust is so essential, and I feel that you know my particular perspective on unifying the coalition of conservatives is that we need to make sure that all the voices seem to be heard, not just the 15 or 20%,” Komick said. Other topics discussed during the debate included conservative values, party policy priorities, member engagement, and party authority. The full debate is available on the Chris Scott YouTube channel, and individuals can find more information about Smith and Komick on their websites.
