Elections Alberta working to verify overwhelming support for anti-separatist petition

Anti-separation activists were looking for support from almost 300,000 Albertans and they more than got it. The petition is now being reviewed.

A citizen-led petition that opposes the idea of Alberta separating from Canada is now being reviewed by Elections Alberta and, if verified, will be handed over to the province in 2026.

Former deputy premier Thomas Lukaszuk and a team of about 6,500 volunteers have been collecting signatures throughout the province for the past three months.

The petition asks, “Do you agree that Alberta should remain within Canada?”

They needed 294,000 signatures but completed the petition with more than 456,000.

“We knew that the vast majority of Albertans want to remain Canadian; hence, we are not asking for a referendum,” said Lukaszuk, who started the petition to oppose calls for an Alberta independence referendum.

“We’re asking the premier to do the right thing and ask Alberta MLAs to vote on this issue and put separatist talks to bed once and for all.”

Signatures on the petition need to be verified by Elections Alberta over the next 60 days.

This is the first citizen-led petition it has received, but it has trained for scenarios like this and will have staff working seven days a week, checking all signatures and contacting some of the people who signed by phone and email.

“We have 40 individuals on each shift, so we’ve hired just over 100 Albertans to help with this process,” said Jennifer Maskoske, Elections Alberta director of operations.

Premier Danielle Smith’s government has urged Alberta to stay in Confederation but also made it easier for groups to hold a referendum by reducing the number of required signatures.

The Alberta Prosperity Project wants to leave Confederation and is asking, “Do you agree that the province of Alberta shall become a sovereign country and cease to be a province in Canada?”

“We want to have a referendum on independence. I mean, we want Alberta out of Canada. Canada is a rotting corpse of a country that we are chained to. … We need to get away from Canada before it kills us,” said Jeffrey Rath with the Alberta Prosperity Project.

Elections Alberta has asked the courts to review whether the question conflicts with the Constitution.

If approved, separation proponents would need to collect 177,000 signatures in four months.

Lukaszuk chose to start his petition before the signature threshold was lowered and still surpassed it.

“This is also a resounding message to the rest of the world. Alberta is a place where you can safely invest. Alberta is a place where you can move to. Alberta is a place where you can raise your family because we’re not going anywhere outside of Canada,” he said.

A Calgary volunteer with the campaign said people lined up to sign because they support Alberta staying in Canada.

“No country (and) no confederation is perfect, but packing our bags and leaving isn’t the way to solve the problems, and I honestly believe that for years it’s been a vocal few (talking about separation), and this gave the not-so-vocal many a way to speak up,” said volunteer Janel.

If the petition gets certified, within 10 days it moves to a legislative committee, which has 90 days to prepare and table a report.

Then, either the legislative assembly chooses to vote on the question or decides Albertans will vote on it in a referendum.

Alberta Justice Minister Mickey Amery provided CTV News with a statement:

“We congratulate the group on gathering so many signatures in support of remaining in Canada,” the statement read.

“Our understanding is that Elections Alberta will need to verify their authenticity by December 27th, 2025. Once that is done, we will discuss as a caucus and cabinet how to proceed under the legislation.”

Political watchers say polls have shown the vast majority of Albertans do not support separation, but if this does go to a referendum, mobilizing voters will be key.

“In Alberta, we have organized, focused, mobilized people that have outside influence, and so organization will be critical if it does go to a referendum that is voted on by the people of Alberta,” said Lori Williams, Mount Royal University policy studies professor.