Alberta referendum cost $84M, Elections Alberta says

EDMONTON – Elections Alberta says the province’s separation referendum cost $84 million, more than double the roughly $37 million spent on the 2023 general election.

Officials gave the figure Thursday to a legislature committee, which unanimously approved $59 million in extra funding for the agency, The Canadian Press reported. Chief electoral officer Gordon McClure said the vote ran nearly $50 million over what the agency’s annual budget could cover.

About 75 per cent of voters on the 10-question ballot chose to keep Alberta in Canada rather than hold a second, binding vote on separating. Albertans narrowly approved five questions on provincial control over immigration and rejected four proposed constitutional changes. Our earlier coverage of the first sitting after the vote is here.

McClure told the committee $26 million went to pay staff who hand-counted more than 22 million ballots. Renting voting and counting spaces cost about $7 million, and nearly $11 million went to security, IT equipment, and shipping and postage for ballots.

Officials called the referendum “crushing” for staff. Steve Kaye, the agency’s chief administrative officer, said his longest shift was 22 hours and that the executive team worked multiple 16- to 20-hour days. McClure said one employee developed appendicitis and delayed treatment.

Kaye said Elections Alberta has one of the leanest workforces among Canadian electoral agencies. If it were staffed at Quebec’s per capita level, he said, it would have more than four times its current 54 full-time employees. He warned the committee to expect further staffing requests next month, when the agency submits its budget for next year, and said it is concerned about rehiring past workers.

NDP committee member David Shepherd thanked the agency, called its work a heroic effort and noted that Premier Danielle Smith’s government decided to hold the referendum. He said Albertans can judge the return on investment. Smith’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, The Canadian Press said.

The committee also granted about $9 million to prepare for the general election scheduled for Oct. 18, 2027, and about $1 million for additional full-time staff. Officials said they can deliver that vote on time, although the agency raised concerns last week about the government’s plan to put new electoral maps into law this year. The government rejected the agency’s bid to delay the election or use the current boundaries, and the proposed riding map is disputed by the NDP.

McClure said rushing to adjust to the new districts could mean the agency “paying a lot more” to run the 2027 vote. Some processes that normally take months are being skipped, while others, such as updating elector information, are being sped up with temporary staff. Justice Minister Mickey Amery said earlier this week the new boundaries will be law before Christmas.

Source: The Canadian Press, Nov. 5, 2026.

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