How to vote in Alberta’s Oct. 19 referendum

Albertans can vote early in the province’s Oct. 19 referendum starting today, with advance polls open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily until Saturday, Oct. 17, according to Elections Alberta. Here is how to vote in the Alberta referendum, what ID you need and when to expect results.

Advance voting runs Oct. 13 to 17 at 310 stations, according to The Canadian Press. You must use a station in your own electoral division, not any station in the province. On Oct. 19, just over 1,400 polling stations will open, and you can find yours by entering your address at map.elections.ab.ca or by checking the “Where to Vote” card sent in the mail.

To be eligible, you must be a Canadian citizen, ordinarily resident in Alberta and at least 18, Elections Alberta says. People who have moved out of the province are not eligible. Students studying outside Alberta can vote if they intend to return home.

Elections Alberta says you need one piece of government-issued photo ID showing your name and current address, or two pieces of ID with your full name, at least one showing your current address. The agency lists more than 50 accepted forms of ID, and Narcity reported that expired ID is accepted if the name is still correct. Residents of supportive living, long-term care and shelters can vote at mobile stations without ID if a facility official confirms where they live.

The ballot is larger than most Albertans are used to. There are 10 questions, each on its own colour-coded ballot, and voters receive them all at once and place them in separate boxes. Five questions deal with immigration and whether temporary workers and residents should pay fees for services such as health care and education, according to Narcity. Four concern the Constitution and would give Premier Danielle Smith a mandate to lobby other premiers. The 10th asks whether Albertans want to remain in Canada or hold a second, binding vote on leaving Confederation.

Elections Alberta estimates the process takes about two minutes for voters who already know their choices and up to four minutes for those who do not. It estimates close to six minutes for voters whose first language is not English or who read slowly. There is no time limit in the booth, and the agency urges people to read the questions beforehand.

Mail-in voting is largely closed. The deadline to apply passed on Sept. 25, and completed mail-in ballots must reach Elections Alberta by 5 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 16. Canada Post recommended mailing them by Oct. 9. Elections Alberta spokesperson Maia Hanrahan said this week that “we are ready to deliver.” The agency has flagged about 3,000 returned mail-in ballots with missing documents, such as proof of ID, and says it is contacting those voters.

Employees are also entitled to time off. Under Alberta’s Election Act, which applies to the referendum, voters need three consecutive non-working hours during voting time, and an employer must provide paid time off if a schedule does not leave that window, according to guidance posted by the University of Alberta. Employers can decide whether that time falls on an advance voting day or on Oct. 19.

Results will take longer than in a typical election because ballots are counted by hand. Elections Alberta says ballots are counted in question order, starting with Question 10 at each voting location, and unofficial results must be reported within 48 hours of polls closing. Narcity reported that early results on the separation question are expected after 8 p.m. on Oct. 19, with the final count likely in the early hours of Oct. 20 and the other nine questions announced by Wednesday. Anyone still in line at 8 p.m. will be allowed to vote.

Election officials expect record turnout. Elections Alberta says about 658,000 mail-in ballots were requested, roughly 20 per cent of about three million registered voters, and more than 300,000 completed mail-in ballots had been returned as of Friday. Officials need at least 60,000 workers, and about 44,000 had been hired as of Oct. 9. Hanrahan asked voters to “please be kind” to the staff, who she said are their friends and neighbours.

Voters can confirm details, including station locations, on the Elections Alberta website.

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Via The Canadian Press (CP24), with details from Narcity, Elections Alberta and the University of Alberta.