Alberta Referendum 2026: Date, Questions and How to Vote
Albertans vote in a provincial referendum on Monday, October 19, 2026, with polls open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mountain Time. There are ten questions, each on its own ballot. Nine are yes-or-no questions on immigration, social programs, proof of citizenship for voting and changes to the Constitution. The tenth asks whether Alberta should remain a province of Canada or start the legal process toward a binding referendum on separating. Advance voting runs from Tuesday, October 13 to Saturday, October 17 (Elections Alberta).
Key dates and times
| When | What |
|---|---|
| Oct 13–17 (Tue–Sat) | Advance voting, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., at any advance voting place in your electoral division |
| Fri, Oct 16, 5 p.m. | Deadline for mail-in (special) ballots to reach Elections Alberta |
| Mon, Oct 19 | Referendum day: vote at your assigned voting place, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mountain Time |
| From 8 p.m., Oct 19 | Hand count begins; results are posted as each voting place reports |
| By 8 p.m., Oct 21 | The unofficial count must be finished within 48 hours, because there are more than seven questions |
Polls close at 8 p.m. Mountain Time, which is 7 p.m. in Vancouver, 10 p.m. in Toronto and 02:00 UTC on October 20.
The ten questions
This is the wording set out by the provincial government's orders in council, as published by Elections Alberta. Elections Alberta notes that it may not interpret the questions; questions about their meaning go to the Government of Alberta or your MLA.
Question 10: remain or start the separation process
"Should Alberta remain a province of Canada, or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?"
- Option 1: Alberta should remain a province of Canada.
- Option 2: The Government of Alberta should commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada.
Voters mark one option. The order in council says the result is not binding. A vote for option 2 would not take Alberta out of Canada: it asks the government to start a process toward a separate, binding referendum.
Questions 1 to 5 (yes or no)
- Do you support the Government of Alberta taking increased control over immigration for the purposes of decreasing immigration to more sustainable levels, prioritizing economic migration and giving Albertans first priority on new employment opportunities?
- Do you support the Government of Alberta introducing a law mandating that only Canadian citizens, permanent residents and individuals with an Alberta-approved immigration status will be eligible for provincially-funded programs, such as health care, education and other social services?
- Assuming that all Canadian citizens and permanent residents continue to qualify for social support programs as they do now, do you support the Government of Alberta introducing a law requiring all individuals with a non-permanent legal immigration status to reside in Alberta for at least 12 months before qualifying for any provincially-funded social support programs?
- Assuming that all Canadian citizens and permanent residents continue to qualify for public health care and education as they do now, do you support the Government of Alberta charging a reasonable fee or premium to individuals with a non-permanent immigration status living in Alberta for their and their family's use of the healthcare and education systems?
- Do you support the Government of Alberta introducing a law requiring individuals to provide proof of citizenship, such as a passport, birth certificate or citizenship card, to vote in an Alberta provincial election?
The order in council for these five also says the results are not binding.
Questions 6 to 9: the Constitution (yes or no)
Each starts "Do you support the Government of Alberta working with the governments of other willing provinces to amend the Canadian Constitution to…":
- "…have provincial governments, and not the federal government, select the justices appointed to provincial King's Bench and Appeal courts?"
- "…abolish the unelected federal Senate?"
- "…allow provinces to opt out of federal programs that intrude on provincial jurisdiction such as health care, education, and social services, without a province losing any of the associated federal funding for use in its social programs?"
- "…better protect provincial rights from federal interference by giving a province's laws dealing with provincial or shared areas of constitutional jurisdiction priority over federal laws when the province's laws and federal laws conflict?"
How to vote
- Who can vote: Canadian citizens aged 18 or older who are ordinarily resident in Alberta (Wikipedia, citing the Referendum Act). Permanent residents can't vote.
- Where: on October 19, at the voting place assigned to your address. During advance voting, at any advance place in your electoral division. Elections Alberta's Where to Vote tool lists both.
- ID: one piece of government-issued photo ID with your full name and current address; or two pieces of ID with your full name, one of them showing your current address; or have an authorized person complete an attestation for you (Elections Alberta).
- Ten ballots: each question is on a separate numbered, colour-coded ballot. Mail-in ballots are all white.
When the results come
Ballots are counted by hand at each voting place, one question at a time. Question 10 is counted first everywhere, so the remain-or-separate result should be the first to come in on the evening of October 19, with the other nine following. Elections Alberta publishes results as returning officers report them, and the rules give the unofficial count up to 48 hours to finish when there are seven or more questions (Elections Alberta).
How the referendum came about
- February 19, 2026: Premier Danielle Smith announced a referendum for October 19 with nine questions, five on immigration and election rules and four on the Constitution.
- March 31: the government approved the orders in council setting those nine questions.
- May 2026: a court ruling stalled a citizen petition calling for a separation vote. A separate petition to keep Alberta in Canada, led by Thomas Lukaszuk, was verified by Elections Alberta with 404,293 signatures.
- May 21–28: Smith announced a tenth question on remaining in Canada or starting the path to separation, and the order in council for it was approved on May 28.
Timeline from Wikipedia and Elections Alberta. Alberta's previous referendums were in 2021, on equalization payments and daylight saving time.
What the polls say
Polls are snapshots, not predictions. In an August 2026 Research Co. poll, between 58% and 66% of Albertans supported each of the five non-constitutional questions. Polls of Albertans this spring found a large majority, over 60%, saying they would vote to stay in Canada, though most of those asked about separation itself rather than the exact question on the ballot (Wikipedia, The Writ poll tracker).
Quick answers
When is the Alberta referendum?
Monday, October 19, 2026, from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. Mountain Time. Advance voting is October 13 to 17.
Is the Alberta referendum binding?
No for question 10 and questions 1 to 5: the orders in council say those results are not binding. Questions 6 to 9 ask whether the government should work with other provinces on constitutional amendments, which would need agreement beyond Alberta.
Would a vote for option 2 make Alberta leave Canada?
No. Option 2 asks the government to start the legal process to hold a later, binding referendum on separation.
When will the results be known?
The separation question is counted first, so its result should start coming in on referendum night. All ten counts must be finished within 48 hours.
Can permanent residents vote?
No. You must be a Canadian citizen, 18 or older and ordinarily resident in Alberta.
