Dalena Reporters l December 22, 2025
Alberta’s election agency has approved a citizen initiative referendum question asking voters whether the province should leave Canada and become an independent state, a development that could set the stage for a high‑stakes plebiscite during the 2026 provincial referendum process. The approval means proponents can now begin collecting signatures needed to put the question before Albertans on a ballot.
According to a Notice of Initiative Petition issued by Elections Alberta, the proposed constitutional referendum question put forward by the Alberta Prosperity Project and proponent Mitch Sylvestre — reads: “Do you agree that the Province of Alberta should cease to be a part of Canada to become an independent state?”
Under the province’s Citizen Initiative Act, the group now has four months to collect roughly 177,000 valid signatures from Albertans to qualify the question for a referendum ballot in 2026. If the threshold is met, the question would be officially placed on the ballot for all eligible voters in the province to decide.
The approval comes after legislative changes earlier in 2025 lowered the bar for citizen‑led referendum petitions reducing the number of signatures needed to trigger a ballot and extending the collection period, changes supporters say make it easier for grassroots initiatives to reach voters.
The move has stirred intense political debate across Alberta and Canada. Premier Danielle Smith has maintained she does not support Alberta leaving Canada but has said she would respect the democratic process if a valid petition qualifies for a ballot. Meanwhile, opponents assert that any referendum on separation raises significant constitutional and legal questions, including concerns about Indigenous treaty rights and the broader future of the Canadian federation.
Before its approval, the separation question was previously reviewed by the courts amid concerns it might contravene Canada’s Constitution a process that highlighted tensions between proponents of the initiative and officials tasked with ensuring legal compliance.
If the petition gains the required support and the question reaches a referendum ballot, it will mark a rare and consequential moment in Canadian political history forcing voters in Canada’s fourth‑largest province to weigh in on the very future of the federation itself.
Published by Dalena Reporters.