Let Us Watch the Count: An Independence Supporter's Questions Before Oct. 19

By Jason LaFace | Alberta Radio

Wednesday, October 14, 2026

Albertans who believe this province deserves the right to decide its own future have waited a long time for this vote. We did it the right way. Volunteers stood outside grocery stores in the cold and collected signatures. We followed the rules. Now, with five days to go, a lot of those same people are asking a simple question: is the playing field level?

I'm not alleging fraud. I have no evidence of fraud, and nobody should claim otherwise without proof. But democracy runs on trust, and trust is earned by transparency. Right now, independence supporters have a list of legitimate questions that deserve answers before the first ballot is counted.

The road here was already uphill

Remember how we got here. Hundreds of thousands of Albertans signed a petition asking a direct question about independence. The campaign says close to 302,000 people put their names down. A judge quashed the approval of that petition, and the Court of Appeal has only allowed the signatures to be verified and reported, not sent forward to a referendum. So instead of the question those Albertans asked for, we got a government-drafted Question 10 that asks whether to start the legal process toward a second, binding vote.

You can accept that and still notice that the people asking for the vote have had to fight the system at every step.

An agency under strain

Elections Alberta's own chief electoral officer warned in his annual report about high staff turnover, insufficient resources and no backup in critical positions. Five days out, there's still no published budget for the biggest vote in this province's history. Outside estimates run as high as $130 million. Taxpayers are entitled to know what they're paying for.

The agency needs about 60,000 workers. As of last week it had hired a little over 41,000 and admitted rural ridings were still short. Elections Alberta says those areas need help most for the long count after polls close.

The mail-in mess

This is the part that worries people most.

About 658,000 Albertans applied to vote by mail, roughly 11 times the 2023 level. Elections Alberta moved the deadline to apply up by two weeks, to Sept. 25. More than 5,700 applications were rejected, and roughly 7,200 more were held up by address and typo errors.

Then the packages started arriving. A printing fault meant 313 packages went out missing ballots, some missing questions. Early declaration forms carried outdated wording asking voters to swear they couldn't vote in person, with a fine attached. Voters were told to cross it out by hand.

By Oct. 6, more than 3,000 returned packages had been flagged as invalid over declarations and ID. Those voters were asked to fix it by email. As of Oct. 9, about 303,000 of 652,000 mail ballots had come back, which means hundreds of thousands were still out there a week before the Oct. 16 deadline.

None of that proves anyone is cheating. But when the margin for error is this wide, every voter, on either side, deserves to know exactly how a ballot gets accepted, rejected or "fixed" by email, and who is watching when it happens.

Locked lists and loud accusations

In September, the province locked down the voter list given to parties, leaving just counts by area. There may be good privacy reasons for that. It also means campaigns have less ability to check the rolls.

We've also seen a flood of claims about misinformation. Some of the rumours circulating on our side have been wrong, and Elections Alberta has corrected them. I'll say it plainly: we hurt our own cause when we pass along claims we can't back up. But "misinformation" can't become a label used to wave away every honest question.

Shut out of the room

On Oct. 9, the chief electoral officer told all 28 registered third-party advertisers that they will not be allowed scrutineers at polls or at the count. Only parties with official status, meaning the UCP and the NDP, get them.

The referendum regulation specifically lets third-party advertisers submit scrutineers. Elections Alberta's own website still said they could appoint them. Groups on both sides, federalist and independence alike, objected. One group had applied for 200 scrutineers. The explanation was space and logistics, and a spokesperson said they're "not needed."

Think about who that leaves in the room. Neither official party is campaigning for the independence option. On a question this important, the side asking for change has nobody of its own watching the count.

First days at the polls

Advance voting opened Oct. 13. Seventeen polls opened late because of technology problems. Elections Alberta says those were fixed and the affected locations stayed open late to make up time. Some voters waited close to an hour.

At Spruce Meadows, voters allege they were told to cover up maple leaf or Alberta insignia on their clothing before voting. Elections Alberta says it's looking into whether that happened, and that if it did, staff got it wrong, and they've since been told flags aren't referendum advertising. I'll take them at their word, but it shouldn't take a newspaper story to get that sorted out.

Signs, threats and a former premier's purge

In Fort McMurray, seven of 11 authorized Let Alberta Decide signs were spray-painted between Sept. 29 and Oct. 4 with messages like "Go 2 America" and "Not your land." Wood Buffalo RCMP are investigating and looking for suspects. Damaging referendum signs is a crime.

Petition canvassers on our side reported people driving by and yelling obscenities and "traitor" at them. Elections Alberta itself said nearly every petition campaign reported harassment. In February, Stay Free Alberta alleged a man left a bullet for Mitch Sylvestre at his Bonnyville store. RCMP said the item was a pen that looked like a bullet and found no threat. Sylvestre disputes that. Readers can weigh it, but it's an allegation, not a finding.

And just yesterday, former premier Jason Kenney stood beside Rachel Notley and said separatists have "infiltrated" the UCP and should be shown the door after the vote. When the political establishment talks about showing independence supporters the door while ballots are still being cast, you can't blame those voters for wondering whether the umpires are neutral.

What we're asking for

Here's what fairness looks like, and none of it is radical:

• Let registered third-party advertisers on both sides have scrutineers at the count. The regulation allows it.

• Publish clear numbers on mail ballots: received, accepted, rejected and why, by riding.

• Make the count observable. Elections Alberta has promised live results by voting location; keep it that way, and let the public see the process.

• Publish the budget.

Transparency helps everyone. If remain wins, a clean, watched count means the result holds. If our side wins, the same.

Vote

Most of all: vote. Advance polls are open until Saturday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. If your mail ballot isn't in by 5 p.m. Friday, go vote in person. Bring ID. Don't let a lineup turn you around.

You've waited a long time to be asked. Answer.