225,000 Albertans apply for mail-in ballots ahead of October 19 referendum

As of August 31, Elections Alberta received 225,000 requests for mail-in ballots for the October 19 referendum — nearly four times the 59,589 requests for the 2023 provincial general election.

Special ballots began being mailed out on September 1 to voters who applied. The numbers signal widespread concern about lineups on referendum day, when voters will face ten separate colour-coded ballots — one for each question.

"I don't think it's a surprising number at all, because it's been pretty clear to anyone who's been paying attention that there's a high risk of long lineups on referendum day," said Lisa Young, a political scientist at the University of Calgary. "Elections Alberta has had trouble getting enough staff to staff all of these polling stations."

Jetty Nieuwenhuis, a voter southeast of Red Deer, applied along with her husband and two sons. "I suspect there'll be huge lineups and I just want to have that extra option," she said. "I think it's very important that every Albertan goes to vote."

Voters can cast ballots by mail-in special ballot, during advance voting from October 13–17, or on referendum day, October 19. Elections Alberta is urging voters to review the referendum questions on its website, confirm their authorized ID options beforehand, and have identification ready when they arrive to vote.

The source does not specify how many of the 225,000 ballots have been returned so far or what return rates Elections Alberta is projecting.