Alberta referendum vote opens Tuesday with ten questions; separation is the last one

Advance voting opens October 14, for Alberta's October 19 referendum, with the province set to answer ten questions on the ballot. The separation question—whether Alberta should hold a second binding referendum on leaving Canada—is listed last.

The first nine questions focus on immigration and constitutional matters. Premier Danielle Smith said she hopes Albertans vote yes on those nine to give her leverage to negotiate with the federal government.

Former premiers Jason Kenney and Rachel Notley are both speaking for a united Canada at Edmonton events on Tuesday. Federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre is campaigning in Calgary on Friday, alongside Smith, also urging Alberta to stay in the Canadian fold. The pro-separation group Let Alberta Decide is holding an event Saturday at Edmonton legislature grounds; the Alberta Federation of Labour is sponsoring a unity rally Sunday at the same location.

MP Dane Lloyd, leading the federal Conservative party's pro-Canada door-knocking and public-event campaign, said turnout will be crucial. "There is no substitute for direct engagement," Lloyd said in a statement.

Prime Minister Mark Carney and Liberal cabinet ministers have been in Alberta multiple times in recent months, announcing a fast-track plan for a new Alberta oil pipeline and reminding residents of billions in ongoing military spending. Neither Carney nor Liberal ministers have announced specific campaign plans for the final week.

Alberta Opposition NDP has more than 15,000 volunteers door-knocking and phoning. Leader Naheed Nenshi criticized Premier Smith for not actively campaigning for a united Canada, noting that many of Smith's cabinet members are on foreign trips during the critical lead-up. "They should bloody be knocking on doors. They should be getting out the vote. They're behaving like separatists," Nenshi said.

Smith rejected the criticism, saying she has made her pro-Canada position clear in speeches and coffee parties. "I go into some pretty tough rooms, and I talk to a lot of people who are voting for [the separatist option]. I make my case about why it is that I think Canada can work—is [in fact] working better than ever," Smith said on a podcast last week. Smith's government has invested $4 million in advertising encouraging Albertans to vote for "a strong and sovereign Alberta within a united Canada."