Question 10 · Monday, October 19, 2026
Choose Option 1.Alberta stays Forever Canadian.
Question 10 is not a yes-or-no question — you choose one of two options. Option 1 keeps Alberta a province of Canada. Mark it.
Five days, October 13 to 17, 9:00 am to 8:00 pm, at any advance voting place in your electoral division.
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?
Alberta should remain a province of Canada.
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.
Both options are quoted word for word, in the order Elections Alberta lists them. The mark is ours.
The one thing we need from you today
How are you voting?
Tell us, and we will show you what is left to do. A package still at home has to reach Elections Alberta before 5:00 pm on October 16.
Answering changes nothing about how you vote, and signs you up for nothing.
The people most likely to miss this vote are the ones we can’t email.
Your feed reaches them. These are finished and free to take — the marked ballot, the dates, a code that opens this page, and the line the law requires are already on them.
Nothing to fill in. Download one, post it, and leave it up until October 19.
Pick a design
Caption, ready to paste
Alberta votes on Question 10 on Monday, October 19. It is not a yes-or-no question — there are two options, and Option 1 keeps Alberta a province of Canada. Vote early: advance voting runs October 13 to 17, at any advance voting place in your electoral division. #Question10 #ChooseOption1 #ChooseUnity #ForeverCanadian
Vote early. Do not plan on voting in a line on October 19.
Elections Alberta’s own survey points to a turnout near the provincial record, set in 1935, and every voter has ten separate ballots to mark, so referendum day is going to be slow. Advance voting gives you five days instead of one, at any advance voting place in your electoral division.
- 80–85%
- The turnout Elections Alberta estimates
- 10
- Separate ballots you mark
- 2 hours
- What Albertans queued last October
- 5 days
- Of advance voting, not one
Why the lines will be long
Ten ballots each. You mark ten separate numbered ballots, not one.
You can no longer vote anywhere. Vote-enabling tabulators are not being used, so you must vote in the electoral division where you live.
Vouching is gone. Every voter proves their own name and address at the desk.
Elections Alberta needs about 60,000 workers to run the day — the largest recruitment in the province’s history.
Voting early leaves you a second chance
If something stops you at an advance voting place — say you forgot your ID — you can go back on another day, or vote on October 19. Leave it to October 19 and there is no other day.
Elections Alberta’s Where to Vote tool shows your advance voting places, with each one’s days and hours. Registered voters also get a Where to Vote card, by mail or by email; in some rural areas the voting places are also published in the local newspaper.
What does Question 10 actually ask?
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?
Reproduced from Elections Alberta. If this page and Elections Alberta ever disagree, Elections Alberta is right. Read it on elections.ab.ca (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
In plain words
It asks whether the government should start the legal steps needed to hold a future, binding vote on separation.
It is not a yes-or-no question. You choose one of two options.
The two choices
These are the two options, in the order Elections Alberta lists them.
Option 1
Mark this oneAlberta should remain a province of Canada.
Alberta stays a province.
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.
The government starts the legal process.
Why Option 1
What the other box does
Option 2 asks the government to begin the steps required under the Canadian Constitution toward a separate, binding referendum on separating.
What that sets in motion
A process that runs through the courts and Ottawa, with the question left open the whole time. The steps below are the ballot’s own wording, not our summary.
Our position
Alberta’s place is in Canada. Option 1 is the only box on the ballot that says so, and the only one that settles the question rather than extending it.
How far could this vote actually go?
Step 1 · You are here
You answer Question 10
On October 19, 2026 — or earlier, by mail or at advance voting.
Step 2
The result is reported
Elections Alberta counts Question 10 first and posts results question by question as the counts finish. The official results are announced on October 29.
Step 3
The legal process
If Option 2 is chosen, it asks the government to begin the steps required under the Canadian Constitution.
Step 4
A separate, binding referendum
The question’s own wording says a binding provincial referendum on separating would be a later, separate vote.
Dates that matter
- October 13–17
- Advance voting9:00 am to 8:00 pm, at any advance voting place in your electoral division
- October 16
- Elections Alberta must have received your mailed-in packageBefore 5:00 pm, in Edmonton
- October 19
- Referendum dayAt your assigned voting place, 9:00 am to 8:00 pm, if you haven’t already voted
Elections Alberta’s Where to Vote tool shows your advance voting places and your assigned voting place for referendum day. Registered voters also get a Where to Vote card, by mail or by email; in some rural areas the voting places are also published in the local newspaper.
How do I vote in person?
Two things decide whether it goes smoothly: going to the right place, and bringing the right ID.
Advance voting: October 13 to 17, 9:00 am to 8:00 pm, at any advance voting place in your electoral division. A few places keep shorter days or hours; the Where to Vote tool shows each one’s.
Referendum day: October 19, 9:00 am to 8:00 pm, at your assigned voting place and nowhere else.
You must vote in the electoral division where you live. You can no longer vote anywhere in the province.
Bring ID: one piece of government photo ID with your name and current address, such as an Alberta driver’s licence or ID card, or two pieces of ID with your name where one shows your physical address. Licence shows only a mailing address, like a PO box? That is enough if you are already registered where you live; you sign a declaration confirming your address. If you are not, or you have moved, also bring ID that proves your physical address; a legal land description, lot-block-plan or 911 address counts. Vouching is no longer accepted, and Elections Alberta lists more than 50 documents that work.
Renting, or living in student housing on campus, a care home or a shelter? An attestation form signed by your landlord, property manager, residence or facility can serve as your ID.
Marked a ballot by mistake, or tore it? Hand it back before it goes in the box and ask for a new one. Once it is in the box, it cannot be replaced.
Not registered, or moved since you last registered? You can register at the voting place: you fill in a declaration and show ID.
Working? Your employer must make sure you have three hours in a row off work to vote, on one of the advance voting days or on October 19. Your employer picks when.
In line when the voting place closes at 8:00 pm? Stay in line: everyone in line at closing time still gets to vote.
Registered voters get a Where to Vote card, by mail or by email if they chose that, and they should have arrived by now. No card? The Where to Vote tool gives you the same answer today.
Check anything you read about where, when and how to vote against elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta has warned about a fake look-alike site, electionsab.ca, and expects more misinformation before the vote.
Not registered? You can still vote
Registering ahead of time has closed. You can register when you vote: at the voting place, you fill in a declaration and show ID.
Elections Alberta’s Where to Vote tool shows your advance voting places and your assigned voting place for referendum day. Registered voters also get a Where to Vote card, by mail or by email; in some rural areas the voting places are also published in the local newspaper.
Already have a mail-in package? Finish it.
Applications closed on September 25. If you asked for a package before then, here is what is left to do.
From September 1
Your package arrives
It holds your ballots, a grey envelope, a purple return envelope, a declaration to sign, a list of accepted ID, and instructions. Still waiting for yours? Elections Alberta sent the last packages at the start of October, so if it has not come, vote in person instead.
Before 5:00 pm, October 16
Mail it back
Ballot in the grey envelope. Grey envelope, signed declaration and a copy of your ID in the purple envelope. Then post it — early.
About the line on the declaration that says you cannot vote in person
Some packages mailed from September 1 carry a declaration with a line that alarmed people. You do not have to be unable to vote in person, and you can strike the line out.
The line on the form
Elections Alberta’s own words
Electors may cross out the statement “I declare that I am unable to vote at an advance voting place or a voting place on Election Day” and complete the rest of the declaration, and Elections Alberta will accept it.
It is left over from an older version of the Election Act, when you needed a reason to vote by mail. That requirement is gone — anyone can request a mail-in ballot, no reason needed — but the sentence stayed on the form.
Elections Alberta has said you may cross that line out, sign the rest of the declaration as normal, and they will accept it. They are also removing the line from packages that had not yet been sent.
So: if the line is on your declaration, strike it through, then fill in and sign everything else. Do not leave the declaration unsigned, and do not throw the package away.
Elections Alberta said this on September 3, 2026, in a news release about the application deadline. At the time of writing it is the only place on their website that says it — none of their voter-facing pages mention it. Read the release on elections.ab.ca (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
What goes inside what
Your ballot
Mark your choice on the ballot that comes in your package.
Grey envelope A
The ballot goes in here, on its own. Nothing else in this one.
Purple envelope B
Envelope A, your signed declaration, and a copy of your ID all go in here. This is the envelope you mail.
October 16 is an arrival deadline, not a postmark deadline
Elections Alberta has to have your package in Edmonton before 5:00 pm that Friday. Canada Post recommends mailing it by October 9 if you are posting it in Alberta. Running late? Priority or Xpresspost gets it there faster. Packages from remote areas and from outside Canada take longer again.
You cannot drop it off
Returning offices will not accept completed special ballot packages, even one you picked up in person. It has to travel by mail to Elections Alberta in Edmonton.
Send a copy of your ID, never the original
A photocopy, or a printout of a scan or photo, of the front of the card. Black and white is fine, and you can black out the account number on a utility bill. Use one piece of government photo ID with your name and current address, or two pieces of ID with your name where one shows your address — Elections Alberta lists more than 50 that work. If the ID copy or the signed declaration is missing or has an error, Elections Alberta will try to reach you, often by email: answer it, or the ballot is rejected and you will need to vote in person.
Count your ballots when the package arrives
There should be ten, one for each question from 1 to 10, with none twice. Vote-by-mail ballots are all white, so a short set does not give itself away by a missing colour — count them. Elections Alberta says a production fault at its supplier, since fixed, affected 313 packages (0.09%), and those voters were sent new ones. If yours is short or repeats a question, phone Elections Alberta at 1-877-672-1365 and they will send a complete set. Elections Alberta — what went wrong, and the fix (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab) · Global News — some packages arrived with ballots missing (opens in a new tab)
Can I work the referendum?
Yes. Elections Alberta needs about 60,000 people to run it, and some rural divisions still need more. These are paid, temporary jobs, not volunteer shifts.
You need to be 16 or older and allowed to work in Canada. Some roles need you to be 18.
You need to pass a criminal record check.
You sign an oath to stay non-partisan, and you step back from political activity while you are employed.
The work runs across advance voting (October 13 to 17), referendum day (October 19) and the count (October 19 to 21).
Elections Alberta is hiring until October 19. You cannot apply twice — so pick every role you would take.
Groups can sign up together: a sports team, community group or other organization can apply through its returning office, and the pay goes to the group.
The oath is the point
Election officers work for Elections Alberta, not for any side. Everyone who hands out and counts ballots signs the same promise, and that is a large part of why the count can be trusted.
The application is on Elections Alberta’s website, not ours.
Questions people ask
Cross that line out and sign the rest. It is leftover wording from an older law and Elections Alberta has said in writing that they will accept declarations with it struck through. You do not need a reason to vote by mail.
Canadian citizens who are 18 or older on referendum day and who ordinarily live in Alberta. Elections Alberta has the full rule, including what "ordinarily live" means if you have moved.
This page covers Question 10 only. There are ten questions on the ballot, and Elections Alberta publishes all of them.
Each question is printed on its own separate, numbered ballot, so you decide question by question. At the voting place they are handed to you as a stack, with Question 10 on top.
Watch your mail. Elections Alberta started sending packages on September 1; you fill yours in after it arrives and return it by mail. They also gave you a link to track the request: by email if you gave an email address or, if you gave a phone number instead, on the last screen of the online form, which Elections Alberta told those applicants to screenshot. If there was a problem with your request, they sent you a new link. It shows whether your request has been received, processed and sent, and later whether your completed package got back to them. If it is not moving, phone them at 1-877-672-1365.
Yes. If you don’t think your package will arrive in time, you can vote at any advance voting place in your electoral division from October 13 to 17. You are then marked as having voted, and a package that turns up later is rejected. Or, if Elections Alberta hasn’t marked your package received by 5:00 pm on Sunday, October 18, you can vote at your assigned voting place on October 19. Your tracking link shows which applies to you.
Vote in person. Advance voting runs October 13 to 17, 9:00 am to 8:00 pm, at any advance voting place in your electoral division. On October 19 you can vote only at your assigned voting place, 9:00 am to 8:00 pm. Elections Alberta’s Where to Vote tool shows both. If you are in hospital, or live in a care home, treatment centre or shelter, Elections Alberta may set up a mobile voting station there, and you won’t need ID to vote at it.
No. Forever Canadian made it. Every fact on it links to Elections Alberta, and theirs is the page that counts.
Still have a question? Call Elections Alberta.
They run the referendum, and they are the official answer to every question about your ballot. This page is not.
Not registered? You can still vote
Registering ahead of time has closed. You can register when you vote: at the voting place, you fill in a declaration and show ID.
Find your voting place (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)Elections Alberta — register to vote (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
Referendum questions
Monday to Friday, 8:15 am to 8:00 pm
Saturday and Sunday, 8:15 am to 6:00 pm
Voting days, 8:15 am to 8:00 pm
Special ballot questions
Use this line for anything about your package: it has not arrived, a ballot is missing, or you are not sure your application went through.
- info@elections.ab.ca
- Website
- elections.ab.ca (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Main office
- Suite 100, 11510 Kingsway NW, Edmonton, Alberta T5G 2Y5
- Office hours
- Monday to Friday, 8:15 am to 12 noon and 1:00 pm to 4:30 pm
- Telephone
- 780-427-7191
- Fax
- 780-422-2900
Elsewhere in Alberta, call toll free: dial 310-0000, then 780-427-7191
Where this comes from
This page was made by Forever Canadian. It is not an Elections Alberta page, and we are not affiliated with Elections Alberta.
If anything here disagrees with Elections Alberta, Elections Alberta is right. Checked on October 9, 2026.
- Elections Alberta — the referendum and all ten questions (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — historical results, and the turnout record (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — register to vote, or check your registration (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — voting by mail (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — the September 25 application deadline (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — what changed about voting this time (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — who can vote (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — ID you can use (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — where do I vote? (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — special ballot deadlines, and voting in person (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — referendum information updates, with Canada Post’s mailing advice (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — registering before the vote, and how results are published (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — advance voting hours, and mobile voting (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — how the ballots are counted, Question 10 first (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — time off work to vote (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — the fake look-alike website (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — expect misinformation before the vote (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)
- Elections Alberta — referendum election officer roles (opens elections.ab.ca in a new tab)