Elections Alberta has approved a referendum question that asks, "Do you agree that Alberta should remain in Canada?".
In a news release on Monday, Elections Alberta confirmed that it had received a Citizen Initiative application and said that the application had met the requirements of section 2(3) of the Citizen Initiative Act.
The application was filed by former Progressive Conservative MLA Thomas Lukaszuk.
"If there is to be a discussion on Canada鈥榮 future, it must be led by loyal Canadians, it must be informed by facts, and be respectful of our citizenship and Treaty rights," he said in a post on X.
Lukaszuk noted in the application that the reasons for filing included:
-The fact that Alberta's separation from Canada is being actively discussed
-Since a referendum is imminent anyway, it should be objective and not directed by any special interest groups
-Separation will threaten the Canadian, as well as the Alberta economy, the personal wealth of Albertans, the Canadian citizenship rights of Alberta residents, the treaty rights of our First Nations and have many other serious and negative consequences
-We believe the majority of Alberta's residents are loyal Canadians, opposed to any form of separation.
The new provincial rules for a referendum in Bill 54: Election Statutes Amendment Act, were approved by royal assent in May, but don't come into force until July 4.
Under the existing legislation, an initiative must gather signatures from 10 per cent of the registered voters province-wide for legislative and policy initiatives and 20 per cent of registered voters in two-thirds of the constituencies for constitutional initiatives in a 90-day period.
With the amended legislation, the threshold for success will be changed to 10 per cent of the number of eligible voters who voted in the last general election in 120 days.
Therefore, the petition must go forward under the old rules, meaning Lukaszuk has to get 293,976 signatures or 10 per cent of the eligible voters last time, not actual voters.
In the next 30 days, Lukaszuk has to appoint a chief financial officer and organize the drive for signatures.
The Alberta Prosperity Project intends to file a Citizen Initiative with Elections Alberta on July 4, under the new rules, asking "Do you agree that the Province of Alberta shall become an Independent Country and cease to be a province of Canada?
In a post on X on Monday, the group said the petition filed by Lukaszuk will not derail their efforts.
THIS IS NOT OUR PETITION," they said in the post.
"This is a bold attempt by Thomas Lukaszak (sic) to stall our efforts but we will not be deterred."
