Possible referendum question on Alberta separation sent to judge for approval
EDMONTON — A potential referendum question on Alberta separating from Canada has been referred to a judge for confirmation that the question doesn't violate the Constitution.
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The proposed question seeks a yes or no answer to: 'Do you agree that the Province of Alberta shall become a sovereign country and cease to be a province in Canada?'
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Alberta's chief electoral officer Gordon McClure, in a news release Monday, said provincial laws require potential referendum questions to respect more than 30 sections of the Constitution, including the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
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McClure's release doesn't say which, if any, specific sections he's unsure about and his office didn't immediately respond to questions asking for details.
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Sylvestre, who didn't immediately respond to an interview request Monday, has said he thinks interest among Albertans in holding a separation referendum increases with every speaking event his group organizes.
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'The more people that hear what the message is, the more people that will be in favour,' he said in an interview last month.
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The Alberta Prosperity Project said on social media that McClure's decision was a 'delay tactic' and that the group would respond in court if need be.
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The electoral officer's release says the Court of King's Bench will schedule a proceeding for the matter and that Sylvestre and the provincial justice minister have been notified of his decision to refer the question to a judge.
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If his question is approved, Sylvestre and the Alberta Prosperity Project would need to collect 177,000 signatures in four months to put the question of Alberta separation on a ballot.
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In June, the chief electoral officer approved a competing question that seeks to have Alberta make it official policy that the province will never separate from Canada.
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That petition, put forward by former Alberta Progressive Conservative deputy premier Thomas Lukaszuk, was approved before new provincial rules took effect that lowered the threshold for citizen-initiated referendums to get on ballots.
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Lukaszuk's proposal also differs in that it seeks a referendum on a proposed policy — rather than a potential constitutional referendum like Sylvestre's proposal — and he'll need to collect nearly 300,000 signatures in 90 days.
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