Alberta’s Chief Electoral Officer has received a formal notice of intent to pursue a citizen-initiated constitutional referendum on whether the province should separate from Canada.

Elections Alberta confirmed that Chief Electoral Officer Gordon McClure received the notice on Dec. 11, 2025. The notice was filed by Mitch Sylvestre and was reviewed to ensure it met the initial requirements set out under section 1.1 of Alberta’s Citizen Initiative Act. Written confirmation that the notice had been filed was provided to the elector on Dec. 12.

The proposed referendum would ask voters whether Alberta should cease to be part of Canada and become an independent state. The notice of intent outlines the subject matter and proposed question, as required under provincial legislation. The document submitted by the proponent is now publicly available through Elections Alberta’s website on its page listing current citizen initiative petitions.

Filing a notice of intent is the first formal step in Alberta’s citizen initiative process. Under the legislation, the proponent has a 30-day window to apply to the Chief Electoral Officer for the issuance of an initiative petition related to the proposal identified in the notice. That period runs from Dec. 13, 2025, to Jan. 11, 2026.

During this time, the proponent is permitted to raise funds to cover the application fee and other expenses associated with preparing the initiative petition. If an application is submitted, the Chief Electoral Officer has seven days to determine whether both the application and the proponent meet the requirements set out in section 2 of the Citizen Initiative Act.

If approved, the initiative would move into the petition stage, which carries additional legal thresholds and procedural requirements before any referendum could be held. Those requirements include rules governing financing, signature collection, and verification.

Elections Alberta notes that information related to the citizen initiative process, including current petitions and financing rules, will continue to be updated to reflect recent legislative amendments. Changes introduced through Bill 14, the Justice Statutes Amendment Act, 2025, came into force on Dec. 11.

Elections Alberta operates as an independent, non-partisan office of the Legislative Assembly and is responsible for administering provincial elections, by-elections, and referendums across the province.