Murray Wood: Who's hot... and who's not
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EDMONTON — Friday is the last day to apply for a mail-in ballot for Alberta’s referendum with applications approaching 700,000.
Elections Alberta will stop accepting applications as of midnight and the agency has said mail-in ballots must be returned by Oct. 16 at 5 p.m. in order to be counted.
A spokesperson for Elections Alberta said that, as of Thursday afternoon, the agency has received 673,000 requests for mail-in ballots.
Elections officials have said they’re preparing for a record voter turnout, and the total requests for mail-in ballots marks a staggering increase from the nearly 60,000 requested for the province’s 2023 general election, though the rules for who could vote by mail have relaxed since then.
Opposition NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi told reporters Friday that he hoped it was a sign that Albertans plan to vote in record numbers, but also said it might be the result of concerns that referendum day could be a nightmare when it comes to wait times at the polls.
“But you wouldn’t get to that number unless people were really engaged with this referendum,” Nenshi said.
“I would love an 80 per cent voter turnout, an 80 per cent vote to stay in Canada.”
Referendum day is Oct. 19 and Alberta are to vote on 10 questions put forward by Premier Danielle Smith’s government, including whether the province should stay in Canada or hold a second, binding vote on quitting Confederation.
Nenshi said the NDP identified one million pro-Canada voters by going door-to-door and making calls over the summer.
“Our job now is to contact every one of them, make sure they have a voting plan, make sure that they can vote,” he said.
Albertans can start voting in person at advance polling stations on Oct. 13, which will be open until Oct. 17.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 25, 2026.
The Canadian Press
