Elections Alberta Moves Up Deadline to Apply for Referendum Mail-in Ballots Due to High Demand

Voters leave a polling station after casting ballots in an Alberta byelection for the Olds-Didsbury-Three Hills riding, in Cremona, Alta., on June 23, 2025. The Canadian Press/Jeff McIntosh

Elections Alberta is moving up the deadline to request a mail-in ballot for the upcoming referendum, saying demand from voters is higher than it was during the 2023 general election.

The electoral body also said that it is anticipating a voter turnout of 85 percent—a figure that would surpass the provincial record of 81.8 percent in the 1935 general election.

The original deadline by which voters could apply for a special ballot was Oct. 9, but Elections Alberta said after consulting with service providers, it moved up that date to Sept. 25, two weeks earlier than planned.

The organization said this is done to ensure electors could receive and return their special ballots to Elections Alberta’s Edmonton offices by mail by the legislated deadline of 5 p.m. on Oct. 16.

The province’s upcoming Oct. 19 referendum includes questions on a range of issues, including whether Alberta should seek greater control over immigration from the federal government, push for abolishing the Senate, and whether the province should remain in Canada or begin the legal process required to hold a binding referendum on separation.

5-Fold Increase in Requests

Dallas Stoesz, the deputy chief electoral officer, said the organization has received about 65,000 more applications for mail ballots since Sept. 1, bringing the ongoing tally to 290,000.

That figure is almost five times higher than the nearly 60,000 mail-in ballots that voters requested for the province’s 2023 general election.

“That is a lot of volume to move,” she said of the mail-in ballots, explaining they need to be printed, sorted, mailed out, received, and counted.

Completing Special Ballot Packages

Special ballot packages include a declaration that electors must sign and return in their packages, but that declaration—“I declare that I am unable to vote at an advance voting place or a voting place on Election Day”—is causing some concern and confusion for voters, Elections Alberta said on its website.

“We recognize this is carryover language from a previous version of the Election Act which required reasons to apply for a special ballot,” the agency continued, noting electors may cross out that statement and complete the rest of the declaration, and the agency will accept it.

Elections Alberta added that it will modify the declaration by removing that line from other special ballot packages that haven’t been mailed yet.

Elections Alberta has also heard from electors who expressed concern about how to fold their ballots in the packages. The agency said it would accept all ballots returned in completed special ballot packages, regardless of how people fold them.

Tracking Special Ballot Progress

Special ballot packages include a prepaid return envelope and a tracking link showing whether the request has been received, processed, sent to Elections Alberta, the agency said.

Electors who apply by email receive the tracking link by email, while those who apply by phone should screenshot the closing image on their application to save the link.

If a special ballot isn’t received by the deadline, electors can still vote during advance voting or in person on Oct. 19, the agency added. Elections Alberta updates the voting register when a special ballot is received to prevent electors from voting more than once.

The Canadian Press contributed to this report.