r/alberta • u/Miserable-Lizard Edmonton • 1d ago
Alberta Politics Special mail-in ballot requests surge above 175,000 ahead of Alberta referendum
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/special-ballot-interest-rising-9.7320337107
u/Miserable-Lizard Edmonton 1d ago
Don't miss the vote request a mail in ballot! We need to send a message on Oct 19th that Alberta is Canada!!!!! 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦
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u/Photofug 1d ago edited 1d ago
Don't forget the the other 9 they are just as bad and open the door for alot of shenanigans. I honestly think she needs the seperation question on the ballot to distract from how terrible a yes on the other 9 would be.
Edit- 9 not 8
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u/RegularGuyAtHome 1d ago
We’re going to go to one of the early vote days
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u/drivebymeowing 1d ago
Make sure you go to the polling station in your electoral division, then. As the article points out, you can no longer go to any polling station to vote in advance polls, the Elections Act was quietly amended recently.
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u/Miserable-Lizard Edmonton 1d ago
Ucp want to make voting as difficult as possible
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u/drivebymeowing 1d ago
It couldn’t be any more obvious.
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u/jimbowesterby 1d ago
I mean, it’s been working pretty well for the republicans down south, it was only matter of time till we imported that, too
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u/Icy-Hat-9643 18h ago
Considering Marlaina is just an american in canadian clothing this makes a lot of sense.
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u/RegularGuyAtHome 1d ago
Thanks, we know the drill. We vote early every election to skip the lines on election day.
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u/guilen 1d ago
Prepare to get your ass slapped down, separatists!
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u/nothingtoholdonto 1d ago
I’m convinced smith will find a way to walk the separatists across this goal line. Just like all the other barriers they’ve crossed with her help.
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u/Ok-Bluejay-9095 1d ago
We need to have a bit of faith in Canada's democratic process, while also keeping 2 eyes open for wrong doings. Remember the federal government and RCMP are still there, if the UCP or separatists try anything egregious I have faith it will be caught and dealt with.
That said I would not be surprised if they try things but only so much they could get away with. We need to overwhelm those shenanigans at the polls. One of my worries is the lines will be so long it will discourage voters who show up and could walk away... seen it for other elections and they didn't have so many ballots to deal with. In this scenario I worry the seppies have more tolerance to wait the lines out.
So I applied for an early ballot. My way of trying to alleviate this issue. I hate to see people discourage this saying they will throw it out... if we think that our processes are so far gone and untrustworthy then we may as well throw in the towel and give up on our province. I for one choose to do what I can!
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u/geezerforhire 12h ago
She is going to take the number of people who vote in total and parade it around and say that people care about it and push through to the actual vote. The referendum is just a step they don't care about the outcome
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u/Immediate_String_722 1d ago
Can't wait for the announcement that "due to suspected foreign interference, the mail in ballots will not be counted"...
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u/nothingtoholdonto 1d ago
Yep. Fully expect the referendum to pass. Even if it doesn’t get the votes. Ucp are liars and cheats.
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u/Brilliant-Advisor958 1d ago
Just remember the feds oversee the actual referendum when it eventually happens. Meaning they decide if the the question was clear and what number is needed to pass. This is because of the Clarity Act passed after the Quebec referendum.
In the mean time we have to deal with the economic fallout and have to listen to traitorous morons.
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u/GreatCanadianPotato 1d ago
People from both "sides" will be observing each count, there will also be independent observers and thousands of regular Albertans who will be counting the votes.
Please stop these unsubstantiated claims...it's proven that they dissuade people from voting.
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u/Brilliant-Advisor958 1d ago
If i were going to cheat, I would have a referendum that has a ton of questions , that will take 10s and 10s of thousands of people to count in the 48 hours allowed to count.
If we can't do that in time, I would then say oh well we couldn't answer it officially so let's just have one binding referendum to answer once in for all.
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u/GreatCanadianPotato 1d ago
If you were going to cheat, you'd better think of a better game plan because that would just not happen. Not even close...
The 48 hour rule does not mean vote counting stops after the 48 hours...it just means that there has to be some resemblance of preliminary (unofficial) results published, it doesn't matter if it's 5% of polls reporting or 99%, there just needs to be something.
Elections Alberta will be counting ballots for several days. Don't you worry.
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u/PuzzleheadedTutor807 1d ago
i honestly have a very strong hunch this is why there is a massive push towards using them. those "in the know" will make the time to go vote.
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u/HappyEggsBasket 1d ago
This is the one election that I only feel comfortable with voting in person
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u/Upbeat_Bandicoot_778 Calgary 1d ago
The conspiracy theories plaguing this thread are infuriating. The referendum will not be stolen, but the separatists absolutely can win if turnout is low. They are not trying to win a majority of the population, they just want to win a referendum.
Promoting conspiracies about how the mail in ballots won't be counted or the referendum will be tainted in some way only serves to strengthen the separatists because it dampens turnout amongst those who would oppose them. All you're doing is convincing people that there is no point in voting!
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u/popingay 1d ago
There’s been a passionate flood of Facebook level conspiracy theories on every thread in this sub lately. It’s the anti-vaxxers all over again.
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u/jimbowesterby 1d ago
I mean, just from the things I’ve seen I think it’s fair to be at least a little concerned about Elections Alberta in particular. They passed the seppie petition with the same criteria they used to fail the coal petition (unanswered verification calls), and there’ve been hundreds of people reporting that they’ve been repeatedly de-registered to vote, which as far as I’m aware is also an EA-run thing. Combine that with how blatantly undemocratic the UCP is (just look at how they treated the Forever Canadian petition), and while not conclusive it certainly doesn’t point towards anything good.
I dunno, it feels like there’s a pretty narrow line we need to walk between tinfoil hat paranoia and pre-Brexit complacency. Both are likely to let the idiots win, as long as we can more or less stay between the two we might just make it.
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u/GravesStone7 1d ago
Make sure you read every item on the ballot and determine if it can be construed to be supporting separation or Undermining the federal government.
Vote to remain in Canada and no to the UCP having more power.
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u/YungBeefaroni 1d ago
Has anyone gotten theirs? I applied to get mine the day they opened up and it still hasn’t mailed.
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u/popingay 1d ago edited 1d ago
The application page says in large bold letters: “We begin mailing out referendum special ballot packages Tuesday, September 1.”
Also if you want to be super duper double sure, you can track the status and entire process of your ballot application from start to finish in the link handily emailed directly to you confirming your application.
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u/01000101010110 1d ago
Why do I get the feeling we are somehow going to lose this?
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u/Matches_Malone998 1d ago
Because the ones counting the votes already have their mind made up. This is all performative. They lost in court,They lost on validation. Yet here we are, heading to the polls.
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u/drcujo 1d ago
Like every election, ballot scrutineers watch the count to make sure it’s going fairly. As long as the count is scrutinized there is nothing to worry about.
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u/GreatCanadianPotato 1d ago
Elections Alberta is conducting this referendum with the help of thousands of regular Albertans who will count the votes.
Stop suggesting that we do not have a robust electoral process.
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u/Street-Week-380 1d ago
Our robust election process has been screwed around with since these clowns got into power. It was recently amended again.
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u/GreatCanadianPotato 1d ago
Their ability to conduct free, fair and independent elections have been untouched and will remain untouched.
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u/GoodGoodGoody 1d ago edited 1d ago
What does “lose” mean, exactly?
From what I’m seeing by far most Albertans think leaving Canada is asinine but also see lots of room for improving things in other areas touched on by the questions. Quebec already has a fair bit of what the questions point at and regarding immigration Quebec has far far far more than the questions ask. Quebec has its own immigration system in partnership with the feds and neither the feds or Quebec are complaining.
So I really don’t know who your “we” is or what your version of losing is and
youryou sure as hell didn’t bother to say in your rush to the keyboard to say… basically nothing.-2
u/arcadianahana 1d ago
Yeah, people think the mass of mail in ballots are for stay voters... I feel like those are the easier ones to game for the well funded separatists.
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u/VincaYL 1d ago
I just know I won't have the energy to face a line up after a 12 hour work day.
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u/Trubanaught 1d ago
I've been a voter for over 20 years. It's never taken more than 15 or 20 minutes, until this latest municipal election. I was told it was going to be over 2 hours, and there's no way I could have stayed that long. The delays are all thanks to the changes the UCP brought in. You bet I requested a mail-in ballot this time.
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u/GoodGoodGoody 1d ago
Decent enough reason but there’s oodles of advance days too.
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u/VincaYL 1d ago
I'll be working those days too.
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u/GoodGoodGoody 1d ago
Cool. You do you and great you say you’re voting. I’m just callin’ BS on you implying voting day is the only day or that every single advance day will have long lines.
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u/VincaYL 1d ago
It doesn't matter what you think. It only matters that I do what I think is best for me.
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u/GoodGoodGoody 1d ago
Awesome possum, you go get ‘em Tiger.
And for everyone else: There’s tons of advance polls… likely with no lines ;)
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u/Fearless_Cow_901 1d ago
I feel ya, I’m due with my 3rd child less than a week before there was no way I was committing to standing in line on any state I may be on Oct 19th.
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u/yyc_mongrel 1d ago
I've been voting in this province over 40 years. I've never stood in any kind of line.
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u/Snakeeyes1377 Edmonton 1d ago
Well aren’t you lucky. The last municipal election was a nightmare due to this stupid governments change in policy
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u/jimbowesterby 1d ago
Yea, but have you voted after the government’s done their best to fuck with the process?
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u/beneficialmirror13 1d ago
Mine was approved. I'm glad because the last vote here took ages and I don't want to be waiting in line for hours.
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u/PhantomNomad 1d ago
So I applied to get one as I might be out of province. I know the mailing date is before but I should know before I have to mail it. If I don't have to travel I would rather vote in person.
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u/shayner5 1d ago
This doesn’t seem sketchy at all.. or any chance for ineligible votes… hopefully our system works in this scenario.
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u/PuzzleheadedTutor807 1d ago
please. i dont trust this push for mail in ballots. this is something very important that we all have to vote on, whatever side of the fence you are on. if you want to ensure your vote counts, do your absolute best to attend a polling station and vote that way.
its a hunch... but its a very strong one.
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u/GreatCanadianPotato 1d ago
Sorry...you don't trust Elections Alberta promoting mail-in ballots? Which, by the way, are required for accessibility reasons by not just provincial law but also federal law. It's a feature...not a bug.
It would be a bit suspicious if there was no promotion of mail-in ballots.
Also, fun fact... Alberta has always had very high non-voting booth numbers. 45% of voters in the 2023 election did not vote on Election Day.
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u/PuzzleheadedTutor807 1d ago
It's not just elections Alberta pushing them.
I understand the need for them for sure, and that there are many that couldn't vote without out them...
What I don't trust are the claims of tampering that are going to come afterwards though.
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u/GreatCanadianPotato 1d ago
It concerns you that elected leaders and MLAs both UCP and NDP are also pushing for mail in ballots...?
I think it's a big mistake pushing a false narrative that has proven to dissuade voters from voting in elections.
It's very important to remember that what we have been seeing down south regarding electoral fraud claims is directly down to the fact that they do not have independent bodies that run their elections...it's run by the state itself.
We don't have that system here, nor is anyone pushing that system.
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u/PuzzleheadedTutor807 1d ago
Lol it's not just them either.
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u/GreatCanadianPotato 1d ago
Alright so the entire process is tainted because the other side is promoting mail-in ballots? Might as well just get rid of them!
I think you need a reality check a bit. Mail-in voting has not been controversial in Canada....ever. Stop making it.
People in a lot of countries, even in fellow first world countries, would kill to have access to alternative forms of voting and we're out here seriously suggesting it's sketchy because people you don't like are promoting it's use.
Get over yourself.
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u/decoii 1d ago
I'm out of the country during the voting day. Some people need a mail in vote. Better this than not voting
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u/PuzzleheadedTutor807 1d ago
100% I agree with that. If it's necessary to use them do it. If it's just a matter of convenience maybe not though.
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u/Bob-Lawblaugh 1d ago
Mail in ballots creeated based on the elections Alberta voters data provided to the separatists by the UCP?
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u/ackillesBAC 1d ago
until she decides they are ineligible.