EDMONTON — Thomas Lukaszuk's Forever Canadian claimed over $48,000 in financial contributions last week, as the third-party advertising group submitted its first donation report since Premier Danielle Smith declared the Alberta independence referendum question.Forever Canadian claimed $48,345 in its weekly financial report submitted to Elections Alberta on Thursday, four days after Lukaszuk declared that the group is "entering the arena of a third-party advertiser, and we will encourage all supporters and all Albertans to choose option A on question number ten." .The report is the first public insight into the financial status of Lukaszuk's federalist group in months, despite them actively campaigning against Alberta independence, distributing lawn signs, holding a concert, and calling for donations. Individuals have complained about a lack of transparency from Lukaszuk's group, as Alberta's Elections Finances and Contributions Disclosure Act requires all groups who incur greater than $1,000 in expenses advertising about the Oct. referendum to submit weekly contribution reports. Lukaszuk has openly called for donations from outside Alberta, which would violate the EFCD if any were received. Some have also questioned whether Forever Canadian has exceeded the $607,000 campaign donation cap or received more than the $5,000 per-donor limit. The report does not show when donations were received or where they came from. Forever Canadian's report lists $30,400 in donations above the $250 disclosure threshold and $17,945 below it. .The Conservative Party of Canada's "Stronger Alberta Within a United Canada" also listed their first contributions during the reporting period, claiming $11,200. Keith Wilson and Tanya Clemens' nationalist TPA, "Let Alberta Decide," inched closer to the campaign limit on Friday, claiming $21,772 during the reporting period and raising their overall total to $547,906. Political strategist Stephen Carter's "Alberta's Voice" continues retained their spot as the highest-funded federalist campaign, raising $27,158 during the week and lifting its total to $264,984. The seven federalist groups combined to beat the 17 nationalist TPAs on the weekly leaderboard, $113,550 to $42,862. However, the pro-independence side leads the overall campaign totals since the question was declared on May 21, raising $999,607 compared to the federalists’ $506,482. With over three weeks left before Alberta's Oct. 19 referendum, Albertans have donated more than $1.5 million to groups advertising on either side of the Alberta independence question.
