Alberta judge rejects bid to stop review of proposed independence referendum question

An Alberta judge has rejected a request to halt the review of a proposed referendum question on independence.Proceeding with a full hearing on the constitutionality of the question will benefit democracy, said Court of King’s Bench Justice Colin Feasby at the second court hearing in Edmonton on Thursday.While the people of Alberta have the right to vote, they have the right to know about the consequences of a potential separation, Feasby said.The question was submitted by a citizen named Mitch Sylvestre from the Alberta Prosperity Project on July 4. It was later referred to the court by Alberta’s top election official, Gordon McClure. The question asks:“Do you agree that the Province of Alberta shall become a sovereign country and cease to be a province in Canada?”Feasby said that referring the question to the court was the correct course of action, noting that McClure’s approach adheres to best practices for administering referendums.In the first hearing last week, the court debated whether to strike the referendum question and whether the chief electoral officer's role in determining the question's clarity should be usurped by the court. It also touched on the democratic process and the potential impact on treaty and Indigenous rights.Last Thursday, the lawyer representing the Alberta independence initiative, Jeffrey Rath, argued that "asking a question can never be unconstitutional," noting that "it's incumbent on the chief electoral officer to decide," suggesting that no further time should be spent on the question in court..Hearing to determine legality of Alberta independence question ends; back in court next Thursday.At the end of July, Alberta’s Minister of Justice Mickey Amery requested that Elections Alberta withdraw its court referral — a move supported by Premier Danielle Smith.“We encourage Elections Alberta to withdraw its court reference and permit Albertans their democratic right to participate in the citizen initiative process,” Amery said in a post on X.“Response to Citizen Initiative Process: The recently passed amendments to the Citizen Initiative Act are intended to be broadly permissive and to allow Albertans the opportunity to launch a referendum petition without needless bureaucratic red tape or court applications slowing the process. As it is the Government of Alberta that ultimately decides how or if to implement any referendum result, those government decisions will ultimately be subject to constitutional scrutiny.”Under Alberta’s Citizen Initiative Act, people can suggest new laws or ask for referendums, as long as those ideas follow the Canadian Constitution..Petition on Alberta’s future in Canada collecting signatures in Calgary this week.To hold an independence referendum in Alberta, currently, the process can be initiated through two primary mechanisms under existing legislation: the Referendum Act and the Citizen Initiative Act.A petition must collect signatures from approximately 600,000 eligible voters (about 20% of Alberta’s eligible voters, based on the 2019 election turnout) within a 90-day period.If passed, the new law will cut the number needed in half to 10%.Former Progressive Conservative deputy premier Thomas Lukaszuk launched a counter-petition, asking: “Do you agree that Alberta should remain in Canada?”Lukaszuk’s citizen initiative petition is called Alberta Forever Canada. It was issued by the chief electoral officer at the end of July, and signature collection is currently underway, expected to conclude on Oct. 28.The petition needs signatures from 10% of voters who participated in the last provincial election.

Alberta judge rejects bid to stop review of proposed independence referendum question

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