Alberta votes Monday on whether to start the legal process toward separating from Canada

As of 1:50 p.m. ET, Sunday, Oct. 18, 2026

Albertans go to the polls Monday, Oct. 19, in a provincewide referendum that asks, among 10 questions, whether the province should remain in Canada or begin the legal process toward a binding vote on separation.

More than 703,000 people cast ballots in advance voting, which ended Saturday, and more than 1.2 million had voted when special ballots are included, Global News reported, citing Elections Alberta.

What is on the ballot

Question 10 is a choice between two options, according to Elections Alberta:

• Option 1: "Alberta should remain a province of Canada."
• Option 2: "The Government of Alberta should commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada."

The provincial order that set the question says the result is not binding. A vote for Option 2 would not itself take Alberta out of Canada; it asks the government to start a constitutional process that would lead to a separate, binding referendum, according to the wording of the question.

Voters also face nine yes-or-no questions. Five deal with immigration, eligibility for provincial programs and proof of citizenship to vote, and four ask whether Alberta should work with other provinces on constitutional changes, including abolishing the Senate and letting provinces, rather than Ottawa, select judges for provincial King's Bench and Appeal courts.

When results come

Polls are open from 9 a.m. to 8 p.m. local time Monday (11 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET). Ballots are counted by hand, and Question 10 will be counted first at each voting station, Elections Alberta said. Counting of advance and special ballots begins at 5 p.m. local time Monday, and the unofficial count must be completed within 48 hours of polls closing. Unofficial results will be posted as counts finish, and the official announcement of results is scheduled for Oct. 29 at 10 a.m. local time.

No results will be available until polls close Monday night. Any figures presented as results before then are not genuine.

What the polls say

A Léger online survey of 1,000 Alberta adults taken Oct. 14 to 16 found 74% favored remaining a province of Canada and 21% favored beginning the separation process, with 4% expressing no opinion. Léger said support for remaining rose from 65% in August. Polls are not results.

Why it matters

The question asks voters to decide whether a Canadian province should begin a formal path toward leaving the country. Even a vote for Option 2 would only start a constitutional process; a binding separation vote would have to come later.