New Citizen Initiative Petition Issued

October 14, 2025

EDMONTON – Today, Alberta’s Chief Electoral Officer, Gordon McClure, issued the petition for the “Alberta Funds Public Schools” citizen initiative.

Prior to issuing the petition, the Chief Electoral Officer received, and is satisfied with, the appointment of a Chief Financial Officer for the citizen initiative, as required under sections 3(3) and 21(1) of the Citizen Initiative Act.

The notice on the Current Initiatives Petitions page of Elections Alberta’s website has been updated, indicating the petition has been issued, and specifying the signing period end date and the number of signatures required for a successful petition. Citizen initiative petition signature sheets have been issued to the proponent. Signatures collected on other forms will not be accepted. The proponent may now proceed with collecting signatures as set out in division 2, sections 4 to 9 of the Citizen Initiative Act.

Petition Information
The Alberta Funds Public Schools citizen initiative petition is for a policy proposal with the following proposed question:

Should the Government of Alberta end its current practice of allocating public funds to accredited independent (private) schools?

Signature collection period ends: February 11, 2026.
Number of signatures required for a successful petition: 177,732
(10% of the total number votes cast in the 2023 Provincial General Election).

Next steps

1. The proponent registers canvassers. Registered canvassers must be eligible electors and must comply with the Canvasser Code of Conduct and any guidelines for canvassing issued by the Chief Electoral Officer. Only registered canvassers may collect signatures on the petition.
2. The proponent and registered canvassers may collect signatures from eligible electors for a period of 120 days. The proponent must submit all petition signature sheets to Elections Alberta on or before February 11, 2026.
3. Any petition signature sheets received after February 11, 2026, will not be accepted.
4. Elections Alberta will verify the petition within 21 days from the date the petition is submitted (by March 4, 2026, if the petition is submitted on February 11, 2026) and report the results on our website. More information about the verification process is available on our Citizen Initiative Process webpage.

During the signature collection period, the proponent is responsible for:

• providing copies of the petition signature sheets to canvassers,
• submitting completed canvasser applications to Elections Alberta (incomplete or ineligible applications will be returned to the proponent for correction),
• answering Albertan’s questions about signature collection and their petition, and
• providing canvassers with information on the process, timelines, contacts, supplies, and any other training and direction they feel is necessary to complete the canvassing period and ensure canvassers are following the requirements for signature collection.

Elections Alberta is responsible for:

• reviewing the canvasser applications and returning incomplete or invalid applications to the proponent,
• registering canvassers, and
• providing each registered canvasser with identification documents (ID) that must be produced on request while canvassing.

Elections Alberta will send out canvasser identification within 2 to 3 business days of receiving completed and valid applications from the proponent. This may be extended should a significant volume of canvasser applications for badges be received in a short time period. If Canada Post service continues to be disrupted, an alternative delivery method will be used until the strike ends.

For more information about the proponent’s and Elections Alberta’s responsibilities during the signature collection period, please visit Elections Alberta’s Citizen Initiative Process webpage.

Citizen Initiative Petition Signature Requirements
For signatures to be valid, individuals signing the petition must:

• Be an eligible elector on the date they sign.
• Write the required name and address information legibly, confirm they are an eligible elector, and date it on the date they sign.
• Sign the petition only once and only during the 120-day petition signing period.
• Sign their signature. Only original physical signatures are valid. Digital or online signatures will not be accepted.

A registered canvasser must witness each signature collected and sign as a witness on each signature sheet.

More information on the process, the status of citizen initiative petitions, financing rules, third party advertising rules, and answers to frequently asked questions may be found on Elections Alberta’s website.

Elections Alberta is an independent, non-partisan office of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta responsible for administering provincial elections, by-elections, and referenda.

For media inquiries, please contact:
Robyn Bell
Media Relations
Phone: 403-589-7233
Email: media@elections.ab.ca

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