Citizen Initiative Process

Electors can use the citizen initiative process to have a legislative or policy proposal introduced in the legislative assembly or to have a constitutional referendum conducted.

Who Can Apply for a Citizen Initiative Petition?

To make an application for a citizen initiative petition, an individual must be an eligible elector – a Canadian citizen, 18 years of age or older, and a resident of Alberta.

The following individuals cannot apply:

a sitting member of the Legislature;
the Chief Electoral Officer, Election Commissioner, an election officer, or an individual who is otherwise a member of the Chief Electoral Officer’s office staff;
an individual who is prohibited from being a chief financial officer under section 29(4) of the Election Finances and Contributions Disclosure Act;
an individual who, at any time within the previous 8 years, has been convicted of an offence under the Citizen Initiative Act, the Election Act, or the Election Finances and Contributions Disclosure Act.

How do I Apply?

Applications for a citizen initiative petition are submitted to the Chief Electoral Officer.

Applicants must provide:

A completed application for Citizen Initiative Petition,
Authorized identification proving the elector’s identity and current address in Alberta, and
The $500 application fee, paid by cash, certified cheque, and/or bank or postal money order made payable to “Government of Alberta”.

The Application for Citizen Initiative Petition requires the proponent to provide a statement of the subject matter of the application that meets the following requirements:

- The statement is clear and unambiguous.
- The proposal does not contravene sections 1 to 35.1 of the Constitution Act, 1982.

For legislative proposals:
- The statement sets out the subject matter of the proposed legislation, and
- The proposal does not exceed the jurisdiction of the Legislature.
For constitutional referendum proposals:
- The statement sets out a question relating to the Constitution of Canada or relating to or arising out of a possible change to the Constitution of Canada,
- The question is factually accurate, and
- The question requires a “yes” or “no” answer.
The proposal is not the same or substantially similar to a proposal that is currently underway or would result in a conflict with the outcome of a petition currently underway.
The proposal is not the same or substantially similar to a proposal determined to be the subject of an unsuccessful referendum or unsuccessful citizen initiative vote in the previous 5 years, unless the Chief Electoral Officer has determined the previous petition to be unduly delayed taking advantage of this section of the legislation.

When Can an Application be Made?

An application for a citizen initiative petition can be made at any time, except during a Provincial General Election. If a citizen initiative petition is active when a Provincial General Election is called, the petition process is terminated, but the proponent can apply to continue the process within 30 days after Election Day.

What is the Approval Process for a Citizen Initiative Application?

In considering the proponent’s application, the Chief Electoral Officer may:

Consult with the applicant or other persons;
Provide advice and assistance to the applicant as to the form and substance of the proposal or constitutional question; or
State a question in the form of a special case to the Court seeking the opinion of the Court as to whether the proposal conforms with the requirements of section 2(3) and (4) of the Act, as applicable.

No later than 30 days after the date on which an elector applied, or on which the Court gives its decision, the Chief Electoral Office must determine if the requirements above have been met.

If they have, the Chief Electoral Officer will notify the proponent within 7 days of the date of determination and publish a Notice of Initiative Petition on the Elections Alberta website. This notice will include the application and statement provided by the proponent.

If the Chief Electoral Officer is not satisfied the requirements have been met, the Chief Electoral Officer will reject the application and notify the applicant of the rejection and the reasons for the rejection.

When is the Initiative Petition Issued?

The Notice of Initiative Petition must be published for 7 days prior to issuing the citizen initiative petition. During this time, the proponent must appoint a chief financial officer using the Appointment of Chief Financial Officer form.

At the end of the 7-day publication period, Elections Alberta will:

Issue the citizen initiative petition.
Publish a notice on this website that the petition has been issued, the dates of the signing period, and the number of signatures required for a successful petition.
Issue the citizen initiative petition signature sheet to the proponent in the format that must be used. Each citizen initiative petition proponent will be provided a petition signature sheet by the Chief Electoral Officer which must be used as the master form for collecting petition signatures. Signatures collected on other or incorrect forms will not be accepted.

The applicant is responsible for:

Making copies of the petition signature sheet issued by Elections Alberta and providing them to registered canvassers.
Providing proponent campaign contact information and answering canvasser and citizen/elector questions about the citizen initiative signature collection period. Please do not direct canvassers or electors to Elections Alberta for information about the campaign.
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.

*Notices of Initiative Petition for citizen initiative petitions approved by the Chief Electoral Officer prior to July 4, 2025, must be published for 30 days prior to issuing the citizen initiative petition.

How do I Register Canvassers?

The proponent must register every individual they wish to have canvass on their behalf, using the Application to Canvass for an Initiative Petition.

Proponents are responsible for:

Providing potential canvassers with the Application to Canvass for an Initiative Petition form.
Ensuring canvassers are eligible electors (18+ year of age, ordinarily resident in Alberta, and a Canadian citizen).
Ensuring canvasser applications are complete and legible. If they are not, they cannot be processed and will be returned to the proponent to be corrected. The proponent is responsible for having these revised and completed correctly and resubmitting them to Elections Alberta.
Collecting completed registration forms and sending them to Elections Alberta, following the instructions provided by Elections Alberta.
Keeping canvasser applicants informed on when their applications were submitted to Elections Alberta and handling inquiries about them.
Ensuring duplicate applications are not sent to Elections Alberta.
Ensure canvassers understand and follow the requirements of the legislation and Elections Alberta’s direction for collecting signatures.
Returning all issued canvasser ID badges to Elections Alberta.

Elections Alberta is responsible for:

Reviewing the applications and returning incomplete or invalid applications to the proponent.
Registering canvassers.
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.

What are the Requirements for Collecting Signatures?

Only signatures collected as outlined below, on official Citizen Initiative petition signature sheets issued to the proponent by Elections Alberta, will be accepted.

Proponents are responsible for:

Ensuring canvassers have copies of the official petition signature sheets.
All costs associated with collecting signatures, including canvasser supplies (such as pens and clipboards), signage, advertising, communications, space rental, permits, etc.
All logistics and scheduling for canvassers and collection.
Telling people where, when, and how to sign their petition.
Collecting signatures totalling at least 10% of the total number of votes cast in the most recent provincial general election for the petition to be successful. It is recommended additional signatures be collected in case any signatures are invalidated during the verification process.

Only registered canvassers can collect signatures on the petition and witness each signature collected.

Registered canvassers must:

Collect signatures using the petition signature sheets issued to the proponent by Elections Alberta. Signatures collected on any other form will not be valid.
Witness each of the signatures collected.
Produce their canvasser identification documents on request while canvassing.
Comply with the Canvasser Code of Conduct and any guidelines for canvassing issued by the Chief Electoral Officer.
Return their canvasser ID to the proponent on or before the last day of the citizen initiative petition signing period.

All signatures must be collected within the 120-day initiative petition signature period.*

See Citizen Initiative FAQs for more information.

*For applications for citizen initiative petition approved by the Chief Electoral Officer prior to July 4, 2025:

Legislative or policy proposals require signatures equal to at least 10% of the total number of electors on the post-election day list of electors.
Constitutional referendum proposals require signatures equal to at least 20% of the total number of electors on the post-election day list of electors, with 20% met in at least two-thirds of electoral divisions.
All signatures must be collected within the 90-day initiative petition signature period.

What are the Requirements for Signing a Petition?

To be eligible to sign a petition, an individual must be an eligible elector on the date they sign the petition.

An elector signing the petition must:

print their surname and given names legibly;
print the residential address where they ordinarily reside at the time of signing;
provide their telephone number and/or email address;
confirm they are an eligible elector; and
date it on the date they signed the petition.

An individual may only sign the citizen initiative petition once and only during the citizen initiative petition signing period.

All signatures must be original signature. No digital, photocopied, or online signatures will be accepted.

See Citizen Initiative FAQs for more information.

When Do I Submit the Petition?

The proponent must submit all petition signature sheets to Elections Alberta on or before the 120^th day of canvassing*.

The submission must be organized, packaged, and labelled as directed by Elections Alberta and made to Elections Alberta’s head office in Edmonton. The proponent is responsible for any shipping and transportation charges and ensuring the complete materials shipment arrives on time.

Any petition received after the citizen initiative petition signing period ends will not be accepted for verification.

Once the petition is submitted, no further signatures may be added to the petition and no additional signature sheets may be submitted.

*For applications for citizen initiative petition approved by the Chief Electoral Officer prior to July 4, 2025, all signatures must be collected within the 90-day initiative petition signature period.

When Do I Submit the Financial Disclosure Reports?

The proponent’s chief financial officer must submit a citizen initiative petition expense report consisting of a financial statement, a contribution report, an expense report, and supporting information and documents. The report is due within 30 days after the signature sheet submission date or within 30 days after the petition signing period expires, whichever is earlier. The report is required even if the petition has been withdrawn or terminated. In addition, audited financial statements must be filed within six months after the citizen initiative petition period if citizen initiative petition expenses exceed $350,000.

Failure to meet a filing deadline will result in an automatic late filing fee of $500. In addition, failure to submit reports may result in a determination the petition was unsuccessful.

What is the Petition Verification Process?

Elections Alberta will verify the petition within 21 days of the date the petition was submitted using the method as prescribed in the Act to achieve a 95% confidence level.

*For applications for citizen initiative petition approved by the Chief Electoral Officer prior to July 4, 2025, Elections Alberta will verify the petition within 60 days of the date the petition was submitted.

The verification process includes:

Confirmation that only the petition signature sheets as provided to the applicant were used in the collection of signatures;
Confirmation that only original signatures have been collected;
A review of each signature to ensure the required information was provided (full name, physical address, contact information, date, signature);
Confirmation that each signature on the petition was witnessed by a registered canvasser;
A random sample to confirm the signatories’ addresses are in Alberta; and
Contacting a random sample of signatories to confirm they signed the petition.

As soon as practical after completing the petition verification, Elections Alberta will report the results on the Elections Alberta website.

For a successful petition, Elections Alberta will submit a copy of the legislative or policy proposal to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly or submit a copy of the constitutional referendum proposal to the Minister of Justice and Solicitor General, as the case may be.

What are the Requirements after the Results of the Petition are Published?

Within two days of the publication of the results of the initiative petition, the applicant must:

Return the citizen initiative petition and all canvasser identification documents to Elections Alberta;
Destroy all additional copies of signatures sheets made by the proponent or canvassers; and
Submit to Elections Alberta a signed affidavit confirming all signature sheets have been returned and all copies destroyed.

What happens following a Successful Petition?

As outlined in the Citizen Initiative Act, the following duties will be executed:

Legislative Proposal

The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly shall lay the proposal before the Legislative Assembly if it is then sitting, or if it is not then sitting, within 15 days after the commencement of the next sitting.
Within 10 sitting days, the Government shall bring forward a motion to have the proposal referred to a committee of the Legislative Assembly.
Within 90 days if the Assembly is sitting, or within 15 days after the commencement of the next sitting, the committee may either table a report recommending that a bill be introduced at the earliest practicable opportunity or table a report recommending the Chief Electoral Officer hold an initiative vote.
If the Legislative Assembly concurs with the introduction of a bill, the Government shall introduce the bill at the earliest practicable opportunity.

Policy Proposal

The Speaker of the Legislative Assembly shall lay the proposal before the Legislative Assembly if it is then sitting, or if it is not then sitting, within 15 days after the commencement of the next sitting.
Within 10 sitting days, the Government shall bring forward a motion to have the proposal referred to a committee of the Legislative Assembly.
Within 90 days if the Assembly is sitting, or within 15 days after the commencement of the next sitting, the committee may either table a report with respect to the policy proposal at the earliest practicable opportunity or table a report recommending the policy proposal be referred to the Lieutenant Governor in Council for the purpose of a referendum.
A referendum must be held on or before the fixed date of the next provincial general election. If that date is less than one year after the date the recommendation is tabled, the referendum must be held before the provincial general election following the next provincial general election.

Constitutional Referendum Proposal

The Minister shall refer to the constitutional referendum proposal to the Lieutenant Governor in Council for the purpose of a constitutional referendum.
A referendum must be held on or before the fixed date for the next provincial general election, If that date is less than one year after the date on which the Minister receives a copy of the constitutional referendum proposal, the referendum must be held before the provincial general election following the next provincial general election.

Initiative Vote

If the Legislative Assembly refers an initiative petition to the Chief Electoral Officer:

An initiative vote must be held on or before the fixed date of the next provincial general election. If that date is less than one year after the date the report recommending the initiative vote is tabled, the initiative vote must be held before the provincial general election following the next provincial general election
An initiative vote is successful if more than 50% of the electors who voted vote in favour of the initiative.