Recall Process
Recall is a process to remove a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) from office between elections by collecting sufficient signatures in the Member’s electoral division.
Who can apply for a petition to recall an MLA?
To apply for a recall petition, an individual must be an eligible elector who has lived in the electoral division for at least three months prior to the date of the application. An eligible elector is a Canadian citizen, 18 years of age or older, and a resident of Alberta.
The following individuals cannot apply:
- a sitting member of the same Legislature as the member named in the recall petition;
- 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 Recall Act, the Election Act or the Election Finances and Contributions Disclosure Act.
How do I apply?
Applications for a recall petition are submitted to the Chief Electoral Officer. Applicants must provide:
- A completed Application for Recall Petition and Notice of Recall Petition,
- A completed Appointment of Chief Financial Officer form,
- Copies of authorized identification demonstrating the applicant’s identity and residential address in the electoral division, and
- The $500 application fee, paid by cash, a certified cheque, and/or a bank or postal money order made payable to “Government of Alberta”.
The Notice of Recall Petition requires the applicant to provide a statement of 100 words or less stating the reason for the recall. In determining the number of words in the statement, Elections Alberta will use the electronic word count feature of a word processing application. Submissions with more than 100 words will not be accepted.
The Notice of Recall Petition will be made public. The statements be made available to be reviewed by all electors signing the petition. Elections Alberta will not correct any errors or otherwise amend the submitted statement.
When can a Recall Petition application be made?
A recall petition application may be made during the MLA’s term in office except:
- within the 12-month period immediately following the day on which the MLA was elected,
- within the 12-month period before the next fixed provincial general election day,
- during the writ period of a by-election or general election in that electoral division, or
- if another application for recall for that electoral division has been issued or published by the Chief Electoral Officer.
The application period is open 12 months after the Provincial General Election held on May 29, 2023, and closes 12 months before the next scheduled Provincial General Election to be held October 18, 2027.
For most MLAs, this means the current recall application period is open May 29, 2024, to October 18, 2026. If the MLA was elected in a by-election, the opening date is 12 months after their election.
What happens after a Recall Application is submitted?
The Chief Electoral Officer will determine within 7 days of receiving the application whether the applicant has met all the requirements above.
If the Chief Electoral Officer is not satisfied the requirements have been met, the Chief Electoral Officer will reject the application and provide written notice to the applicant including the reasons for the rejection.
If the Chief Electoral Officer is satisfied the requirements have been met, within 7 days, the Chief Electoral Officer will provide written notice the application has been approved to:
- the applicant,
- the MLA named in the application,
- if applicable, to the leader of the party to which the applicant the MLA belongs, and
- the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.
The member named in an application approved may submit a statement in response to the applicant’s statement to the Chief Electoral Officer. This statement must:
- not exceed 100 words,
- set out why, in the opinion of the member, the recall is not warranted, and
- be received by the Chief Electoral Officer within 7 days after the date notice was provided to the member.
The applicant will also be provided with the petition signature sheet and witness affidavit in the format that must be used. Signatures collected on other forms will not be accepted. The applicant is responsible to make copies of the forms.
Within 7 days after the date on which the member’s statement is received, or the period to respond expires, whichever is earlier, Elections Alberta will publish on this website:
- The name and electoral division of the MLA subject to recall,
- The statement provided by the recall applicant with the reason for the recall,
- The statement provided by the member,
- The start and end dates of the petition signature canvassing period,
- The total number of votes cast for the electoral division named in the recall petition, and
- The required number of valid signatures for a successful petition.
How do I register canvassers?
The applicant must register every individual they wish to canvass on their behalf. Canvassers must be eligible electors who have lived in the electoral division in the previous 3-month period prior to canvassing.
Applicants are responsible for:
- Providing potential canvassers with the Application to Canvass for a Recall Petition form.
- Ensuring canvassers are eligible electors (18+ year of age, ordinarily resident in Alberta, a Canadian citizen, and have resided in the electoral division for at least 3 months prior to beginning canvassing).
- Ensuring canvasser applications are complete and legible. If they are not, they cannot be processed and will be returned to the applicant to be corrected. The applicant is responsible for having these revised and completed correctly and resubmitting them to Elections Alberta.
- Collecting completed registration forms for each canvasser 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 to Elections Alberta following the canvassing period.
Elections Alberta is responsible for:
- Reviewing the canvasser applications and returning incomplete or invalid applications to the petition applicant.
- Registering canvassers.
- Providing each registered canvasser with identification documents (ID) that must be produced on request while canvassing.
Elections Alberta will send out canvasser ID within 2 to 3 business days of receiving completed and valid applications from the petition applicant. This may be extended should a significant volume of canvasser applications be received in a short time period.
All canvassers must comply with the Canvasser Code of Conduct and any guidelines for canvassing issued by the Chief Electoral Officer. The ID must be returned by registered canvassers to the applicant on or before the last day of the canvassing period.
See Recall Petition FAQs for more information.
What are the requirements for collecting signatures?
Only signatures collected as outlined below, using the official Recall petition signature sheets issued to the petition applicant by Elections Alberta, will be accepted.
Applicants are responsible for:
- Ensuring canvassers have copies of the official petition signature sheets, including the applicant’s and member’s statements.
- 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 60% of the total number of votes cast in electoral division in the most recent election for the petition to be successful. It is recommended additional signatures be collected in case any signatures are invalidated during the verification process.
Registered canvassers must:
- Collect signatures using the petition signature sheets issued to the applicant by Elections Alberta. Signatures collected on any other form will not be valid.
- Witness each of the signatures collected and swear an affidavit.
- 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 applicant on or before the last day of the recall petition signing period.
All signatures must be collected within the 90-day recall petition signature period.
Only registered canvassers can collect signatures on the petition and will also sign each petition sheet as a witness to the signatures collected. The witness will also be required to swear an affidavit that to the best of their knowledge, the individuals who signed were eligible to do so.
See Recall Petition FAQs for more information.
What are the requirements for signing a Recall Petition?
To be eligible to sign a petition, an individual must be an eligible elector who has resided in the electoral division for at least three months prior to signing 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 or email address;
- confirm in writing they are an eligible elector and have resided in the electoral division for at least the last 3 months; and
- date it on the date they signed the petition.
An individual may sign the recall petition only once and only during the 90-day canvassing period.
All signatures must be original signature. No digital, photocopied, or online signatures will be accepted.
See Recall Petition FAQs for more information.
When do I submit the petition and signature sheets?
The applicant must submit all petition signature sheets and the accompanying witness affidavits to Elections Alberta by 4:30pm on or before the 90th day of canvassing.
Once the petition is submitted, no further signatures may be added to the petition. Any petition signature sheets received after the petition is submitted and/or canvassing period ends will not be accepted for verification.
The submission must be organized, packaged, and labelled as directed by Elections Alberta and made to Elections Alberta’s head office in Edmonton. The petition applicant is responsible for any shipping and transportation charges and ensuring the complete materials shipment arrives on time.
What is the petition verification process?
Elections Alberta will verify the petition within 21 days of the date the petition was submitted.
During the verification process, Elections Alberta will:
- Confirm only the petition signature sheets as provided to the applicant were used to collect signatures;
- Confirm only original signatures have been collected;
- Review each signature to ensure the required information was provided (full name, current physical address, contact information, date, eligibility confirmation, and signature). Incomplete or invalid signatures are screened out and are not included in the final count.
- Confirm each page contains a registered canvasser witness signature, and the witness signed the required affidavit;
- Conduct a random sampling to confirm the signatories’ residential addresses are within the electoral division; and
- If the petition meets the signature threshold, contact a random sampling of electors to confirm they signed the petition using a method with a 95% confidence level.
A successful petition will contain valid signatures from eligible electors equal to at least 60% of the total number of votes cast in the most recent election in the electoral division named in the recall petition.
If it becomes clear during any part of the verification the count will not meet the 60% threshold, no further verification is done.
Within 7 days after completing the verification of the petition, Elections Alberta will provide written notice reporting the results to:
- the applicant;
- the member named in the Notice of Recall Petition;
- if applicable, the individual who is the leader of the registered party to which the member named in the notice belongs; and
- the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly.
The results will be published on the Elections Alberta website.
What are the applicant’s responsibilities after the results of the petition are published?
Within two days of the publication of the recall petition results, the applicant must:
- Return all copies of the recall petition and all canvasser identification documents to Elections Alberta;
- Destroy all copies of signature sheets, including blank copies, made by the applicant, their team, or registered canvassers, and
- Submit a signed affidavit to Election Alberta confirming the petition and all signature sheets have been returned and all copies destroyed as directed.
When do financial disclosure reports need to be submitted?
Each authorized participant’s chief financial officer must submit a recall petition expense limit report consisting of a financial statement, a contribution report, an expense report, and supporting information and documents. The report is required even if the petition has been withdrawn or terminated.
The report is due within 30 days after the petition submission date or within 30 days after the petition canvassing period expires, whichever is earlier. Failure to meet a filing deadline will result in an automatic late filing fee of $500.
This deadline applies to all authorized participants in a Recall Petition, not just the applicant. For more information, see Financing Rules for Authorized Participants.
What happens following a successful Recall petition?
The Lieutenant Governor in Council will order a recall vote to be conducted within 4 months of the date on which the successful petition results are published.
The question to be submitted to the electorate is whether the named member should be recalled.
A recall vote is successful if more than 50% of the electors who voted are in favour of the recall. If successful, the MLA is recalled and no longer an MLA, and a by-election is held in the electoral division.