It’s referendum day in Alberta.
asserted
It → ’ → Alberta
Here’s what you need to know
Polls open across province 9 a.m. to 8 p.m.
asserted
Polls → ’ → p.m.
Albertans will cast their ballots in a historic referendum Monday, weighing in on 10 questions about the future of the province.
asserted
Albertans → cast → province
Already, Elections Alberta says 1.3 million people across the province have voted either by special ballot or in advance polls.
asserted
people → say → polls
The referendum features 10 questions.
asserted
referendum → feature → questions
Questions one through nine centre around immigration and the Constitution.
asserted
Questions → centre → immigration
Question 10 asks if voters support Alberta remaining a province of Canada, or if they support the provincial government beginning the process of holding a second, binding referendum on separation.
asserted
government → ask → separation
If you are voting on referendum day, here is what you need to know.
asserted
you → vote → what
Unlike in advance voting, on referendum day voters are required to vote at their designated polling station.
asserted
voters → require → station
If you’re not sure where that is, you can enter your address on Elections Alberta’s website to find it.
asserted
you → ’re → it
An attestation form from an authorized signatory will also be accepted.
asserted
form → accept → signatory
While polling stations are set to close at 8 p.m., if voters are in line before 8 p.m., they will still be allowed to cast their ballots.
asserted
they → set → ballots
“The location will stay open until everyone in that line has had the opportunity to vote,” said Elections Alberta spokesperson Maia Hanrahan.
asserted
Hanrahan → stay → opportunity
What if you’re not sure your special ballot’s been counted?
asserted
ballot → ’re → ?
Elections Alberta received requests for more than 600,000 special ballots, and encouraged Albertans to post them in by Oct. 9 in order to meet the Oct. 16 deadline.
asserted
Alberta → receive → deadline
If your mail-in ballot was not received by the deadline, or if you applied for a special ballot but never mailed it in, you can still vote on referendum day.
asserted
you → mail → day
After marking their ballots, voters place each of their 10 ballots in its corresponding box.
asserted
voters → mark → box
“I'd encourage [voters] to first have a look at that link that they received when they applied for that special ballot.
asserted
they → encourage → ballot
They will be able to see there if it's marked as received and that they've cast their ballots,” said Hanrahan.
asserted
Hanrahan → see → ballots
“If they're not marked as received, they can go and attend in person to vote.”
Do you have to vote on all 10 questions?
asserted
you → mark → questions
No, says Hanrahan.
asserted
Hanrahan → say → ?
Voters can vote on all 10 questions, just one, or however many of the 10 questions they would like.
asserted
they → vote → questions
She suggests voters familiarize themselves with the questions to speed up the process.
uncertain
voters → suggest → process
Each referendum question is on a separate, colour-coded ballot.
asserted
question → cod → ballot
After marking an X on their ballots, voters fold them and place each one in its corresponding box.
asserted
voters → mark → box
The ballot will be counted no matter how it is folded, Hanrahan said.
asserted
Hanrahan → count → ?
Voters can also request a replacement ballot at the station if they mark an option they don’t want, or if they accidentally tear or rip a ballot.
asserted
they → request → ballot
Can you wear pro-Canada or pro-Alberta apparel?
asserted
you → wear → apparel
“People can wear what they'd like to the voting locations.
asserted
they → wear → locations
The only rule there is that they can't be wearing something that would be classified as referendum advertising,” said Hanrahan.
asserted
Hanrahan → wear → advertising
That means wearing an Alberta flag baseball cap or a T-shirt with the Maple Leaf is fine, but wearing a campaign slogan, or a message on how to vote on any of the questions, would not be.
asserted
wearing → mean → questions
When will we know results?
asserted
we → know → results
Election officers will count the ballots by hand and the count must be completed within 48 hours under provincial rules.
asserted
count → count → rules
Question 10, the ballot related to separation, will be counted first.
asserted
Question → relate → separation
Then counters will deal with the other questions in order, starting with the first question.
asserted
counters → deal → question
Hanrahan says workers will not wait for all polling stations to finish their count of the 10th ballot before moving on, meaning results may start coming in for the other nine questions before the 10th question has been declared.
uncertain
question → say → questions
Referendum results will also be covered live on the CBC Edmonton and CBC Calgary websites.
asserted
results → cover → websites
The Aporia
