Albertans vote on ten separate questions on Monday, October 19. Below is the official wording of each one from Elections Alberta, along with what would have to happen for each result to be carried out.
Where the legal effect is uncertain or depends on future negotiations, the article says so.
Three things to know first
Questions 1 to 5 and Question 10 are non-binding. The Orders in Council for those questions expressly say their results are not binding on the Alberta government. A result could influence government policy, but it does not itself enact a law or trigger an automatic legal change.
Questions 6 to 9 are different. They are constitutional referendum questions. Under Alberta’s Referendum Act, a majority result on a constitutional referendum can bind the Alberta government to take steps within its authority to implement that result. Alberta still cannot amend the Constitution of Canada on its own, so any successful Yes result would require federal and provincial agreement under the applicable constitutional amending formula.
Question 10 is not a direct vote on separation. It asks voters to choose between Alberta remaining a province of Canada and the Alberta government beginning the legal process toward a future binding referendum on separation. The October 19 result itself is non-binding.
Questions 1 to 5: non-binding policy questions
Question 1 — Immigration levels
“Do you support the Government of Alberta taking increased control over immigration for the purposes of decreasing immigration to more sustainable levels, prioritizing economic migration and giving Albertans first priority on new employment opportunities?”
Immigration is an area of shared federal-provincial jurisdiction. Alberta already operates immigration programs including provincial nominee streams, but Canada retains responsibility for federal immigration objectives, admissibility and the final granting of permanent residence. Expanding Alberta’s control would require changes to the existing federal-provincial framework.
The question does not define “sustainable levels” or explain how “first priority” for Albertans in employment would work in practice.
Question 2 — Eligibility for provincial programs
“Do you support the Government of Alberta introducing a law mandating that only Canadian citizens, permanent residents and individuals with an Alberta-approved immigration status will be eligible for provincially-funded programs, such as health care, education and other social services?”
This is a non-binding policy question. If the government chose to act on it, legislation would have to define “Alberta-approved immigration status” and identify which provincially funded programs would be covered.
Question 3 — Twelve-month residency requirement
“Assuming that all Canadian citizens and permanent residents continue to qualify for social support programs as they do now, do you support the Government of Alberta introducing a law requiring all individuals with a non-permanent legal immigration status to reside in Alberta for at least 12 months before qualifying for any provincially-funded social support programs?”
The wording applies to people with non-permanent legal immigration status. Canadian citizens and permanent residents are expressly excluded from the proposed change. The question does not define which social-support programs would be included.
Question 4 — Fees for health care and education
“Assuming that all Canadian citizens and permanent residents continue to qualify for public health care and education as they do now, do you support the Government of Alberta charging a reasonable fee or premium to individuals with a non-permanent immigration status living in Alberta for their and their family’s use of the healthcare and education systems?”
The question sets no fee or premium amount and does not define what “reasonable” would mean. Any policy would have to specify who pays, which services are covered and how the charges interact with existing provincial and federal rules.
Question 5 — Proof of citizenship to vote
“Do you support the Government of Alberta introducing a law requiring individuals to provide proof of citizenship, such as a passport, birth certificate, or citizenship card, to vote in an Alberta provincial election?”
This would require changes to Alberta election law.
Voters already have to prove identity and current address. Elections Alberta says a Canadian passport cannot be used as the single piece of identification because it does not provide an accepted current address, but it may be used as one of two pieces of identification when the second document provides the required address.
Questions 6 to 9: constitutional questions
Alberta cannot make these constitutional changes by itself. Each would require participation by Parliament and other provinces under Canada’s constitutional amending rules.
Question 6 — Who appoints judges
“Do you support the Government of Alberta working with the governments of other willing provinces to amend the Canadian Constitution to have provincial governments, and not the federal government, select the justices appointed to provincial King’s Bench and Appeal courts?”
This would require a constitutional amendment. Because it would alter the current federal appointment power for superior-court judges across provinces, the general 7/50 amending formula would be the expected route: approval by the Senate and House of Commons plus at least seven provinces representing at least 50 per cent of Canada’s population.
Question 7 — Abolishing the Senate
“Do you support the Government of Alberta working with the governments of other willing provinces to amend the Canadian Constitution to abolish the unelected federal Senate?”
This requires unanimity. The Supreme Court of Canada ruled in the 2014 Senate Reform Reference that abolishing the Senate requires the consent of the Senate, the House of Commons and all ten provincial legislatures.
Question 8 — Opting out of federal programs while keeping the funding
“Do you support the Government of Alberta working with the governments of other willing provinces to amend the Canadian Constitution to allow provinces to opt out of federal programs that intrude on provincial jurisdiction such as health care, education, and social services, without a province losing any of the associated federal funding for use in its social programs?”
This would require a constitutional amendment. The general 7/50 formula is the likely route unless a final amendment were drafted in a way that triggered a different amending procedure.
Question 9 — Provincial law overriding federal law
“Do you support the Government of Alberta working with the governments of other willing provinces to amend the Canadian Constitution to better protect provincial rights from federal interference by giving a province’s laws dealing with provincial or shared areas of constitutional jurisdiction priority over federal laws when the province’s laws and federal laws conflict?”
This would change the current constitutional relationship between federal and provincial laws where valid laws conflict. The general 7/50 amending formula is the likely route, but the exact legal effect would depend on the wording of any eventual constitutional amendment.
No draft amendment text is on the ballot.
Question 10: the separation-process question
“Should Alberta remain a province of Canada or should the Government of Alberta commence the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether or not Alberta should separate from Canada?”
This is a choice between two options, not a Yes/No question.
A vote for the second option would not separate Alberta from Canada and would not itself schedule a separation referendum. It would indicate support for the Alberta government beginning the legal process toward a future binding referendum. The October 19 result is expressly non-binding.
The broader independence process has also been the subject of 2026 court proceedings. We will cover those cases separately rather than compressing their legal issues into this explainer.
An Angus Reid Institute survey conducted August 10 to 13, 2026 among 1,017 Alberta adults found 61 per cent preferred Alberta remain in Canada and 33 per cent supported beginning the process toward a future binding referendum. Polling can change, and results vary with wording and methodology.
What remains unclear
- Whether the Alberta government will act on any of the non-binding results.
- What legislation would be introduced if Questions 1 to 5 receive majority support.
- What exact constitutional amendment language would be proposed for Questions 6, 8 or 9.
- Whether other provinces or Parliament would support any of the constitutional proposals.
- How the remaining litigation connected to Alberta independence initiatives will ultimately be resolved.
Voting
Referendum day is Monday, October 19, 2026. Advance polls run October 13 to 17. Eligibility, identification rules and locations are published by Elections Alberta.
We have also published a full guide to dates, identification and finding your polling place. How to Vote in Alberta’s Oct. 19 Referendum: Dates and ID
Sources
- Elections Alberta — Referendum: official question wording and whether Questions 1–5 and 10 are binding.
- Constitution Act, 1982 — Part V: Canada’s constitutional amending formulas.
- Supreme Court of Canada — Reference re Senate Reform: unanimous consent requirement for abolishing the Senate.
- Canada-Alberta Cooperation on Immigration Agreement: federal and provincial responsibilities in immigration.
- Elections Alberta — ID Required to Vote: current identification rules.
- Angus Reid Institute — August 2026 Alberta referendum survey: polling cited above.
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