Alberta separatists gain partial win in court on referendum petition
Justice Alice Woolley said the signatures must be verified, but the separatists still cannot add their proposed referendum question while appeals continue.
- On Monday, an Appeal Court judge ruled that signatures on a petition for an Alberta referendum on leaving Canada can be counted and verified, granting organizers a partial legal victory.
- A lower court judge had effectively dismissed the petition last month, ruling the process was offside because the province failed to fulfill its constitutional duty to consult First Nations.
- Led by activist Mitch Sylvestre, the separatist group gathered at least 300,000 signatures, well above the threshold required to trigger a binding referendum on quitting Confederation.
- Justice Woolley ruled that the proposed referendum question cannot be added to the Oct. 19 vote until the ongoing appeal process resolves, denying the group's full request.
- Woolley reasoned that failing to verify signatures now would create unnecessary legal complications should either the group or the provincial government successfully appeal the earlier court decision.
42 Articles
42 Articles
Alberta Separatists Get Partial Court Victory in Referendum Petition Case
An appeal court has ruled that Elections Alberta can proceed with signature validation of a petition drive demanding a separation referendum, after a lower court ruled the petition unlawful. Court of Appeal Justice Alice Woolley ruled June 29 that Alberta’s chief electoral officer, Gordon McClure, may begin verifying the petition’s signatures and report the results, but cannot take any further steps to advance the petition pending the appeal. Wo…
Red Deer Advocate
Ponoka NewsCourt of Appeal grants partial stay on Alberta separation petition
Justice Alice Woolley of the Alberta Court of Appeal issued a partial stay in favour of Mitch Sylvestre and Stay Free Alberta. In a decision filed June 29, Justice Woolley said that Sylvestre’s petition, which ended May 2, may be counted to allow the Chief Elections Officer to determine if it was successful. Regardless of the results, the decision states they may not be forwarded to the minister, meaning the question’s inclusion in the October r…
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