Some referendum ballots missing as Albertans begin to receive mail-in paperwork

As demand for mail-in ballots continues to climb ahead of the Alberta referendum, some residents are reporting problems with the packages they have received from Elections Alberta.

Edmonton seniors Lorrie and John Jegen got their mail-in voting packages on Sept. 1. While Lorrie’s envelope contained all the required slips of paper, her husband’s was significantly lighter.

“All I got was… one ballot,” John Jegen said, holding up the slip of paper containing the first referendum question from the package he received — which was missing the other nine questions.

“Can’t do much with that.”

The couple applied to vote in advance to avoid lines at polling stations like the ones experienced during last year’s municipal election, when some voters waited several hours.

“The thought of standing in line for three or four hours because there’s no automatic tabulated voting machines and what have you … it’s tough for a couple like us,” Jegen said.

“My wife certainly won’t be able do it, and I would have a hard time too.”

After discovering the missing pages, Jegen said he contacted Elections Alberta and, unable to talk to a person, left a message asking what to do.

Jegen is still waiting for a response, but hopes to see the issue resolved quickly so his vote can count.

“I’m hoping they come back and say, ‘Yeah, okay, here’s your booklet’ or ‘Come and get it’ or ‘We’ll send it to you.’ But we’ll have to wait and see,” he said.

“I am one of the people who wants to stay in Canada and so is my wife, so it’s very important to us to make sure that our voices are heard.”

Elections Alberta says voters who receive incomplete packages should do what Jegen did — contact the agency so the issue can be corrected.

The special ballots come attached to each other, Elections Alberta said, explaining they’re all glued together at the top and have a cardboard backing like a notepad.

“There are a few, a couple handfuls right now of people reporting that they’re missing maybe question one from their ballot, or they’re missing the ballot package,” deputy chief electoral officer Dallas Stoesz said on Thursday.

“Those folks should get in touch with us. We’ll make sure to get them a proper set of ballots.”

The provincial agency is also addressing concerns about wording contained in some special ballot declaration forms.

A statement on certain forms asks voters to declare they are unable to vote at advance voting, which takes place Oct. 13 to 17 or on the Oct. 19 referendum day — or face a fine.

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Elections Alberta said the language came from a previous version of the Election Act and will be removed from future ballot packages.

Stoesz said voters who receive forms containing the outdated wording can simply cross it out before submitting their ballot package.

“They complete the rest of the declaration, sign it, send it back — we will accept those,” she said. “Every special ballot package going out from now forward will have a different declaration with that line removed.”

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The agency is making the changes as it grapples with unprecedented interest in mail-in voting ahead of the Oct. 19 referendum.

“This is absolutely a historic event. Not only has Alberta never done anything like this, nowhere in Canada has done anything like this before,” Stoesz said.

“Yes, we’ve had referendums. Yes, there’s been millions of ballots — but not concentrated like this.”

Elections Alberta says about 290,000 people have already applied for special ballots, up from 225,000 earlier in the week.

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The spike in applications has prompted Elections Alberta to move up the deadline for requesting a special ballot.

Voters must now apply by Sept. 25, two weeks earlier than the original Oct. 9 deadline.

Stoesz said the change is intended to avoid a rush of last-minute applications and help ensure ballots can be delivered and returned on time, particularly with the Thanksgiving holiday affecting mail service.

Elections Alberta has said administering the referendum will be a massive undertaking that will require at least 60,000 workers.

The ballot contains 10 government-initiated questions dealing largely with immigration and constitutional reform, although public attention has focused on the final question asking Albertans whether they want to remain in Canada or proceed to a second, binding referendum on leaving Confederation.

The vote, announced Feb. 19, initially contained the first nine questions pertaining to immigration and the Constitution.

Then on May 21, Premier Danielle Smith announced a 10th question was being added, putting the issue of Alberta separatism in the hands of voters.

The 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?”

Elections Alberta is encouraging voters to read the questions in advance and understand what they mean, as polling station staff are limited in what they can convey.

“Beyond having the posters and information about what the questions are, we won’t be able to offer any explanation on what the question mean or the intent of the questions,” said Michelle Gurney, media relations lead with Elections Alberta.

Once the polls close, the counting won’t stop until it’s done.

“There are no breaks. It is straight through. We do not have the option to go home and sleep and come back the next day and start. We have 48 hours from the time voting ends to complete the count,” Stoesz said, explaining that is why elections staff will be working in shifts around the clock.

Elections Alberta leadership will be receiving support from their counterparts across Canada during that window.

“Obviously we can’t stay awake for 60 hours and be coherent. So they’re gonna be coming and helping us because they are experienced professionals. They know exactly how to do this work,” Stoesz said.

With files from The Canadian Press

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