The preliminary count in Alberta’s referendum shows that a small majority of voters support reducing immigration.
asserted
majority → show → immigration
On questions of whether Premier Danielle Smith’s government should pursue constitutional reform on issues such as appointing judges or abolishing the federal Senate, voters are split.
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voters → pursue → Senate
Beyond the main question on separation, voters in Alberta marked ballots on nine other referendum questions focused on issues around immigration and constitutional change.
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voters → mark → immigration
Ms. Smith and the United Conservative Party government campaigned in favour of Albertans voting yes to the nine questions.
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Albertans → campaign → questions
In a social media post on Monday morning, the premier made one last push for “Yes to the Nine” and said it would mean Alberta “gets a real say” over immigration and “constitutional reforms that protect this province’s authority no matter who sits in Ottawa.”
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who → make → Ottawa
As of noon local time on Tuesday, yes votes were leading in all but one of those additional questions, with 84 per cent of polls reporting.
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cent → lead → polls
Ms. Smith has said she will use the results to push for negotiations with Ottawa and other provinces while also proposing her own policies, likely after next year’s scheduled provincial election.
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she → say → election
On some questions, however, the ultimate results remained too close to call.
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results → remain → questions
Preliminary results showed 55 per cent of voters answered yes to a proposal that Alberta take increased control of immigration, in order, in part, to limit the number of newcomers.
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Alberta → show → newcomers
Related questions about limiting services such as health care to some newcomers, or charging fees, have garnered about 57 per cent support.
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questions → limit → support
On constitutional questions, support for reform ranges from 49 per cent to 53 per cent.
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support → range → cent
The percentages of support have held steady for several hours as more votes are tallied.
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votes → hold → hours
As the final ballots are counted, it is unclear what impact the questions will have on issues such as potential government policy.
uncertain
questions → count → policy
Five years ago, 62 per cent of Albertans voted in favour of a referendum question about removing equalization from the Constitution but nothing tangible occurred thereafter.
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nothing → vote → Constitution
Further, constitutional change in Canada is difficult, requiring support of at least seven provinces representing more than half of the country’s population, alongside Ottawa’s backing.
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change → require → backing
The slim majority on some questions and split result on the rest means there isn’t any obvious immediate impact, said Shaun Fluker, a law professor at the University of Calgary.
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Fluker → mean → Calgary
“There really aren’t any legal consequences flowing directly from the outcome of these nine questions,” he said in an interview Tuesday morning.
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he → flow → interview
Prof. Fluker called the results of the immigration questions disappointing and described them as divisive, and added that Ms. Smith’s government did “such a poor job informing Albertans about the context of the questions.”
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government → call → questions
He pointed to Question 6, about appointing judges, on which 52 per cent of voters said yes.
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cent → point → voters
It asked Albertans to back the provincial government in seeking support of other provinces to amend the Constitution so the provinces, rather than the federal government, name judges to the top two courts in each province, the superior and appeal courts.
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provinces → ask → province
In the Constitution, the federal government has the power to name judges to these courts but an appointment system in place for the past four decades solicits a range of input on potential candidates who apply to judicial advisory committees.
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who → have → committees
Each province gets some input on appointments to their own courts, including from the provincial justice minister and chief justice.
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province → get → minister
Two weeks ago, the federal government named two new judges in Alberta: Justice Thomas Rothwell, a judge on the Court of King’s Bench, was elevated to the Court of Appeal; Malcolm Lavoie, deputy minister of justice in Ms. Smith’s government, was appointed to the Court of King’s Bench to replace Justice Rothwell.
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Lavoie → name → Rothwell
The day after the appointments, the Alberta government put out a press release in praise of the appointments, an unusual move.
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government → put → move
“Alberta’s government welcomes the federal government’s willingness to meaningfully collaborate on these judicial appointments,” Alberta Justice Minister Mickey Amery said in a statement.
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Amery → welcome → statement
He said the province’s top courts “should reflect Albertans and the province they serve.
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they → say → Albertans
“Our government looks forward to continuing our collaboration with the federal government while hearing from Albertans about the future of judicial appointments in our province,” Mr. Amery said on Oct. 9.
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Amery → look → Oct.
Mr. Lavoie, who had previously been a law professor at the University of Alberta, is a central figure behind the scenes in Ms. Smith’s government, in the province’s various uses of the notwithstanding clause in the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and arguing at the Supreme Court of Canada in March in favour of no new restrictions on the clause in the landmark Bill 21 case from Quebec.
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who → argue → Quebec
Justice Rothwell had been an assistant deputy minister in Alberta’s justice department before he became a judge in 2020.
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he → become → 2020
Early in his career, he served as a clerk to John Major, a former Supreme Court justice from Calgary.
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he → serve → Calgary
The Aporia
