Alberta launches major recruitment drive for referendum workers ahead of October vote

Elections Alberta has launched what it describes as one of the largest referendum staffing campaigns ever undertaken in Canada as the province prepares for a provincewide vote scheduled for October 19.

The agency says it needs approximately 60,000 workers to administer and count ballots for 10 referendum questions that will be put to Alberta voters. Under provincial rules, ballot counting must be completed within 48 hours of polls closing.

One of the referendum questions will ask Albertans whether the province should remain part of Canada or begin the legal process required to hold a binding referendum on separation.

According to Elections Alberta, preparations for the vote will also require the printing of roughly 45 million ballots. The agency says the scale of the operation far exceeds Alberta's last provincial general election in 2023, when approximately 1.8 million ballots were cast.