Changes for the Upcoming Provincial Election – What You Need to Know

With May steadily approaching, elections have been on the minds of many Albertans.  While in the past these thoughts might have been concentrated around any month, this year is different.  That is because, for the first time, Alberta has introduced a fixed election date as part of a series of electoral reforms undertaken by the UCP government.

This isn’t the only change Albertans will notice surrounding this election, however, and some of these changes may be crucial for Albertans planning on voting this May. While some of the changes are small—such as replacing the word “Poll” with “Vote” or “Voting” in phrases such as “advance[d] voting”, “voting station”, and “mobile vote”—other changes are larger and may catch some voters unprepared.

For example, as of March 2022, voters will now be required to show authorized identification in order to vote in provincial elections, keeping in consistency with both the municipal and federal elections.  The chosen ID must establish the voter’s current address and can include either one piece of government-issued ID with a name, address, and photograph; alternately, the voter can bring two pieces of ID authorized by the Chief Electoral Officer (“CEO”), with a name and at least one piece of identification with the address.

In the case of voters without ID, the voter may be vouched for by a voter in the same area whose name also appears on the list of voters, so long as the person vouching themselves has authorized ID and makes a declaration.

Further to this, there will also be more voting stations available to Albertans, especially those who wish to cast early votes.

It is also now permissible for voter cards to be sent electronically and by mail, and if you are planning to vote during work hours, it should be noted that the legislation has now been changed so that employers are now only obligated to give employees the time off to vote if the employee’s schedule does not already provide the employee with three consecutive hours in which to complete their voting on either the election day or during advanced voting.

All of these things are important new adjustments for Albertans to keep in mind if they are planning to vote on May 29 and are just some of the changes we will see in the upcoming election introduced by the implementation of Bill 81.

Bill 81, also known as the Elections Statutes Amendment Act, is a bill introduced by the United Conservative Party government.  While sections 3 and 8 of the Bill came into force on December 8, 2021, the rest of the Bill did not come into effect until March 31, 2022.  The Alberta Government claims Bill 81 strengthens the electoral system, but a controversial aspect to that is the banning of foreign money in Alberta politics and limitations placed on third parties.

Foreign and third-party interference in elections have long been topics of debate, contention, and anxiety in democratic systems, one Bill 81 seeks to address.  The Bill claims to improve election financing rules by only allowing those living in Alberta to contribute to a third party for election advertising, and by prohibiting those not living in Canada, as well as non-Canadian corporations and organizations, from donating to political advertising.  The Bill also sets an annual contribution limit for those in Alberta donating to third parties, while also prohibiting political parties, candidates, and constituency associations from contributing to those third parties.

Ostensibly, this should help to solve the problem of foreign money and other third parties influencing the upcoming Alberta election, but this movement has been criticized by some for stifling freedom of expression—most notably the Alberta Federation of Labour (“AFL”).  The AFL are a third-party advertiser notable for actively criticizing UCP policies; however, at the time the Bill was introduced, they also controlled two seats on the NDP provincial council, which the UCP argued made the AFL a branch of the NDP.  The changes in Bill 81 have impacted the AFL’s ability to act as a third party advertiser.

The AFL are not the only group effected, however.  The net cast by the Bill is potentially wide and could also catch third parties affiliated with the UCP.  The aim is to allow for a fairer voting process all around, especially as the parties gear up to begin campaigning.  One thing’s for sure: it will certainly be a different election season.