Under Bill 54, the number of eligible voter signatures needed to trigger a referendum would be slashed in half to 10 percent.
EDMONTON, Alberta (LifeSiteNews) -- Just one day after Canadians elected the Liberals under Mark Carney, Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s government released a new bill that sets the groundwork for possible independence referendums.
The announcement of Bill 54, called the Election Statutes Amendment Act, comes after Smith, as reported by LifeSiteNews, said that her province could soon consider taking serious steps toward greater autonomy from Canada in light of Carney’s win and the decades-long treatment of Western Canadians from politicians in Ottawa.
Smith’s warning comes at the same time some pre-election polls have shown independence sentiment on the rise among Albertans, with over 30 percent favoring a more toward sovereignty.
The bill was introduced in Alberta’s legislature on Tuesday and passed the first reading with ease. Due to Smith’s United Conservative Party (UCP) holding a majority government, the passage of the bill is nearly certain.
The new bill will amend a variety of election laws and mentions referendums several times. It aims to not only make elections more transparent by banning electronic voting of all kinds, but it also will set the rules for how referendums can be triggered, principally by lowering the threshold on the number of signatures required.
As it stands, should Albertans want to hold a referendum on independence from Canada, via the Referendum Act and the Citizen Initiative Act, those intending on triggering such a vote would first have to collect signatures from 20 percent of eligible voters (about 600,000 citizens) within just 90-days.
Under Bill 54, the number of eligible voter signatures needed would be slashed in half to 10 percent, and the window to collect signatures would increase to 120 days.
“I believe that democracy thrives when people trust the process. These changes would make elections at every level in Alberta more accessible and transparent while protecting their integrity, ensuring confidence in the outcomes. We are also creating more opportunities for Albertans to be involved in direct democracy and to have their say on issues that matter to them,” said Smith about the bill.
While Smith claimed that the timing of the new bill would have come regardless of who won the federal election on Monday, before the election she said a Liberal win could spell an “unprecedented national unity crisis."
As has been the case for years, those in Alberta and Western Canada voted overwhelming for the Conservatives, but because of the proportionally smaller population, voters in the population-dense more eastern provinces all but secured a Liberal win before most votes in the west were even counted.
In Alberta, all seats but two went for the Conservatives, suggesting a massive political divide between the east and west.
Smith told the media prior to the election that while she believes in “Alberta sovereignty within a united Canada,” “if citizens want to put a question on a ballot and get enough of their fellow citizens to sign that petition, then those questions will be put forward.”
Much of the anti-Liberal sentiment in Alberta surrounds the ongoing environmental agenda endorsed by the party.
Carney, like former Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, has remained opposed to new pipeline projects that would aid the growth of Alberta's oil and gas industry.
