CTV News Edmonton has reported:

Searches about Alberta’s provincial referendum rose 80 per cent last Tuesday as Albertans began voting in advance polls, according to Google Trends. The most common queries concerned the referendum’s 10 questions, including one of the fastest-rising searches: “understanding Alberta referendum voting questions.”

Four questions address immigration policies and five concern constitutional matters. The final question is non-binding and asks whether Alberta should remain in Canada or hold a second, binding referendum on separation. All questions except the one on separation call for a yes-or-no response.

Question 10 presents two options: Alberta should remain a province in Canada, or the Government of Alberta should begin the legal process required under the Canadian Constitution to hold a binding provincial referendum on whether Alberta should separate from Canada. Academics have urged Albertans to read the questions before voting, saying their wording is convoluted. Another leading search asked about the referendum’s reading-level complexity.

Other Google queries related to voting and advance polls. Voters must show proof of identity and current address using one piece of government-issued photo identification bearing their full name and current address, two pieces of identification bearing their full name with one showing their current address, or an attestation form completed by an authorized signatory. A full list of accepted identification is available online.

People who are not registered to vote will be sent to a registration station. An elections officer will review their identification and prepare a declaration for them to sign, after which they will receive a ballot package.

More than 600,000 mail-in ballots were sent to eligible Albertans who requested them. Nearly 175,000 people cast ballots on Tuesday, the first day of advance polls. That turnout exceeded the daily average of nearly 152,000 recorded at advance polls during the 2023 provincial election.