Alberta Separation Referendum Update

This is an update following our December 15, 2025 communication to Piikani members about the first question proposed by a representative of the Alberta Prosperity Project, Mitch Sylvestre. As you will recall, Justice Colin Feasby of the Court of King's Bench of Alberta issued a landmark decision, which determined that the Citizen Initiative Act does not empower citizens to initiate a referendum on Alberta's independence from Canada.

Within days after that court decision was issued, the Government of Alberta passed amendments to the Citizen Initiative Act that, among other things, lowered the threshold for the number of signatures required and extended the amount of time a petitioner has to collect signatures. Almost immediately after the amendments were passed, Mr. Sylvestre submitted a second question for a proposed petition regarding Alberta separation. The Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Alberta decided that the second proposed petition was permitted under the amended Citizen Initiative Act. As a result, Mr. Sylvestre was permitted to collect signatures in support of his petition. The signature collection period ends May 2, 2026.

Piikani Nation, along with Siksika Nation and the Blood Tribe, commenced a judicial review of the CEO's decision to issue a citizen initiative petition to Mr. Sylvestre under the Citizen Initiative Act. Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation commenced a similar application for judicial review. As part of our application, the Blackfoot Nations asked the Court of King's Bench of Alberta to grant a stay (pause) of proceedings pending a decision on the merits of the full judicial review application.

Members of Chief and Council attended the hearing of this important matter on April 8 and 9, 2026.

On April 10, 2026, Justice Leonard granted a stay. A copy of the decision can be found here: Piikani Nation v Chief Electoral Officer of Alberta, 2026 ABKB 278.

What the Judicial Review Proceedings Are About

The judicial review application challenges the CEO's decision to issue the petition. The legal issues to be determined include:

  • whether the CEO's decision was unreasonable or incorrect;
  • whether the Crown breached its duty to consult with First Nations; and
  • whether parts of the Citizen Initiative Act are unconstitutional.

How the Citizen Initiative Process Works

Under the Citizen Initiative Act, a person who proposes an initiative petition must collect a certain number of signatures within a set time period. In this case, Mr. Sylvestre has until May 2, 2026, to collect the required signatures. Once the signatures are collected and submitted to the CEO, the CEO has 21 days to determine whether the petition meets the legal requirements (including certifying and authenticating the signatures). If the petition meets those requirements, the proposal must go to the Minister, and from there the Minister must refer the question to a referendum.

The Court's Analysis

Justice Leonard found that:

  • the First Nation applicants raised serious, arguable legal questions;
  • the First Nation applicants could suffer irreparable harm (harm that cannot be fixed with money or compensation) if the stay was not granted, including losing their opportunity to be consulted, harming their Treaty relationships with the Crown, and failing to properly implement Treaty promises; and
  • if the Court ultimately determines the CEO's decision was unreasonable or that parts of the Citizen Initiative Act are unconstitutional, it might be too late for those findings to have any practical meaning if the citizen initiative process had already moved forward.

The Stay

Justice Leonard granted the stay. However, the stay is limited in scope:

  • it does not stop the collection of signatures; and
  • it does not affect the May 2, 2026 deadline for the signature collection period.

Instead, the stay prevents the CEO from taking the next steps in the process once the signatures are submitted. Specifically, the CEO is prohibited from certifying the petition results or making a referral to the Minister of Justice until the Court has ruled on the legal challenges brought by the First Nation applicants. The Court anticipates issuing a decision on the full merits in approximately a month.

Piikani Nation Chief and Council remains resolute in our commitment to fight against any efforts that do not recognize and account for Piikani Nation's rights and interests in any discussions about Alberta's future.

Questions regarding this matter may be directed to Corbin Provost, Chief Operations Officer, at corbin.provost@piikanination.com or (403) 965-3940.