Thomas Lukaszuk, a former deputy premier of Alberta who circulated a petition to make it official policy for the province to stay in Canada, says it has more than 456,000 signatures.
The final tally is far greater than the required 294,000 signatures to initiate a possible referendum in Alberta.
The “Forever Canadian” petition started as a counter to separatists who want a referendum on Alberta independence and asks: “Do you agree that Alberta should remain within Canada?”
“The number of signatures don’t surprise me because I know that the vast majority of Albertans are proud Canadians,” Lukaszuk told reporters on Tuesday.
“And even though we were working under the old rules, which means truncated period of time, only 90 days, I knew that we will get those signatures.”
Lukaszuk has said Albertans should be given the opportunity to vote in a referendum or allow legislature members to vote on the question in the house.
Premier Danielle Smith’s government has urged Alberta to stay in Confederation but has also made it easier for groups to hold a referendum on quitting Canada by lowering the signature threshold.
Thousands of Albertans rally in support of independence from Canada
A question proposed by the Alberta Prosperity Project asks: “Do you agree that the province of Alberta shall become a sovereign country and cease to be a province of Canada?”
“I wouldn’t have started this if I didn’t have confidence in Albertans,” Lukaszuk said.
“What really surprised me is this movement. This has really created a community, a movement of sorts. Albertans have awoken. They have found their voice.”
Lukaszuk said attempts to divide Albertans have proved futile.
“We have signatures from every corner of this province, from every demographic in this province, from Albertans of all political beliefs,” he said.
“The one thing that truly unites us as Albertans is our pride in being Canadian.”
