Alberta Independence Petition Faces Rural Signature Hurdle

0:00It's March 26. From your city to your ears, this is Vancouver News Today, powered by AI. I'm Corey with the story. Alberta's independence movement is hitting a snag and is push for a referendum. The group, Stay Free Alberta, needs 177,732 signatures by May 2nd to get their question on the. October ballot. That question asks if the province should leave Canada and become its own nation. The main problem comes from rural supporters. Many in the countryside use post office boxes on their driver's licenses instead of physical addresses. Alberta law demands photo ID showing a current residential address so these folks often need extra documents like property tax bills to sign. Mitch Sylvester, who leads Stay Free Alberta, calls this the biggest headache for volunteers. Rural areas show the strongest backing for independence. Per recent polls, yet people driving long distances to sign have to go back home for proof. Most do return and

1:00sign, but it slows everything down. This issue stems from how rural land works in Canada with huge 160 acre quarter sections from the early 1900s that make, male delivery tricky. Other petitions, like singer Corb Luns, against coal mining, face the same proof challenges. Meanwhile, a counter petition called Forever Canadian has gathered over 438,000 signatures opposing separation, though it won't trigger a vote. Sylvester stays optimistic, saying the strict rules will make their signatures ironclad and unchallengeable. With momentum holding steady, they're confident of hitting the target and forcing that referendum debate.