Alberta's former top election official is raising the alarm about mail-in voting barriers that he says have left him unable to cast a ballot in the upcoming separation referendum.
Glen Resler, who previously served as Alberta's chief electoral officer, applied for a special ballot but ran into a wall when he attempted to return it before last week's Canada Post delivery deadline. When he tried to hand-deliver his ballot directly to Elections Alberta's Edmonton office, he was turned away.
The Problem: Inflexible Rules
Under current provincial law, special ballots can only be accepted by mail—with no exceptions allowed. While regulations do include a clause permitting the chief electoral officer to make exceptions for in-person delivery, Resler says his successor is choosing not to use that discretionary power.
"The decision means Elections Alberta is effectively disenfranchising voters like myself," Resler stated, pointing to what he sees as an unnecessarily rigid interpretation of the rules.
Resler was unable to vote at advance polls because he was leaving town during the voting period.
Elections Alberta's Position
Elections Alberta defended its approach, explaining that in-person or courier delivery is only permitted when voters cannot reasonably access mail services—a standard the agency interprets as applying primarily to remote areas. The organization acknowledged that the restriction, introduced last year by the provincial government, does create barriers for some voters.
"We agree with the former chief electoral officer that this represents a challenge," an Elections Alberta spokesperson said, adding that the agency hopes the government will reconsider the policy in future elections.
The separation referendum is set for Oct. 16, with the 5 p.m. deadline for mail-in ballots having already passed.
This report is based on information originally provided by Global Calgary.