Elections Alberta begins process to hire 60,000 workers for October referendum
Posted June 8, 2026 8:52 am.
Last Updated June 8, 2026 9:24 am.
Alberta’s Oct. 19 referendum will require a lot of labour behind the scenes.
Elections Alberta has begun the effort to hire least 60,000 people to help in the lead-up to election day, on the day itself, and to count ballots once the polls have closed.
Positions – all paid – include election officers, count officers, site supervisors, ballot box clerks, information officers and more.
Elections Alberta is calling it the largest electoral worker recruitment campaign in Alberta’s history.
“This referendum will be a colossal undertaking and requires Albertans to work together to deliver the upcoming referendum,” said chief electoral officer Gordon McClure.
With Albertans voting on 10 questions — and each question needing its own colour-coded ballot — Elections Alberta says it needs to print 45 million ballots. In comparison, 1.8 million ballots were cast in Alberta’s 2023 provincial election. That year, the electoral body hired 13,095 election workers.
“I especially encourage rural Albertans to apply. Delivering a referendum of this scale will require dedicated election workers in every corner of our province,” McClure added.
Alberta residents who are at least 16 years old and eligible to work are encouraged to apply here. Successful applicants will begin to be notified in mid-July.
Some positions will begin Oct. 13 – the first day of advance voting. That will be preceded by paid training, online and in person, in early October.
Those hired to count ballots are expected to work until Oct. 21. Provincial law dictates ballot-counting must be done within 48 hours after polling stations close.
Premier Danielle Smith announced last week that Albertans will be asked on Oct. 19 whether they want to remain in Canada or hold a second binding vote on the province going its own way.
The other nine questions, put forward by Smith, cover immigration and constitutional reform.
Like a general election, voting will be limited to Alberta residents who are Canadian citizens and are 18 or older. Students studying outside of Alberta but who plan to return to the province are also eligible.
–With files from The Canadian Press
