UPDATE: Two more opportunities have been added to sign the petition this week. Canvassers will be by the “Chicken Lady” statue on 1st St. W. on Thursday, Aug. 28, and Friday, Aug. 29, from 4:30 to 7:30 p.m.
Signatures are beginning to pile up for the Forever Canadian petition in the Cochrane area.
Over the weekend, more than 220 were collected at the Bearspaw Farmers’ Market, with additional tallies expected from Mitford Park on Saturday. That brings the total to more than 800 people who have signed the petition calling for a provincial plebiscite on the question: “Do you agree Alberta should remain in Canada?”
Canvassers are scheduled to be at the Cochrane pickleball courts tomorrow (Aug. 26) from 2 to 4 p.m., near the rodeo grounds during the Labour Day Weekend Rodeo, and back at the Bearspaw Farmers’ Market on Sunday.
The initiative is part of a provincewide campaign led by former Alberta MLA Thomas Lukaszuk, who served as deputy premier from 2012 to 2013. More than 3,000 canvassers have registered with Elections Alberta-issued tags, and prominent Albertans, including former premier Ed Stelmach, have publicly pledged support. About 20 canvassers are registered locally.
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Elections Alberta approved the petition on July 30. Organizers have until Oct. 28 to collect 293,976 signatures to meet the requirement.
Signatures must be collected in person. Signatories must be eligible voters on the date they sign, provide their name and address legibly, and can only sign once.
Information on local canvassing locations in the Cochrane area can be found on the Facebook page, Cochrane “Forever Canadian” Signing Locations (Forever Canadian Cochrane).