There's currently no verified evidence supporting claims made during a CBC panel discussion that petition signatures in support of a referendum on independence were obtained through 'cheating.'

 

Claims made during a CBC panel discussion suggesting Alberta independence supporters are “cheating” are not currently supported by verified evidence tied to the referendum petition itself.

During a panel appearance on Power & Politics, commentator Jordan Leichnitz stated:

“You can't expect Albertans to fairly vote on this question when it's clear that the forces in favour of separation are cheating.”

However, Elections Alberta has not publicly concluded that signatures on the independence petition were improperly collected.

The controversy stems from an ongoing Elections Alberta investigation into whether a third-party organization known as the Centurion Project improperly accessed or shared information connected to the provincial electors registry.

That investigation is separate from the verification of signatures collected for the Alberta independence citizen initiative petition.

At this stage:

  • no final findings have been released,
  • no public evidence has been presented showing petition signatures were invalidly gathered using voter data,
  • and no ruling has concluded the petition campaign itself engaged in wrongdoing.

Mitch Sylvestre of Stay Free Alberta, who advanced the referendum petition question, has 

The petition signatures themselves have also not yet been verified by Elections Alberta because the verification process was paused following a court order connected to a separate legal challenge.

Under Alberta’s citizen initiative process, signatures must still undergo official validation before being certified.

As a result, claims that referendum supporters were definitively “cheating” go beyond what has currently been established publicly by Elections Alberta.