Alberta government launches ad campaign on referendum questions

The Alberta government has launched a $4-million advertising campaign outlining its position on the 10 questions in the Oct. 19 referendum. 

Voters will be urged to choose the Yes option for the first nine questions, which deal with immigration and constitutional changes, according to Sam Blackett, director of media relations for Premier Danielle Smith.

For the question on separation, Blackett would not state which option the campaign is supporting. 

Option 1 confirms a voter’s support for Alberta remaining a province in Canada, while Option 2 supports the provincial government undertaking the legal process to hold a binding referendum on separation.

Blackett said the campaign will urge people to vote in support of a “strong and sovereign Alberta within a united Canada” on question 10. 

The campaign will have ads on TV, radio, social media, print media, billboards and a booklet mailed to every household in the province. 

“As a government, it is important that we communicate with Albertans across various channels about the implications of the fall referendum questions and ensure people have a clear understanding of how their decisions on the 10 questions will impact them,” Blackett said in an email to CBC News on Friday. 

The campaign was met with criticism by the Opposition NDP. 

NDP Leader Naheed Nenshi said it was unethical for Smith to use public money to advertise the government’s position on each question.

“It’s not information on how to vote. It’s not information that gives you both sides of the question,” Nenshi said at a news conference on Friday. 

“Government has to be the fair arbiter of an election in a democracy. Government can’t take a side. And the premier doesn’t seem to know or care.” 

Some people behind the campaigns for Alberta independence also expressed concern.

On Facebook, Tanya Clemons, one of the organizers behind Let Alberta Decide, criticized Smith for using taxpayer money to advertise its position instead of remaining neutral. 

“Give Albertans accurate information about both options, explain what each means and let the people speak,” Clemons wrote. 

“Instead, the government has chosen an answer before Albertans have given theirs and is spending millions belonging to all of us to promote it.

“Those aren’t UCP dollars. They aren’t Danielle Smith’s dollars. They belong to Albertans.”

The campaign could have some merits, according to Hayden Place, a campaign strategist with Mash Strategies.

Place, who worked as a political staffer in the government of former premier Jason Kenney, said there are legitimate reasons for the government to lay out its position on separation given the high costs Alberta would incur if it decided to go its own way. 

“I think there’s a lot of misinformation out there,” Place said. “And I think that the government of Alberta has a duty to make its case for Confederation.”

Place said he believes the province should focus its advertising on reaching people who are either undecided or not informed about the questions.