UCP leadership campaigns reach out after thousands of mail-in ballots are rejected
Thousands of mail-in ballots in the United Conservative Party leadership vote have been rejected and now some voters are receiving phone calls and emails telling them they'll have to vote in person on Thursday.
One such email is from the Danielle Smith leadership campaign, which claims to be an "emergency notice" to the person that their ballot has not been received by the UCP.
"We asked the UCP party to send the email to those whose ballots have not been verified (received), on behalf of our campaign. This is the mechanism all campaigns use to email party members," said a spokesperson with the Smith campaign.
The party confirms that campaigns are contacting people who have not had a ballot that has been received or if their mail-in ballot was rejected.
About 97 per cent of the mail-in ballots that were sent in to choose the UCP's next leader and Alberta's next premier have been verified, a party spokesperson said.
As of Tuesday night, nearly 82,000 ballots had been sent in, meaning thousands of them have been rejected.
"The rest were rejected because they did not meet the requirements, such as an unsigned declaration form or invalid identification. If a mail-in ballot was rejected, that individual is not marked as voted and is still eligible to vote in person," said Dave Prisco, the UCP's director of communications.
In-person voting will happen at five locations in Alberta between 8 a.m. and noon Thursday. Calgary, Edmonton, Red Deer, Taber and Slave Lake are all hosting in-person voting locations.
All of the votes will be counted in Calgary and the city's BMO Centre will be where the new leader will be announced Thursday afternoon.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.