This is a draft prepared by one contributor, published for public discussion. Nothing here is an adopted position of the project or a proposal it endorses. The purpose is to learn where Albertans agree, disagree, and want changes.
Senators are summoned by the federal Governor General under Constitution Act, 1867 ss.24 and 32, on the advice of the Prime Minister. Alberta has held provincial Senate nominee elections since 1989 under the Senatorial Selection Act, R.S.A. 2000, c. S-5, but the federal government is not bound by those results.
Source of contention
Question 7: Abolition of the federal Senate
The Senate is a federal institution. The Supreme Court of Canada's 2014 Reference re Senate Reform held that abolishing the Senate requires the unanimous consent of Parliament and all ten provincial legislatures under Constitution Act, 1982 s.41. Alberta cannot do this alone.
Proposed
The Province of Alberta shall have the sole authority to nominate and confirm individuals to occupy Senate seats1 constitutionally allocated to AlbertaQ7. Such appointments shall be made by resolution of the Assembly of Alberta and transmitted by the Premier to the Governor General.
No individual shall be recognized by Alberta as a legitimate Senator unless duly appointed by the Assembly of Alberta in accordance with this Constitution.
Classification note1Provincial selection of Senators. The clause as drafted gives the Assembly of Alberta sole authority to nominate and confirm Alberta's Senators, with the Premier transmitting the appointment to the Governor General. The method of selecting Senators is listed in Constitution Act, 1982 s.42(1)(b), which requires the general amending formula. The Supreme Court of Canada confirmed in Reference re Senate Reform, 2014 SCC 32, that consultative or binding provincial elections cannot be made part of the federal appointment process without a s.42 amendment. Resolution path: amendment under s.42 (7/50, no opt-out), requiring resolutions of Parliament and at least seven provinces representing fifty percent of the population.
Eligibility and Terms
7/50
Current Law
Senator qualifications, including the property requirement and residence in the represented province, are set in Constitution Act, 1867 s.23. Senators currently serve until age seventy-five (Constitution Act, 1867 s.29(2)).
Proposed
Senators appointed by Alberta shall be residents of Alberta for a minimum of five years prior to appointment; serve a renewable term not exceeding twelve years1; and be subject to public vetting and confirmation by the Assembly of Alberta.
Classification note1Term limits and residency. Imposing twelve-year renewable terms on Senators and a five-year residency requirement engages Constitution Act, 1982 s.42(1)(b) (the method of selecting senators) and s.42(1)(a) (the powers of the Senate and qualifications of senators). The Supreme Court of Canada held in Reference re Senate Reform, 2014 SCC 32, that fixed senatorial terms require an s.42 amendment. Resolution path: amendment under s.42 (7/50, no opt-out).
Rejection of Federal Appointments
What Alberta can do now
Alberta can hold Senate nominee elections under the Senatorial Selection Act, R.S.A. 2000, c. S-5, and publicly advocate for the appointment of its nominees. The province can decline to recognize unelected Senators as legitimate representatives of Alberta as a political position. What it cannot do is invalidate a federal appointment in law or void actions taken by a duly summoned Senator.
Current Law
The Governor General's power to summon Senators is set in the Constitution Act, 1867. A Senator duly summoned under that power holds office in law until death, resignation, age seventy-five, or removal under Constitution Act, 1867 s.31.
Proposed
Any Senate appointment made by the federal government without the express approval of the Alberta Legislature shall be deemed null and void1 within Alberta. Any actions taken by such appointees on behalf of Alberta shall be legally and constitutionally invalid.
Classification note1Provincial declaration of federal appointments as null. The clause as drafted purports to make Senate appointments made without provincial approval null and void within Alberta and to invalidate actions taken by such appointees on Alberta's behalf. A province cannot constitutionally invalidate a federal appointment made under federal authority. Resolution path: no Part V procedure reaches the validity of federal appointments. As drafted, this clause functions as a political signal, not a self-executing rule.
Reformed Senate Composition
unanimity/7/50
Current Law
Senate seat allocation is set in Constitution Act, 1867 s.22 and amendments, with 105 seats total. Changes to the number of Senators per province require s.42(1)(c) (7/50, no opt-out). Floor on Commons seats relative to Senate seats is protected by Constitution Act, 1982 s.41(b) and requires unanimity.
Proposed
Alberta shall advocate for and recognize a reformed Senate structure that reflects a fixed number of eighty-nine Senate seats1, unless altered by interprovincial consensus; representation that balances provincial population with minimum regional representation; a guarantee that no province shall hold fewer than two Senate seats; and one seat per territory.
Classification note1Reformed seat allocation. The clause as drafted contemplates a fixed eighty-nine seat Senate with regional minimums. Changes to the number of Senators a province is entitled to be represented by are listed in Constitution Act, 1982 s.42(1)(c). Changes to the Senate floor (no fewer Commons MPs than Senators) are listed in s.41(b) and require unanimity. Resolution path: combination of s.42 (7/50, no opt-out) for seat allocation and s.41 (unanimous consent) for the s.41(b) floor.
Dual Majority Voting Requirement
7/50
Current Law
Senate voting is by simple majority under the Constitution Act, 1867 and Senate procedure. The powers of the Senate are listed in Constitution Act, 1982 s.42(1)(a) and are amendable under the general amending formula.
Proposed
Any constitutional amendment, federal legislation, national emergency measure, or international treaty materially impacting provincial jurisdiction or taxation shall require a dual majority1 in the Senate to be binding on Alberta, consisting of a majority vote of all Senators and a supermajority of provincial delegations defined as either a majority of provincial governments concurring, or a majority within each major region of Canada based on Senate seat allocation.
Classification note1Dual majority requirement. The clause as drafted creates a dual majority voting requirement (a Senate majority plus a supermajority of provincial delegations) for federal legislation, amendments, emergency measures, and treaties touching provincial jurisdiction. This changes both the powers of the Senate (s.42(1)(a)) and the broader rules of federal legislative procedure. Resolution path: amendment under s.42 (7/50, no opt-out) at a minimum, with possible touch points on the office of the Senate (s.41) and on Parliament itself, which is not cleanly reachable by any single Part V procedure.
Regional Blocking Power
7/50
Current Law
There is no regional veto in the Constitution today. Federal statute (An Act respecting constitutional amendments, S.C. 1996, c. 1) imposes a political constraint on the federal government in initiating amendments without regional consent, but it does not bind the Senate or create voting rules within Parliament.
Proposed
No federal measure shall proceed if either the Eastern or Western provinces reject it1 by a two-thirds majority of their respective regional Senate delegations.
Classification note1Regional veto inside the Senate. The clause as drafted gives Western or Eastern Senators a two-thirds regional veto over any federal measure. This changes the powers of the Senate (s.42(1)(a)) and creates a new constitutional procedure for federal legislation. Resolution path: amendment under s.42 (7/50, no opt-out) at a minimum, with structural implications for federal lawmaking that may not be cleanly reachable through any single Part V procedure.
Alberta Sovereignty Safeguard
What Alberta can do now
The Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act, S.A. 2022, c. A-32, is already in force and authorizes the Assembly to declare federal measures unconstitutional and direct provincial entities not to enforce them. The Sovereignty Act also allows referral to a binding provincial referendum. These function as enforcement-priority directives and political tools, not constitutional overrides of federal paramountcy.
Current Law
The Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act, S.A. 2022, c. A-32, authorises the Lieutenant Governor in Council to direct provincial entities not to use provincial resources to enforce federal legislation declared by the Assembly to be unconstitutional. Federal paramountcy still applies to validly enacted federal law.
Proposed
Should the federal government attempt to bypass these requirements, the Legislature of Alberta reserves the right to invoke the Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act to nullify enforcement1; to refer the matter to a binding provincial referendum; and to convene an Interprovincial Sovereignty Conference with like-minded provinces to coordinate a response.
Classification note1Nullification of federal measures. The clause as drafted authorises Alberta to invoke the Alberta Sovereignty Within a United Canada Act to nullify enforcement of federal measures that bypass the dual majority rules. Federal paramountcy is structural to Constitution Act, 1867 ss.91 and 92 and cannot be displaced by provincial constitutional text. Resolution path: no single Part V procedure reaches paramountcy. As drafted, this clause functions as a political signal and an instruction on provincial enforcement priorities.
Interprovincial Cooperation
Needs other governments
Requires a negotiated agreement with other provinces and/or the Government of Canada.
Current Law
Provinces routinely cooperate through the Council of the Federation and through ad hoc interprovincial agreements. No constitutional amendment is required for provinces to coordinate on common positions.
Proposed
The Province of Alberta invites all other provinces and territories to adopt equivalent legislation or constitutional frameworks that assert provincial control over Senate appointments, promote mutual cooperation in defending regional interests, and restore the Senate's role as a legitimate chamber of provincial representation.
Alberta to nominate and confirm individuals for its Senate seats
Five-year residency requirement and twelve-year renewable terms
Rejection of federal appointments not approved by the Assembly
Reformed Senate composition with regional minimums and dual majority voting
Western or Eastern regional veto by two-thirds of regional Senate delegations
Why this article is proposed
The Senate is a federal institution. Reforming it has been on Canada's agenda for decades, and Alberta has held Senate-nominee elections since 1989 as a way of pressing for provincial input. This article proposes a more ambitious provincial position: that Alberta would, in its own constitution, name its Senators, set their terms, and adopt a dual-majority and regional-veto structure for federal measures touching provincial jurisdiction.
What it would change
Almost everything in this article reaches past what Alberta can do alone. Senate selection, Senate composition, and Senate powers are listed in Constitution Act, 1982 s.42 and require the general amending formula (7/50, no opt-out). The Senate floor relative to House of Commons representation is listed in s.41(b) and requires unanimity. The Supreme Court of Canada confirmed in Reference re Senate Reform, 2014 SCC 32, that Senate term limits, mandatory consultative elections, and abolition each require constitutional amendment with the participation of multiple provinces or all of them.
The legal basis
The province has no unilateral authority over the Senate. Section 45 of the Constitution Act, 1982 does not reach federal institutions. The most that Alberta can do alone is choose a domestic process for nominating Senate candidates, advocate for reform with other provinces, and decline to recognise the legitimacy of certain appointments as a political matter. Anything more substantial requires negotiation under s.41 or s.42 or, in the case of abolition, the unanimous procedure that the Supreme Court of Canada described in Reference re Senate Reform.
Open questions
Question 7 on the October 2026 referendum ballot asks whether the unelected federal Senate should be abolished. That question requires unanimous consent of Parliament and all ten provincial legislatures under Constitution Act, 1982 s.41(b) per Reference re Senate Reform, 2014 SCC 32. Albertans will also need to consider whether to write Senate-reform positions into a provincial constitution at all, knowing that those positions can only be enacted with the consent of other governments, or to keep Senate reform in legislation that can be adapted as the federal conversation evolves.
Revision 12026-05-20
major
Initial draft of Article VII from the v2 draft constitution, with per-section classification, current-law context, and editorial notes.