The first recall petition out of over two dozen filed against Alberta’s legislature members has fallen short. Jenny Yeremiy submitted a petition against Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides to Elections Alberta on Tuesday but disclosed that she still needed thousands more signatures. Despite collecting around 6,500 signatures, well below the required 16,006, Yeremiy expressed pride in the effort, considering the signature goal to be extremely challenging.
Yeremiy stated that she decided to submit the petition even though it did not meet the required threshold to convey a message. The petition aimed to highlight the discontent of over 6,500 individuals towards Nicolaides’ actions. The petition, initiated in October, intended to trigger a constituency-wide vote on whether Nicolaides should be removed from the legislature.
Elections Alberta will outline the next steps after Yeremiy’s official deadline on Wednesday. Yeremiy viewed the petition as a significant achievement, fostering organization and readiness for the upcoming provincial election in October 2027. She emphasized the need for self-governance and organization in response to the current government’s direction.
Yeremiy’s petition marked the beginning of 26 recall campaigns against legislators in late 2025, with the majority targeting members of Premier Danielle Smith’s United Conservative caucus. The motivation behind many petitions against Smith’s caucus members stemmed from the government’s use of the notwithstanding clause to halt a provincewide teachers’ strike. Although Yeremiy criticized this move, her petition against Nicolaides predates the government’s intervention in the strike.
In her submission to Elections Alberta, Yeremiy highlighted Nicolaides’ alleged failure to support public education as the basis for the petition. Nicolaides’ press secretary, Garrett Koehler, expressed that the campaign’s limited success, with only 6,500 signatures gathered, demonstrated its lack of merit. Koehler indicated that Nicolaides would provide further comments once the official results were announced.
Currently, Nicolaides is in Tanzania, having recently climbed Mount Kilimanjaro to raise funds for combating domestic violence. Yeremiy’s petition had a January deadline, distinguishing it from the others due next month. Petitioners must gather signatures equivalent to 60% of the total votes cast in their constituency during the 2023 provincial election within three months. A successful petition would lead to a vote within the constituency to determine the politician’s retention in office, potentially resulting in a by-election if the member is recalled.