1902 Northwest Territories general election

The 1902 Northwest Territories general election, occurred on 21 May 1902 and was the fifth general election in the history of the Northwest Territories, Canada. It was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories. This was the last election held until 1951, and was the last in the Northwest Territories to have political parties.

1902 Northwest Territories general election

21 May 1902 (1902-05-21)
35 seats in the North-West Legislative Assembly 18 seats were needed for a majority
Majority party Minority party   LIB Leader Frederick W. A. G. Haultain Donald H. McDonald Party Liberal-Conservative Liberal Leader since 1897 1902 Leader's seat Macleod North Qu'Appelle Last election 7 2 Seats won 21 7 Popular vote 8,319 5,067 Percentage 47.8% 29.1%
Premier before election Frederick W. A. G. Haultain Liberal-Conservative Premier after election Frederick W. A. G. Haultain Liberal-Conservative

Frederick W. A. G. Haultain and the Liberal-Conservatives continued with government. Donald H. McDonald was thrust into being the Liberal leader just days before the vote, with the surprise decision by Robert Brett to drop out of the race.

In 1905, the provinces of Alberta and Saskatchewan were created out of NWT territory, and they took most of the voting population with them. The government of NWT reverted to an appointed consensus model of government.

Candidates in this election were not nominated by the party in a contested nomination as with modern elections, but rather proclaimed their support for the governing party or opposition party, or Independent. During the election race some candidates shifted their alignment. The result was a confusing mess, and the bulk of candidates proclaimed support for the already governing Liberal-Conservative party, leaving the Liberals without candidates in many districts. Lethbridge ended up being contested by two government supporting candidates.

1902 would also see the largest number of MLAs elected to the Northwest Territories Legislature in the territories history.