1905 Alberta general election

The 1905 Alberta general election was the first general election held in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on 9 November 1905, to elect twenty five members of the Alberta legislature to the 1st Alberta Legislative Assembly, shortly after the province was created out of the Northwest Territories on 1 September 1905.

1905 Alberta general election

9 November 1905 (1905-11-09)

25 seats in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta
13 seats were needed for a majority
  Majority party Minority party
 
Leader Alexander Rutherford R. B. Bennett
Party Liberal Conservative
Leader since 3 August 1905 1905
Leader's seat Strathcona Calgary
Last election 1 9
Seats won 22 2
Popular vote 14,485 9,342
Percentage 55.9% 37.1%


Premier before election

Alexander C. Rutherford
Liberal

Premier after election

Alexander C. Rutherford
Liberal

The Alberta Liberal Party of Alexander C. Rutherford won twenty three of the twenty five seats in the new legislature, defeating the Conservative Party, which was led by a young lawyer, Richard Bennett, who later served as Prime Minister of Canada.

Prior to the 1905 election the two political parties saw numerous changes and defections, In Alberta a host of former Liberal-Conservative MLA's jumped ship to the Liberals, when Sir Wilfrid Laurier appointed the Liberal provisional government prior to the election. The Conservatives had no strong leader to rally around at the time as Frederick Haultain had moved to Saskatchewan.

The election in 1905 was a bitter one, especially in Calgary and Southern Alberta where the Liberals were accused of vote tampering and interfering with Conservative voters. Recounts especially in Calgary took almost a month and saw the result swing back and forth. The scandal led to the arrest of some key Liberal organizers, including William Henry Cushing's campaign manager, who had been a returning officer at a Calgary polling station.

The boundaries of the electoral districts for the first Alberta general election were prescribed in the Alberta Act (Canada). In 1905 Albertans would vote by marking an "X" on a blank sheet of paper using a coloured pencil which corresponded to candidate whom they wished to vote for.[1]

Results

Party Votes Seats
Liberal 14,078
55.9%
22 / 25(88%)
Conservative 9,342
37.1%
2 / 25(8%)
     Others and independents 1,743
6.9%
1 / 25(4%)
Popular vote
Liberal
55.90%
Conservative
37.13%
Others
6.97%
Seats summary
Liberal
88.00%
Conservative
8.00%
Others
4.00%

Full results

 Summary of the 1905 Alberta general election
Party Party leader Candidates Seats Popular vote
1905 % seats Votes %
Liberal Alexander Cameron Rutherford 26[lower-alpha 1] 22 88% 14,078 55.95%
Conservative R. B. Bennett 22[lower-alpha 2] 2 8% 9,342 37.13%
  Independent and no affiliation 7 1 4% 1,743 6.92%
Total 56 25 100% 25,163 100%
Source: A Report on Alberta Elections 1905-1982 (Edmonton: Provincial Archives of Alberta, 1983)
Alberta Advocate November 17, 1905[2]

Members of the Legislative Assembly elected

For complete electoral history, see individual districts

1st Alberta Legislative Assembly
  District Member Party
  Athabasca William Bredin Liberal
  Banff Charles W. Fisher Liberal
  Calgary William Cushing Liberal
  Cardston John William Woolf Liberal
  Edmonton Charles Wilson Cross Liberal
  Gleichen Charles Stuart Liberal
     High River Albert Robertson Conservative
  Innisfail John A. Simpson Liberal
  Lacombe William Puffer Liberal
  Leduc Robert Telford Liberal
  Lethbridge Leverett DeVeber Liberal
  Macleod Malcolm McKenzie Liberal
  Medicine Hat William Finlay Liberal
  Pincher Creek John Plummer Marcellus Liberal
  Ponoka John R. McLeod Liberal
  Red Deer John T. Moore Liberal
     Rosebud Cornelius Hiebert Conservative
  St. Albert Henry William McKenney Independent Liberal
  Stony Plain John McPherson Liberal
  Strathcona Alexander Cameron Rutherford Liberal
  Sturgeon John R. Boyle Liberal
  Vermilion Matthew McCauley Liberal
  Victoria Francis A. Walker Liberal
  Wetaskiwin Anthony Rosenroll Liberal

Peace River

James Cornwall was declared elected to the Peace River district on election night 1905 for the Liberal Party. The election results were overturned by significant irregularities leaving the seat vacant. A new election was held on 15 February 1906.

Thomas Brick declared his candidacy in the new election for the Liberals after being asked to run by a large group of people who appeared at his homestead. He faced James Cornwall who attempted to re-win his seat and he also ran under the Liberal banner. The runner up candidate from the original 1905 election Conservative candidate Lucien Dubuc did not run again leaving a rare two-way race under the same party banner. Thomas Brick would go on to defeat James Cornwall in a landslide.[3]

  District Member Party
Election Night
  Peace River James Cornwall Liberal
15 February 1906
  Peace River Thomas Brick Liberal

See also

Notes

  1. Two Liberal candidates contested the Peace River district after the result of the first election was voided.
  2. The Conservatives did not nominate candidates in three ridings. They did nominate a candidate originally for Peace River, but the result was set aside and no Conservative stood for the second election in Peace River.

References

  1. Office of the Chief Electoral Officer; Legislative Assembly Office (2006). A Century of Democracy: Elections of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, 1905-2005. The Centennial Series. Edmonton, AB: Legislative Assembly of Alberta. p. 35. ISBN 0-9689217-8-7. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  2. "Members elected to first legislature November 17, 1905". Alberta Advocate. Archived from the original on 24 September 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
  3. Yvette T. M. Mahé. "I remember Peace River, Alberta and adjacent districts. Part I". The Women's Institute of Peace River. Archived from the original on 29 September 2007. Retrieved 18 March 2007.
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