1918 Calgary municipal election

The 1918 Calgary municipal election was held on December 9, 1918 to a Mayor and six Aldermen to sit on Calgary City Council. Additionally a Commissioner, three members for the Public School Board were elected.

1918 Calgary municipal election
December 9, 1918 (1918-12-09)
 
Candidate Robert Colin Marshall Michael Copps Costello
Popular vote 3,428 3,234
Percentage 51.46% 48.54%
Mayor before election

Michael Copps Costello

 Elected Mayor

Robert Colin Marshall

There were twelve aldermen on city council, but five of the positions were already filled: Samuel Hunter Adams, Andrew Graham Broatch, Frank Roy Freeze, Annie Gale, and Albert Mahaffy were all elected to two-year terms in 1917 and were still in office. Robert Colin Marshall was elected as an Alderman in 1917 for a two-year term, but resigned to run for mayor.

A number of plebiscites were held, all requiring a majority to pass.

The election was held under the Single Transferable Voting/Proportional Representation (STV/PR) with the term for Alderman being two years and the Mayor being one year. The Alderman seat vacated by Marshall would be held by the 7th-place finisher in the election for a period of one year.[1]

Background

The election would take place during the 1918 influenza pandemic which was first reported in Calgary two months before the election on October 3, 1918 by 15 soldiers returning to Canada from the First World War. By November 30, 1918, the pandemic had effected almost every Alberta community with more than 26,000 cases.[2]

The Calgary Daily Herald would also set a "brilliant colored" flare above the Herald Building to announce the elected mayor, red should Marshall win and yellow should Costello be elected.

This would be the second municipal election held with the proportional vote system in Calgary, and there was an expectation there would be several invalid ballots due to electors marking preference with an "x" rather than numerically by preference. However, there would be far fewer spoiled ballots in the 1918 election then the 1917 election. Following the election the editors of the Calgary Daily Herald would comment on "carelessness" in the preparation of voters' lists which left many people without the ability to vote, stating "An inaccurate voters' list is almost worse than none at all".[1][3][4]

Results

Mayor
1918 Calgary municipal election: Mayor
Party Candidate Votes%Elected
-Robert Colin Marshall3,42851.46%Y
-Michael Copps Costello3,23448.54%
Total valid votes 6,662-
Source(s)
[5]

Council
1918 Calgary municipal election: Council
Party Candidate 1st Preference % Count Term Length Elected
-David Ernest Black1,54223.99%1st2 yearsY
-Jack McCoubrey84413.13%1st2 yearsY
-Fred J. White65110.13%8th2 yearsY
-Issac G. Ruttle4967.72%13th1 yearsY
-Frederick Arthur Johnston4767.41%7th2 yearsY
-Frederick Ernest Osborne4557.08%12th2 yearsY
-Alexander McTaggart4246.60%13th2 yearsY
-Dr. Leslie Wright3545.51%
-R. Jeff Lydiatt3074.78%
-T. McLaughlin2604.05%
-Wm. Groves2443.80%
-Ed Geehan2223.45%
-James Pettigrew771.20%
-J. W. McDonald751.17%
Total valid votes 8,427--
Source(s)
[6]The election was held under the Single Transferable Voting/Proportional Representation (STV/PR).
Totals above are first preference votes.
The quota necessary to be elected was 804.

Commissioner
1918 Calgary municipal election: Commissioner
Party Candidate Votes%Elected
-A. J. Samis4,63070.85%Y
-A. W. E. Fawkes1,90529.15%
Total valid votes 6,535-
Source(s)
[7]

Public School Board

Quota necessary for election was 1,512.[1]

Party Candidate 1st Preference % Count Elected
-Herbert Arthur Sinnott1,467X%2ndY
-G. S. Corse1,047X%2ndY
-L. L. Johnson953X%XY
-Melvin M. Downey787X%
-T. HumphriesXX%
-D. J. YoungXX%
-Robert H. ParkynXX%
-Walter SmittenXX%
Total valid votes X-

Hospital Board

The quota was 544 votes.[8]

Party Candidate 1st Preference % Count Elected
-C. F. Adams93024.95%1stY
-S. S. Savage52814.17%2ndY
-D. Ormond3138.40%7thY
-Mrs. F. A. Davis41311.08%7thY
-H. T. Whittemore3348.96%9thY
-D. D. Davidson2486.65%9thY
-G. T. C. Robinson3138.40%
-J. R. Harris2486.65%
-John Harrison1694.53%
-W. C. McPhee1333.57%
-James Petrie982.63%
Total valid votes 3,727--

See also

References
  1. "MARSHALL WINS OVER COSTELLO BY 194 MAJORITY". The Calgary Daily Herald (4905). December 10, 1918. p. 1. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  2. Zurowski, Monica (March 13, 2020). "In 1918, Spanish flu pulled into Calgary on a train. Here's how the city coped". Calgary Herald. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  3. "Red Flare---Marshall Wins Yellow Flare---Costello Wins". The Calgary Daily Herald (4904). December 9, 1918. p. 1. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  4. "VOTERS' LIST ERRORS". The Calgary Daily Herald (4906). December 11, 1918. p. 6. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  5. "MARSHALL WINS OVER COSTELLO BY 194 MAJORITY". The Calgary Daily Herald (4905). December 10, 1918. p. 1. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  6. "MARSHALL WINS OVER COSTELLO BY 194 MAJORITY". The Calgary Daily Herald (4905). December 10, 1918. p. 1. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  7. "Vote for Mayor and Commissioner in Detail". The Calgary Daily Herald (4905). December 10, 1918. p. 15. Retrieved March 19, 2020.
  8. "Election for Hospital Board is Determined After Lengthy Count". The Calgary Daily Herald (4906). December 11, 1918. p. 1. Retrieved March 19, 2020.

Sources
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