1944 Saskatchewan general election

The 1944 Saskatchewan general election was the tenth provincial election in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It was held on June 15, 1944 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan.

1944 Saskatchewan general election

June 15, 1944 (1944-06-15)

52 seats in the Legislative Assembly of Saskatchewan
27 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party Third party
 
PC
Leader Tommy Douglas William John Patterson Rupert Ramsay
Party Co-operative Commonwealth Liberal Progressive Conservative
Leader since July 17, 1942 1935 February 15, 1944
Leader's seat Weyburn Cannington Ran in Saskatoon City (lost)
Last election 10 38 0
Seats won 47 5 0
Seat change 37 33 ±0
Popular vote 211,364 140,901 42,511
Percentage 53.13% 35.42% 10.69%
Swing 34.4pp 10.03pp 1.18pp

  Fourth party Fifth party
 
Leader Joseph Needham
Party Labor-Progressive Social Credit
Leader since 1935
Leader's seat Did not run
Last election 2 2
Seats won 0 0
Seat change 2 2
Popular vote 2,067 249
Percentage 0.52% 0.06%
Swing 1.41pp 15.84pp

Premier before election

William John Patterson
Liberal

Premier after election

Tommy Douglas
Co-operative Commonwealth

The election was held six years after the previous election. There is normally a five-year limit on the lifespan of Parliaments and provincial assemblies in Canada, but the emergency brought on by the Second World War allowed the government to delay the election temporarily.

Tommy Douglas standing under a Co-operative Commonwealth Federation election billboard with C.M. Fines and Clarence Gillis shortly after the historic 1944 election that swept the Saskatchewan CCF to power.

It marked the first time a socialist government was elected anywhere in Canada. Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) leader Tommy Douglas became the premier of the province.

The CCF won 47 of the 52 seats in the legislature, and over half the popular vote, despite a very negative campaign by the governing Liberal Party. The Liberals, led by William John Patterson, accused Douglas of being a communist.

The Liberal popular vote fell by 10 percentage points, and they won only five seats. It is still the worst defeat of a sitting government in Saskatchewan's history.

The Social Credit Party of Saskatchewan, which had won 16% of the vote and two seats in the 1938 election, collapsed; the party had only one candidate, who won only 249 votes.

The Communist Party-led Unity movement reverted to the name Labor-Progressive Party, and lost both of the seats it had won in 1938.

The Conservative Party, renamed the Progressive Conservative Party of Saskatchewan and led by Rupert Ramsay, won over 10% of the vote, but no seats.

An at-large service vote was held for Saskatchewan residents in the Canadian armed services fighting during World War II. This special vote elected three nonpartisan members to represent Saskatchewan soldiers, sailors and airmen stationed in 1.) Great Britain, 2.) the Mediterranean region and 3.) Newfoundland and Canada outside the province. Alberta had a similar system during the war.

Results

Party Party leader # of
candidates
Seats Popular vote
1938 Dissol. Elected % Change # % % Change
Co-operative Commonwealth Tommy Douglas 52 10 11 47 +327.3% 211,364 53.13% +34.4%
Liberal William Patterson 52 38 37 5 -86.5% 140,901 35.42% -10.03%
Progressive Conservative Rupert Ramsay 39 42,511 10.69% -1.18%
  Labor-Progressive 3 2 2 2,067 0.52% -1.41%
  Independent 5 705 0.18% -0.73%
Social Credit Joseph J. Needham (default) 1 2 2 249 0.06% -15.84%
  Independent Liberal 1 * * * 5 0.00% *
Total 153 52 52 52 397,802 100%  
Source: Elections Saskatchewan

Note: * Party did not nominate candidates in previous election.

Percentages

Popular vote
CCF
53.13%
Liberal
35.42%
PC
10.69%
Others
0.76%
Seats summary
CCF
90.38%
Liberal
9.62%

Ranking

Party Seats Second Third Fourth Fifth
Co-operative Commonwealth 47 4 1 0 0
Liberal 5 47 0 0 0
Progressive Conservative 0 0 37 2 0
  Other parties 0 1 3 3 3

Riding-by-riding results

Names in bold represent cabinet ministers and the Speaker. Party leaders are italicized. The symbol " ** " indicates MLAs who are not running again.

Northwestern Saskatchewan

Electoral District Candidates   Incumbent
 CCF Liberal PCOther
Athabasca Pierre Ephrem Ayotte
57
  Louis Marcien Marion
626
Alexander Fred
De Laronde
9
Errick Guttormur Erickson (Ind.) 78

Francis Xavier Poitras (Ind. Liberal) 5

  Hubert Staines**
Cut Knife   Isidore Charles Nollet
2726
John A. Gordon
1820
  William Roseland**
Meadow Lake   Herschel Lee Howell
2034
Donald MacDonald
1805
William Titley
362
Arthur J. Doucet (Labor-Progressive) 716   Donald MacDonald
Redberry   Dmytro Matthew Lazorko
2306
Wilfred James Langley
1285
Ernest Wilson
662
Peter John Semko (Ind.) 99   Orest Zerebko**
Rosthern Henry Begrand
1541
  Peter J. Hooge
2199
Gordon Ellis Goble
473
  John Michael Uhrich**
Shellbrook   Albert Victor Sterling
3310
Omer Demers
2177
  Omer Alphonse Demers
The Battlefords   Alexander Duff Connon
2783
Paul Prince
2426
Robert Wendell McNair
446
  Paul Prince
Turtleford   Bob Wooff
2506
William Franklin Kerr
1766
Chester Hicks
399
  William Franklin Kerr

Northeastern Saskatchewan

Electoral District Candidates   Incumbent
 CCF Liberal PCOther
Cumberland   Leslie Walter Lee
357
Deakin Alexander Hall
242
Raoul Olier
St. Denis
11
  Deakin Alexander Hall
Humboldt   Ben Putnam
3587
Arnold William Loehr
2673
Stephen David Weese
358
  Joseph William Burton**
Kelvington   Peter Anton Howe
3132
Gladstone Mansfield Ferrie
1880
Samuel Edward Hall
649
  Peter Anton Howe
Kinistino   William James Boyle
3055
Russell Martin Paul
1544
Andrew Fraser
671
  John Richard Parish Taylor**
Melfort   Oakland Woods Valleau
3396
John Duncan MacFarlane
1862
Stanley Beattie Caskey
1450
  Oakland Woods Valleau
Prince Albert   Lachlan Fraser McIntosh
6178
Harold John Fraser
3617
Edgar Percy Woodman
655
  Harold John Fraser
Tisdale   John Hewgill Brockelbank
5283
Clarence Railsback O'Connor
2269
Isaac Flexman Stothers
703
  John Hewgill Brockelbank
Torch River   John Bruce Harris
2609
Donald L. Menzies
846
Keith Acton Baldwin
535
  James Archibald Kiteley**

West Central Saskatchewan

Electoral District Candidates   Incumbent
 CCF Liberal PCOther
Arm River William R. Fansher
2256
  Gustaf Herman Danielson
2343
Thomas Alfred Homersham
1068
  Gustaf Herman Danielson
Biggar   Woodrow Stanley Lloyd
3633
Frank Freeman
2156
  John Allan Young**
Hanley   James Smith Aitken
2272
Charles Agar
1775
James Hubert Cannon
893
  Charles Agar
Kerrobert-Kindersley   John Wellbelove
3236
Donald Laing
2377
Wellington Smith Myers
933
  Donald Laing
Rosetown   John Taylor Douglas
3168
William Leith
1864
John Wilbert Stewart
1046
  Neil McVicar**
Watrous   James Andrew Darling
3801
Frank Stephen Krenn
2312
Hugh Smith
749
  Frank Stephen Krenn
Wilkie   Hans Ove Hansen
3567
John Cunningham Knowles
2527
  John Cunningham Knowles

East Central Saskatchewan

Electoral District Candidates   Incumbent
 CCF Liberal PCOther
Canora   Myron Henry Feeley
3538
Stephen T. Shabbits
2537
  Myron Henry Feeley
Last Mountain   Jacob Benson
3803
Henry Philip Mang
2064
James Lindsay Blair
1281
  Jacob Benson
Melville   William James Arthurs
4575
Lionel Stilborn
3614
Shamus Patrick Regan
821
  John Frederick Herman**
Pelly   Dan Daniels
3273
Reginald John Marsden Parker
2544
William Michael Berezowski
(Labor-Progressive) 554
  Reginald John Marsden Parker
Saltcoats   Joseph Lee Phelps
3461
Donald Alexander MacKenzie
2874
Rae Melville Salkeld
454
  Joseph Lee Phelps
Touchwood   Tom Johnston
3337
John Joseph Collins
1925
William Seneshen
301
  Tom Johnston
Wadena   George Hara Williams
4162
George Russell Cook
1686
Walter Elvy Rogers (Ind.) 207   George Hara Williams
Yorkton   Arthur Percy Swallow
3887
Alfred Ariel Brown
2280
Norman Roebuck
958
  Alan Carl Stewart** (Unity)

Southwest Saskatchewan

Electoral District Candidates   Incumbent
 CCF Liberal PCOther
Elrose   Maurice John Willis
3771
Hubert Staines
1807
Ernest J. Ewing
1013
  Louis Henry Hantelman**
Gravelbourg   Henry Edmund Houze
2681
Edward M. Culliton
2586
  Edward Milton Culliton
Gull Lake   Alvin Cecil Murray
3942
Harvey Harold McMahon
2200
Charles Howard Howlett
1356
  Harvey Harold McMahon
Maple Creek   Beatrice Janet Trew
3656
John Joseph Mildenberger
2872
George Chester Stewart
911
  John Joseph Mildenberger
Morse   Sidney Merlin Spidell
2763
Benjamin Thomas Hyde
2122
Clifford Bruce Martin
725
  Benjamin Thomas Hyde
Notukeu-Willow Bunch   Niles Leonard Buchanan
4176
Charles William Johnson
2862
  Charles William Johnson
Swift Current   Harry Gibbs
4756
James Gordon Taggart
3123
Bryan Maxwell Hill
1021
  James Gordon Taggart

Southeast Saskatchewan

Electoral District Candidates   Incumbent
 CCF Liberal PCOther
Bengough   Allan Lister Samuel Brown
3847
Thomas Waddell
2473
  Herman Kersler Warren** (Unity)
Cannington Gladys Strum
3204
  William John Patterson
3210
William Armstrong Brigden
687
  William John Patterson
Lumsden   William Sancho Thair
2966
James Gallagher Knox
1887
Arthur Maurice Pearson
1220
  Robert Scott Donaldson**
Milestone   Frank Keem Malcolm
3302
William Pedersen
2207
  William Pedersen
Moosomin David Alexander Cunningham
3324
  Arthur Thomas Procter
3865
  Arthur Thomas Procter
Qu'Appelle-Wolseley   Warden Burgess
4339
Frederick Middleton Dundas
3314
William Herman Acres
938
  Frederick Middleton Dundas
Souris-Estevan   Charles David Cuming
3933
Norman Leslie McLeod
2660
Herbert Samuel Penny
1259
  Norman Leslie McLeod
Weyburn   Thomas Clement Douglas
5605
James Weyburn Adolphe
3489
  George Levi Crane**

Urban constituencies

Electoral District Candidates   Incumbent
 CCF Liberal PCOther
Moose Jaw City   John Wesley Corman
6296

Dempster Henry Ratcliffe Heming
5894

William George Baker
2881

Harold Walpole Pope
2887

Russell Lawrence Brownridge
1271

Hugh Alexander Tiers
1036

Frank Ernest Talbot (Social Credit) 249   William Gladstone Ross**

William George Baker

Saskatoon City   John Henry Sturdy
9375

Arthur Thomas Stone
7792

James Wilfred Estey
5084

Robert Mitford Pinder
3924

Rupert David Ramsay
5368

Henry Oswald Wright
3171

Frederick Nelson Clarke
(Labor-Progressive) 797

Russell Hartney (Ind.) 200

John Harrison Hilton (Ind.) 121

  Robert Mitford Pinder

James Wilfred Estey

Regina City   Clarence Melvin Fines
14129

Charles Cromwell Williams
14784

Charles Roberts Davidson
10982

Bernard J. McDaniel
10551

Hugh McGillivray
3536

Claude Henry James Burrows
3114

  Bernard J. McDaniel

Percy McCuaig Anderson**

By-elections

By-election: Shellbrook, June 29, 1945
CCF hold
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
  CCF Guy Franklin Van Eaton 3,350 53.1 -7.3
  Liberal Harold Keith Elder 2,514 42.9 +3.2
  Social Credit Albert M. Courchene 450 15.2 -
Total 6,314
By-election: Wadena, November 21, 1945
CCF hold
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
  CCF Frederick Arthur Dewhurst 2,474 80.9 +12.2
  Labor-Progressive William Beeching 584 19.1 -
Total 3,085
By-election: Morse, June 27, 1946
CCF hold
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
  CCF James William Gibson 3,006 46.1 -3.1
  Liberal Herbert Wiebe 2,410 37.0 -0.8
  Progressive Conservative Rupert Ramsay 1,098 16.9 +3.9
Total 6,514

1944 service elections

Active Service Voters, Saskatchewan members of the Canadian armed services on active duty outside of Saskatchewan, were polled between October 17 and October 30, 1944. One representative was elected from each of three areas. These candidates did not specify any party affiliation.

Area 1 (Great Britain)

Candidate Votes %
LAC Delmar Storey Valleau 605
Lt. Col. N.S. Cuthbert 554
Lt. Col. F.E. Bell 330
Major J.R. Mather 319
Lt. P.A. Mahon 311
Sgt. H.S. Bearden 301
RSM A.S. Cochrane 301
Lt. Col. F. Steele 283
F/L C.A. Angus 265
Col. R.B. Martin 260
F/L G. Ward 233
Capt. H.C. Rees 217
S/Sgt. S. Haskell 159
F/O J.C. Cavanagh 149
Lt. J.E. McCann 90
F/O J. Knippelberg 89
Capt. S.A. Giverego 53

Area 2 (Mediterranean Theatre)

Candidate Votes %
Lt. Col. Alan Williams Embury 803
BSM H.J. MacBurney 451
Sgt. H.M. Woollard 218
Pte. J.H. Heffernan 216
Capt. E. Horvath 211
Capt. K.A. Calder 203
Cpl. Ian Selkirk 186
Lt. J.H. Archer 168
BSM R.G. Polloc 148
Lt. E.J. Western 105
Sgt. V.C. McCarthy 86
Sgt. C.J. Baker 59
Sgt. D.G. Rice 49
A/PO H.W. Moody 41

Area 3 (Canada outside of Saskatchewan/Newfoundland)

Candidate Votes %
Major Malcolm James Dobie 510
S/L John Allan Young 386
C.W.M.S. Clifford Herbert Peet 355
Lt. Col. Henry Austin Hunt 355
Lt. Douglas Hague 347
S/L E.W. Campbell 317
Major Percy H. Maguire 265
AC1 John Bender 209
Lt. Col. Thomas Russell MacNutt 209
Lt. Comdr. Donald Alexander Grant 190
L/Sgt. William Harold Lilwall 186
S/L Angus C. McClaskey 170
F/L Walter Hemming Nelson 124
Sgt. Benjamin Malcolm MacKinnon 114
F/O Robert Bruce Butler 114
Sgt. Irving S. Brown 80
S.Q.M.S. (WO II) David Vogt 74
F/S Gerhard Epp 72
F/S Arthur Rudolph Dohlen 41
F/L H.E.M. Hales 29

Further reading

  • Argyle, Ray. Turning Points: The Campaigns That Changed Canada - 2011 and Before (2011) excerpt and text search ch 8

See also

References

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