1944 Alberta general election

none September 2023 1944 Alberta general election Alberta 1921 legislative no no 1940 Alberta general election 1940 9th Alberta Legislative Assembly 1944 8 8 members 1948 Alberta general election 1948 60 seats in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta 31 seats were needed for a majority Ernest Manning.jpg AB Social Credit nohash Ernest Manning AB Social Credit name May 31, 1943 Edmonton 36 seats, 42.9% 35 51 16 146,367 50.5% 7.6% IM AB Independent Movement nohash James H. Walker AB Independent Movement name 1944 Warner(lost re-election) 19 seats, 42.5% 15 3 12 47,239 16.3% 26.2% Elmer Roper circa 1942.jpg AB CCF nohash Elmer E. Roper AB CCF name 1942 Edmonton 0 seats, 11.1% 1 2 1 70,307 24.2% 13.1% V&AF nohash William J. Williams AB Veterans' and Active Force name 1944 Edmonton pre-creation 0 1 1 3,532 1.2% — Premier Premier after election Ernest Manning AB Social Credit name Ernest Manning AB Social Credit name The 1944 Alberta general election was held on August 8, 1944, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. As well, in late 1944 and early 1945, Albertans serving in the military voted for separate representation - by electing an Army, an Air Force and a Navy representative (see "Soldiers' vote" below).A Century of Democracy (Centennial series) The election was the first contested by leader Ernest C. Manning. Previously Provincial Secretary, he became leader of the Social Credit Party and premier after party founder, Premier William Aberhart, died in 1943. Manning steered the party down a more moderate path, largely dispensing with the party's social credit policies of monetary reform that it had been mostly unable to implement. The provinces's improved economic position meanwhile made such reforms less pressing. Manning led Social Credit to a third term in government with a resounding victory in the 1944 election, winning 85 per cent of the seats with just over 50 per cent of the popular vote on the first count of ballots. Preferential voting was used, under Single transferable voting in the cities and Instant-runoff voting elsewhere. The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation entered the election with only one seat in the legislature belonging to party leader Elmer Roper who had won a 1942 by-election. Despite winning almost a quarter of the popular vote the party won only two seats in the general election. The Conservative party and former United Farmers continued their strategy of running joint candidates as Independents. Not supported by the Liberals, who left the coalition, the anti-SC joint effort lost much of its previous share of the popular vote. The Liberal Party though did not run candidate under its own banner in this election. Albertan servicemen and veterans from World War II were able to vote in the first phase of the election on August 4, 1944. There was also a second vote held to elect three Canadian Armed Forces representatives from amongst the Albertans who were in active service overseas, or those who missed the first vote. This provincial election, like the previous four, saw district-level proportional representation (Single transferable voting) used to elect the MLAs of Edmonton and Calgary. City-wide districts were used to elect multiple MLAs in the cities. All the other MLAs were elected in single-member districts through Instant-runoff voting. All voters in the province had the opportunity to cast ranked ballots. The Army, Navy and Air Force members were elected through single-winner first-past-the-post voting.Report on Alberta Elections 1982 The campaign The 1944 election, was the first general election contested by Premier Ernest Manning. Manning had taken over the Social Credit Party from William Aberhart who died unexpectedly a year earlier. Social Credit faced opposition from the Independents led by James Walker who had also just been elected leader and the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation who had just managed to win a seat in a by-election in Edmonton and win a majority in the 1944 Saskatchewan general election. Like Social Credit and the Independents they were also contesting their first general election with new leader Elmer Roper. The stage for the general election was set when Social Credit won a critical by-election in Red Deer in December 1943. The by-election win gave momentum to Social Credit as they picked it up from the Independents. After the election they decided to speed up their plans and hold the election in the summer time.Some Campaign Notes 2 Red Deer Advocate January 12, 1944 VOL. XLIII, No. 2 Two major changes occurred this election with the way that votes were to be counted and who could vote. Ballots in single member electoral districts were now allowed to be marked with an "X" to indicate a first choice preference. Prior to this election high numbers of ballots had been declared as spoiled because they were not marked with a "1". Preferences beyond the first choice still had to be marked with a number indicating that preference.Election Topics Camrose Canadian August 2, 1944 1 The 1944 election also marked the first time that Japanese Canadians resident in Alberta were eligible to vote in a provincial election. There were two thousand Japanese who had previously been moved from British Columbia to Alberta under wartime provisions.http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,775187,00.html https://web.archive.org/web/20081214221433/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,775187,00.html dead December 14, 2008 Decision Time Magazine August 14, 1944 2008-05-28 Although they had been here (involuntarily in some cases) more than a year and were not barred on racial grounds from voting, they were denied the right to vote because the status of their residency was of a temporary nature according to election officials."2000 Japanese will be barred from balloting", Edmonton Bulletin, August 7, 1944, p. 2 After the writ was dropped, Manning pushed the election as a referendum on the future of the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation party. Independent candidates (pushed forward by the Conservative and Liberal parties who were absent from the election) and Social Credit asked their supporters to mark their first and second preferences for candidates of their parties to try to ensure the CCF was not elected.Can The C.C.F. Make It? Red Deer Advocate July 26, 1944 2 Vol. XLIII, No. 30 Social Credit The Social Credit government had been re-elected with a thin majority government in 1940 after failing to fulfill many of its promises of monetary reform whose popularity had allowed it to sweep to power in the 1935 election. The party was also rising in popularity since Ernest Manning became Premier in 1943 after the death of William Aberhart. Manning steered the party away from its previous policies that included Social Credit monetary theory and media control. The centrepiece of Social Credit's policy in this election was a plan on refunding Alberta's large debt that had been built up under the Liberal and by the United Farmer and Social Credit governments during the Depression. Independent Movement The Independent Citizen's Association, led into the election by James Walker, had been organized as a coalition of Conservatives, Liberals and United Farmers who grouped together to try to defeat the Social Credit government in late 1930s and in the 1940 election. Despite being an organized party, its candidates are often identified as Independents. The coalition weakened when the Alberta Liberal Party left just before the 4th Legislative Session opened in February 1944.Mr. Manning says "GO" Red Deer Advocate 2 July 12, 1944 Despite the split, the Liberal party did not run candidates under its own name in the 1944 election."Think and vote" Edmonton Bulletin, August 5, 1944, p. 1 Walker was elected leader of the Independent Citizens Association at a convention held in Calgary on January 23, 1944. He defeated David Elton in a two-way contest.James H. Walker Elected Leader of the Independent Assn. The Herald-Tribune January 27, 1944 1 Vol XXXII, No. 46 There was considerable interest in the convention as over 300 delegates from across Alberta showed up to vote. Walker was elected on the first ballot winning a decisive victory. This was the first time since the Association had been created that a permanent leader was selected.Dr. L.J. O'Brien, M.L.A. Gives Impressions of the Calgary Convention The Herald-Tribune January 27, 1944 1 Vol XXXII, No. 46 In 1944, four ICA candidates ran in Edmonton; three in Calgary. Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) The left-leaning Cooperative Commonwealth Federation had enjoyed tremendous growth over the previous couple of years. In 1942 the provincial branch reorganized at a convention in Edmonton and merged the provincial branch of the Canadian Labor Party into the CCF. Prior to that date the two parties had been affiliated but had operated separately.The C.C.F. in Alberta Red Deer Advocate 2 January 28, 1992 After the merger the party won an Edmonton by-election on September 22, 1942, to elect their leader Elmer Roper to the Assembly.http://www.elections.ab.ca/Public%20Website/742.htm#1905-1973 Past by-election results Elections Alberta 2008-05-28 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20071225062330/http://www.elections.ab.ca/Public%20Website/742.htm 2007-12-25 Shortly before the writs were dropped in this election the Saskatchewan CCF swept the 1944 Saskatchewan general election. Manning called the general election to defuse a possible surge in support for the CCF. The CCF provincially had struck a deal with the Labor Progressive Party (the Communist Party) to run fusion candidates in some electoral districts. The first time this agreement was put to work was in the December 1943 Red Deer by-election where James MacPherson, LPP leader, endorsed CCF candidate E.P. Johns. The 1944 election was the first provincial election where the CCF fielded a full slate of candidates. It was the only party in 1944 to do so other than Social Credit. (There was no need for fusion candidates or restriction on running too many candidates as transferable votes used at that time in all districts in Alberta avoided the harmful effects of vote splitting.) Newly elected Saskatchewan premier Tommy Douglas came to Calgary and Edmonton to speak during the campaign."CCF plans tax on interest...", Edmonton Bulletin, August 5. 1944, p. 1 CCF leader Elmer Roper was quoted in Edmonton Bulletin that if elected, the first thing a CCF government would do is take over Calgary Power."CCF planning to take over Calgary Power", Edmonton Bulletin, August 3. 1944, p. 3 Labor-Progressive Party The LPP had contested elections previously under the Communist banner, but had changed its name to be in line with the federal party, after they had all been outlawed. The Labor-Progressive Party, led by James MacPherson, aimed to run candidates in the major cities and in mining communities. They did run 30 candidates. In some electoral districts where LPP candidates did not run, the LPP and the CCF ran fusion candidates.Eckville News 6 January 26, 1944 Red Deer Advocate Vol. XLIII, No.4 A proposal by the Labor Progressive Party to run fusion candidates with the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation at the federal level was rejected by the national council. Farmer-Labor left|thumb|99px|Victor Johanson Farmer-Labor Leader The Farmer-Labor election committee was a minor political party created by Victor Johanson. He was a farmer residing near the small town of Bentley, Alberta. Johanson was originally selected as a fusion candidate for the Labor Progressive Party and Cooperative Commonwealth Federation to contest the Rocky Mountain House electoral district. Shortly before the general election was called, the Rocky Mountain House CCF constituency association broke away and voted not to support Johanson and to nominate its own candidate instead. Johanson then created his own Farmer-Labor banner that he and his supporters operated under. Johanson's Farmer-Labor banner was the least successful of the four single-candidate parties that operated in the general election (the other three were the Veterans' and Active Force party; the Single Tax party; and Labour United). Johanson finished last in his district and in the provincial standings, winning just 0.13% of the total vote in the province. After the election Johanson did not contest another provincial election, effectively ending the party. Farmer-Labor's 1944 election platform had seven policy planks. These planks covered primarily local issues to appeal to coal miners working and living at Nordegg, Alberta. Crop insurance and raised commodity prices was also promised to appeal to area farmers. Other policy planks promised help to veterans returning from the war and improvements for local transportation infrastructure.Programme Farmer-Labor Candidate Red Deer Advocate July 26, 1944 2 XLIII, No. 30 Farmer-Labor Platform Adequate prices for all farm produce. Better system for providing for crop losses and improvement in the Prairie Farmers' Assistance Act. More liberal grants for roads in rural areas, based on funds collected from car and truck licenses and taxes collected from gasoline sales in each district. A hard-surfaced road to the company town of Nordegg. Labor Legislation and a Labor Code of Rights to be administered by the Minister of Labor. Old age pensions at a younger age, regardless of property owned. A more liberal monthly pay so that the pensioners can enjoy a better life then at present. Rehabilitation of the Armed Forces in Peacetime Production and a higher standard of living than in the past. Better opportunities for the youth in the post-war years. Election night On election night Manning's Social Credit party won a landslide victory with 52 per cent of the first preference vote. Mixture of Social Credit and Opposition MLAs were elected in Calgary and Edmonton, where STV ensured proportional results, and Social Credit swept the rural districts. In almost all the rural districts, the SC candidate took a majority of votes in the First Count and that person was declared elected. But in others, where the SC candidate did not take a majority of the votes in the First Count, vote transfer(s) were conducted as per the Alternative Voting system and in each case the Social Credit candidate was elected. Except for Banff-Cochrane, the final winner in each single-member district was the same as would have won under first past the post. In Banff-Cochrane, the leader in the first count was an Independent Movement candidate but when votes were transferred from the eliminated CCF candidate, most of the votes went to the SC candidate.A Report on Alberta Elections, 1905-1982, p. 61 The anti-SC coalition Independents did not run a candidate in every riding and were seen by the voters as lacking credibility. Most of their voters swung to Social Credit as a strategic vote to prevent the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation party from electing members.http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,932685,00.html https://web.archive.org/web/20081214220944/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,932685,00.html dead December 14, 2008 Time Magazine Two Elections August 21, 1944 2008-05-28 The anti-SC coalition had lost its whipping boy, William Aberhart. The 1944 election was fought mostly as a two-party contest between the conservative Ernest Manning government and the leftist CCF, which was relatively popular due to wartime anti-fascist sentiment. The opposition parties conceded defeat just twenty six minutes after the polls closed.Social Credit Government Wins in Landslide The Olds Gazette August 10, 1944 Vol 47. – No. 32 Key races Edmonton The Edmonton electoral district elected five members by single transferable vote. Twenty candidates ran in the district including four party leaders. Social Credit leader Ernest Manning, who had been appointed premier in 1943, was easily the most recognizable candidate in the field. Elmer Roper, CCF leader, had won a seat in Edmonton almost two years earlier in a by-election and was running for re-election. The other party leaders were James MacPherson, of the Labor Progressive Party, and William J. Williams, of the Veterans' and Active Force group. Manning won his seat in the First Count. It took 16 vote transfers to fill the last seat but in the end candidates of four different groups were elected to represent Edmonton - 2 SC (including leader Manning), 1 (anti-SC Independent of the Independent Citizens Aassociation), 1 CCF (leader Roper) and Williams, leader and sole candidate of the Veterans and Active Force group.Official Returns filed by the Returning officer, PAA (Edmonton), 1971.138, 158 The three opposition MLAs elected in Edmonton joined with three elected in Calgary. Those six were the only opposition MLAs elected to the Legislature in this election. Red Deer The results of the December 1943 by-election in Red Deer had led Social Credit government to speed up plans for the general election. Incumbent Social Credit MLA David Ure was running for his second term in office.He was elected, taking majority of votes on the first count. Rocky Mountain House Farmer-Labor candidate and leader Victor Johanson was nominated at a joint Cooperative Commonwealth Federation/Labor Progressive convention on February 17, 1944. Shortly before the election the CCF riding association broke off and nominated candidate George Morrison to run under their banner.Use Your Vote Red Deer Advocate August 2, 1944 I. Kaila 5 Vol XLIII, No.31 Incumbent Social Credit MLA Alfred Hooke was running for re-election. He had been appointed by Premier Manning as Provincial Secretary, when he had formed his cabinet in 1943, after Aberhart's death. The Independents did not nominate a candidate in this riding. On election night Hooke was easily re-elected, winning a majority of the votes on the first count.http://www.abheritage.ca/abpolitics/database/maps_choice.asp?Year=1944&Constit=Rocky_Mountain_House Rocky Mountain House 1944 election results Alberta Heritage Foundation 2008-06-02 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20110612190315/http://www.abheritage.ca/abpolitics/database/maps_choice.asp?Year=1944&Constit=Rocky_Mountain_House 2011-06-12 A Report on Alberta Elections, 1905-1982 Warner The Warner electoral district was hotly contested by Independent leader James Walker and Provincial Treasurer Solon Low. Low had been defeated by Walker in the 1940 general election and won a by-election held in the Vegreville electoral district on June 20, 1940. The field of candidates was rounded out by W.M. Madge who ran under the Single Tax banner and R.B. Eshorn of the CCF. On election night, Low won a stunning first count victory, taking a majority of the votes first off and defeating Walker, Madge and Eshorn. Results +Elections to the 10th Alberta Legislative Assembly (1944)PartyLeaderCandidatesFirst-preference votesSeats Votes ± % Fpv First-preference votes Change (pp) 1940 1944 ±  Canadian Armed Forces representativesOne for each branch, elected under first past the post rulesAB Canadian Army colour&name 22 6,125AB Royal Canadian Air Force colour&name 7 1,207AB Royal Canadian Navy colour&name 3 653Military vote 32 7,985 7,985 2.75 2.75 -2 1em background:green –3 60 AB Soldier3 AB Social Credit row-nameErnest C. Manning57 146,367 13,860 50.46 7.56 -2 1em background:green3651 60 AB Social Credit15 AB Independent Movement row-nameJames H. Walker36 47,239 83,364 16.28 -26.00 -2 1em background:red193 60 AB Independent Movement16 AB CCF row-nameElmer Roper57 70,307 35,991 24.24 13.13 -2 1em background:green –2 60 AB CCF2 AB Veteran's & Active Force row-nameWilliam Williams1 3,532 3,532 1.22 1.22 -2 1em background:green –1 60 AB Independent1 AB Labor-Progressive row-namecompared against 1940 Communist resultsJames A. MacPherson30 12,003 10,936 4.14 3.79 -2 1em background:green –0 60 AB Labor-Progressive – AB Liberal row-nameDid not campaign -0.89 -2 1em background:red10 60 AB Liberal1 AB Labour row-nameDid not campaign -1.05 -2 1em background:red10 60 AB Labour1 AB Labour row Labor United 1 1,788 1,788 0.62 AB Single Tax row-name 1 480 480 0.16 AB Farmer-Labour row-name 1 390 390 0.13Total 216290,091 100.00% Rejected ballots 8,082 2,533 Turnout 298,173 21,306 70.7% 4.1 Registered voters 421,501 5,834 a MLAs elected #90EE90 Acadia-Coronation: Clarence Gerhart #90EE90 Alexandra: Selmer Berg #90EE90 Athabasca: Gordon Lee #90EE90 Banff-Cochrane: Arthur Wray #90EE90 Beaver River: Lucien Maynard #90EE90 Bow Valley-Empress: Wilson Cain #90EE90 Bruce: James L. McPherson #90EE90 Calgary: Fred Anderson #DCDCDC Calgary: Andrew Davison #EEDDAA Calgary: Aylmer Liesemer #DCDCDC Calgary: Howard MacDonald #90EE90 Calgary: Rose Wilkinson #90EE90 Camrose: Chester Sayers #90EE90 Cardston: Nathan Eldon Tanner #90EE90 Clover Bar: Floyd Baker #90EE90 Cypress: Edith Thurston #90EE90 Didsbury: Howard Hammell #90EE90 Drumheller: Gordon Taylor #90EE90 Edmonton: Norman James #90EE90 Edmonton: Ernest Manning #DCDCDC Edmonton: John P. Page #EEDDAA Edmonton: Elmer Roper #DCDCDC Edmonton: William Williams (VAF Veteran's & Active Force) #90EE90 Edson: Norman Willmore #90EE90 Gleichen: George E. Bell #90EE90 Grande Prairie: Ira McLaughlin #90EE90 Grouard: William Fallow #90EE90 Hand Hills: Wallace Warren Cross #90EE90 Lac Ste. Anne: Albert Bourcier #90EE90 Lacombe: Duncan MacMillan #90EE90 Leduc: Ronald Ansley #90EE90 Lethbridge: John Landeryou #90EE90 Little Bow: Peter Dawson #90EE90 Macleod: James Hartley #90EE90 Medicine Hat: John Lyle Robinson #90EE90 Okotoks-High River: Ivan Casey #90EE90 Olds: Norman E. Cook #90EE90 Peace River: William Gilliland #90EE90 Pembina: Robin Jorgenson #90EE90 Pincher Creek-Crowsnest: Ernest Duke #90EE90 Ponoka: Ora B. Moore #90EE90 Red Deer: David Ure #90EE90 Redwater: James Popil #90EE90 Rocky Mountain House: Alfred Hooke #90EE90 St. Albert: Charles Holder #90EE90 St. Paul: Joseph Beaudry #90EE90 Sedgewick: Albert Fee #90EE90 Spirit River: Henry DeBolt #90EE90 Stettler: William S. Mackie #90EE90 Stony Plain: Cornelia Wood #90EE90 Taber: Roy S. Lee #90EE90 Vegreville: Michael Ponich #90EE90 Vermilion: William Cornish #90EE90 Wainwright: William Masson #90EE90 Warner: Solon Low #90EE90 Wetaskiwin: John Wingblade #90EE90 Willingdon: William Tomyn Servicemember MLAs #72B490 Army: James Harper Prowse #72B490 Air Force: Frederick C. Colborne #72B490 Navy: Loftus Dudley Ward a Synopsis of results + Results by riding1944 Alberta general election (all except Calgary, Edmonton and servicemember MLAs) 2006 A Century of Democracy: Elections of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, 1905-2005 https://archive.org/details/centennialseries04perr/page/150/mode/2up Edmonton Legislative Assembly of Alberta 150–162 0-9689217-9-5 Riding First-preference votes Turnoutincluding spoilt ballots Final counts Winning partyName SC CCF IndM Independent Movement LPP Labour-Progressive Oth Other affiliations Total SC CCF IndM Independent Movement Lab Labour United 1940 1944   Acadia-Coronation2,930 1,215 595 – – 4,740 82.3%Elected on 1st count SC SC Alexandra2,212 1,504 – 151 – 3,867 65.9%Elected on 1st count SC SC Athabasca2,288 1,410 – 560 – 4,258 61.4%Elected on 1st count SC SC Banff-Cochrane1,568 902 1,602 – – 4,072 73.5% 1,805 – 1,757 – IndM SC Beaver River2,747 1,403 – 385 – 4,535 69.5%Elected on 1st count SC SCBow Valley-Empress2,131 1,033 625 – – 3,789 74.3%Elected on 1st count SC SC Bruce2,024 1,274 467 – – 3,765 67.2%Elected on 1st count SC SC Camrose2,763 1,590 623 – – 4,976 72.1%Elected on 1st count SC SC Cardston2,104 569 592 – – 3,265 72.2%Elected on 1st count SC SC Clover Bar2,969 1,693 – – – 4,662 71.9%Elected on 1st count SC SC Cypress1,747 705 973 – – 3,425 74.8%Elected on 1st count IndM SC Didsbury2,485 728 966 – – 4,179 70.6%Elected on 1st count IndM SC Drumheller2,243 671 – 713 – 3,627 78.2%Elected on 1st count SC SC Edson2,536 1,280 – 587 – 4,403 66.9%Elected on 1st count Lab SC Gleichen2,032 942 1,072 – – 4,046 74.8%Elected on 1st count IndM SC Grande Prairie2,366 1,128 736 – – 4,230 97.7%Elected on 1st count IndM SC Grouard2,612 1,560 – 387 – 4,559 67.3%Elected on 1st count Lib SC Hand Hills3,125 873 532 – – 4,530 80.5%Elected on 1st count SC SC Lac Ste. Anne2,209 1,767 – – – 3,976 63.6%Elected on 1st count SC SC Lacombe2,442 1,324 775 – – 4,541 73.6%Elected on 1st count SC SC Leduc2,764 1,186 – 155 – 4,105 67.2%Elected on 1st count SC SC Lethbridge2,367 1,464 2,247 219 – 6,297 69.0% 2,692 – 2,388 – IndM SC Little Bow1,958 767 826 – – 3,551 76.3%Elected on 1st count SC SC Macleod2,440 972 989 152 – 4,553 75.4%Elected on 1st count SC SC Medicine Hat2,977 696 1,457 536 – 5,366 71.3%Elected on 1st count SC SC Okotoks-High River2,932 1,444 2,196 – – 6,572 67.8% 3,425 – 2,347 – IndM SC Olds3,196 776 832 – – 4,804 90.3%Elected on 1st count SC SC Peace River2,503 940 806 385 – 4,634 62.7%Elected on 1st count IndM SC Pembina2,400 1,498 820 – – 4,718 71.2%Elected on 1st count IndM SC Pincher Creek-Crowsnest2,109 962 – – 1,788 4,859 73.2% 2,228 – – 1,870 SC SC Ponoka2,208 1,016 778 237 – 4,239 72.9%Elected on 1st count IndM SC Red Deer3,012 1,282 1,545 – – 5,839 73.1%Elected on 1st count IndM SC Redwater2,390 817 – 882 – 4,089 68.4%Elected on 1st count SC SC Rocky Mountain House2,936 1,302 – – 390 4,628 67.3%Elected on 1st count SC SC St. Albert2,097 1,222 918 – – 4,237 68.5% 2,491 1,357 – – IndM SC St. Paul1,851 1,503 – 771 – 4,125 63.7% 1,949 1,588 – – SC SC Sedgewick2,793 840 813 – – 4,446 76.0%Elected on 1st count SC SC Spirit River1,984 1,178 – 302 – 3,464 64.5%Elected on 1st count SC SC Stettler2,811 1,103 760 – – 4,674 77.2%Elected on 1st count SC SC Stony Plain2,557 1,371 – – – 3,928 70.0%Elected on 1st count SC SC Taber2,490 679 413 – – 3,582 73.8%Elected on 1st count SC SC Vegreville1,874 1,306 – 653 – 3,833 64.7% 1,923 1,493 – – SC SC Vermilion2,239 991 – 999 – 4,229 68.2%Elected on 1st count SC SC Wainwright2,939 1,300 – 234 – 4,473 70.8%Elected on 1st count SC SC Warner1,621 415 629 – 480 3,145 75.1%Elected on 1st count IndM SC Wetaskiwin2,700 1,259 1,007 164 – 5,130 62.2%Elected on 1st count SC SC Willingdon1,771 1,328 – 899 – 3,998 68.1% 1,844 1,448 – – SC SC a #B9E5B9 silver = Open seat #F5F5DC silver = turnout is above provincial average #DCDCDC silver = Candidate was in previous Legislature #EABB94 silver = Incumbent had switched allegiance #FFFF00 silver = Previously incumbent in another riding #EEBBBB silver = Not incumbent; was previously elected to the Legislature #87CEFA silver = Incumbency arose from by-election gain #FFA07A silver = previously an MP in the House of Commons of Canada #F0E68C silver = Multiple candidates Multi-member districts auto District Seats won(in order declared)Calgary          Edmonton       VAF Veteran's & Active Force   5em   Social Credit   Independent Movement VAF Veteran's & Active Force Veteran's & Active Force   CCF #B8BFFE silver = Candidate was in previous Legislature #CC6699 silver = First-time MLA (Liesemer (CCF) was 5th candidate to be elected in Calgary, receiving the least number of votes of the successful candidates.General Statement by Returning Officer, Calgary 1944) STV and instant-runoff voting analysis Exhausted votes Ten districts went beyond first-preference counts in order to determine winning candidates: + Exhausted votes (1944)DistrictCountsExhausted 1st preference Final Votes% of 1st prefCalgary39,309 36,238 3,071 7.81 2 1em background:redEdmonton37,834 35,087 2,747 7.26 2 1em background:redBanff-Cochrane4,072 3,562 800 12.52 2 1em background:redLethbridge6,297 5,080 1,217 19.33 2 1em background:redOkotoks-High River6,572 5,772 130 19.65 2 1em background:redPincher Creek-Crowsnest4,859 4,108 751 15.46 2 1em background:redSt. Albert4,237 3,848 389 9.18 2 1em background:redSt. Paul4,125 3,537 588 14.25 2 1em background:redVegreville3,833 3,416 417 10.88 2 1em background:redWillingdon3,998 3,292 706 17.66 2 1em background:red In Edmonton and Calgary, a high proportion of the votes that were not exhausted were used to elect a member. In Edmonton, only 5171 of the active votes (only 12 per cent of valid votes) were not used to elect the winners. These were the votes received by Kennedy, the only candidate not to be either elected or eliminated.General Statement by Returning Officer, Edmonton 1944 In Calgary, only 3608 of the active votes (only 9 per cent of valid votes) were not used to elect the winners. These were the votes received by Robert Alderman, the only candidate not to be either elected or eliminated. Calgary All parties other than the Independent Movement fielded full slates. PartyCandidatesMLAs elected 1944 1940 ± 1944 1940 ± AB Independent Movement row-name4 6 2 2 3 3 AB Social Credit row-name5 4 1 2 2 AB CCF row-name5 2 3 1 – 1 AB Independent Labour row-name– 1 1 – – – AB Independent row-name– 1 1 – – – AB Labor-Progressive row-name5 – 5 – – –Total19 14 5 5 5 Calgary (1944 Alberta general election) (five members elected, candidates ranked in order of 1st preference) August 10, 1944 Independents Elect 2 Here Calgary Herald 1–2General Statement by returning Officer, Electoral division of Calgary, August 8, 1944 17 Andrew Davison AB Independent Movement 19.73% 7,754 6560 Fred Anderson AB Social Credit 16.93% 6,655 6,655 6,558 Rose Wilkinson AB Social Credit 12.83% 5,042 5,071 5,115 5,121 5,130 5,136 5,146 5,162 5,511 5,605 5,970 6,028 6,069 6,107 8,338 8038 Alymer Liesemer AB CCF 9.06% 3,560 3,572 3,572 3,574 3,579 3,580 3,597 3,654 3,662 3,754 3,769 4,556 4,567 5,850 5,926 5,926 6,077 Howard MacDonald AB Independent Movement 6.02% 2,365 2,638 2,638 2,639 2,639 2,643 2,647 2,649 2,650 2,665 2,676 2,687 3,682 3,696 3,724 3,796 6,897 John J. Bowlen AB Independent Movement 5.58% 2,192 2,597 2,597 2,599 2,605 2,609 2,611 2,613 2,633 2,649 2,655 2,658 3,439 3,445 3,464 3,541 Robert Alderman AB CCF 5.31% 2,088 2,096 2,096 2,098 2,104 2,106 2,107 2,355 2,364 2,405 2,426 2,873 2,892 3,456 3,494 3,556 3,608 C.W.J. Helmer AB CCF 4.22% 1,659 1,663 1,663 1,663 1,663 1,666 1,678 1,728 1,732 1,779 1,815 2,063 2,070 Ken Tory AB CCF 3.71% 1,458 1,460 1,460 1,466 1,469 1,473 1,477 1,589 1,592 1,615 1,625 R.C. Carlile AB Independent Movement 3.65% 1,433 1,865 1,865 1,867 1,868 1,871 1,878 1,878 1,887 1,899 1,906 1,909 Art Larsen AB Social Credit 3.44% 1,351 1,358 1,368 1,369 1,370 1,372 1,375 1,379 1,545 1,574 2,555 2,564 2,579 2,632 Edward Geehan AB Social Credit 2.96% 1,162 1,168 1,183 1,184 1,184 1,190 1,210 1,211 1,494 1,526 C.M. Baker AB Social Credit 2.12% 834 840 868 870 873 876 881 886 Herbert Wiertz AB CCF 1.28% 504 504 504 505 506 510 512 Pat Lenihan AB Labor-Progressive 1.25% 491 493 493 505 547 640 1,012 1,014 1,016 Lionel Edwards AB Labor-Progressive 0.77% 304 309 309 317 339 487 Mike Daniels AB Labor-Progressive 0.66% 258 261 261 262 308 Gordon Wray AB Labor-Progressive 0.33% 128 128 128 148 Audrey Staples AB Labor-Progressive 0.18% 71 71 71 8 14 18 21 46 74 87 119 734 807 867 907 1,019 1,259 2,834 3,071 17 62,807 39,309 1,517 6,552 40,826 (65.0%) Calgary (1944 Alberta general election)(analysis of transferred votes, candidates ranked in order of 1st preference) #DCDCDC Independent Movement Andrew Davison 1 7754 19.73 7754 15000 #90EE90 Social Credit Fred Anderson 1 6655 16.93 6655 15000 #90EE90 Social Credit Rose Wilkinson 15 8338 21.69 5042 15000 #EEDDAA CCF Alymer Liesemer 17 6077 15.81 3560 15000 #DCDCDC Independent Movement Howard MacDonald 17 6897 17.94 2638 15000 #DCDCDC Independent Movement John J. Bowlen 16 3541 9.21 2597 15000 #EEDDAA CCF Robert Alderman 17 3608 9.39 2088 15000 #EEDDAA CCF C.W.J. Helmer 13 2070 5.38 1659 15000 #EEDDAA CCF Ken Tory 11 1625 4.22 1458 15000 #DCDCDC Independent Movement R.C. Carlile 12 1909 4.97 1433 15000 #90EE90 Social Credit Art Larsen 14 2632 6.85 1351 15000 #90EE90 Social Credit Edward Geehan 10 1526 3.96 1162 15000 #90EE90 Social Credit C.M. Baker 8 886 2.26 834 15000 #EEDDAA CCF Herbert Wiertz 7 512 1.30 504 15000 #FF6347 LPP Pat Lenihan 9 1016 2.59 491 15000 #FF6347 LPP Lionel Edwards 6 487 3.49 304 15000 #FF6347 LPP Mike Daniels 5 308 0.78 258 15000 #FF6347 LPP Gordon Wray 4 148 0.38 128 15000 #FF6347 LPP Audrey Staples 3 71 0.18 71 15000 3071 7.81 17 15000 3,071 7.81 Edmonton Three parties had full slates. The Independent Movement presented four candidates, and Williams (V&A.F.) campaigned under his own banner. PartyCandidatesMLAs elected 1944 1940 ± 1944 1940 ± AB Social Credit row-name5 5 2 2 AB CCF row-name5 3 2 1 – 1 AB Independent Movement row-name4 7 3 1 3 2 AB Veteran's & Active Force row-name1 – 1 1 – 1 AB Labor-Progressive row-name5 1 4 – – – AB Independent Progressive row-name– 2 2 – – – AB Independent row-name– 1 1 – – –Total20 19 1 5 5 Edmonton (1944 Alberta general election) (five members elected, candidates ranked in order of 1st preference) August 10, 1944 General Statement of Returning Officer: Electoral Division of Edmonton Edmonton Bulletin 1 16 Ernest Manning AB Social Credit 37.72% 14,271 6306 Elmer Roper AB CCF 13.88% 5,253 5,429 5,441 5,457 5,471 5,557 5,566 5,595 5,773 6,345 John Percy Page AB Independent Movement 12.17% 4,603 4,998 5,032 5,039 5,261 5,267 5,602 5,611 5,621 5,647 5,705 5,794 5,828 7,171 6333 William Williams AB Veterans' and Active Force 9.34% 3,532 3,996 4,012 4,030 4,051 4,060 4,077 4,088 4,120 4,142 4,298 4,508 4,554 4,805 5,366 5,535 Johnnie Caine AB Independent Movement 3.70% 1,400 1,545 1,548 1,548 1,646 1,653 1,826 1,837 1,860 1,869 1,891 1,954 1,977 Henry Carrigan AB Social Credit 3.14% 1,188 2,443 2,449 2,451 2,458 2,462 2,469 2,477 2,494 2,500 2,515 2,687 3,090 3,174 3,307 Orvis A. Kennedy AB Social Credit 2.32% 876 3,495 3,501 3,512 3,519 3,523 3,527 3,545 3,556 3,577 3,627 3,684 4,116 4,175 4,264 5,171 Clifford Lee AB CCF 2.26% 854 892 896 901 903 957 962 973 1,074 Norman B. James AB Social Credit 2.06% 781 2,491 2,504 2,510 2,514 2,515 2,519 2,547 2,555 2,563 2,587 2,613 3,376 3,421 3,476 5,397 John Gillies AB Social Credit 2.00% 755 1,674 1,676 1,681 1,684 1,690 1,694 1,703 1,705 1,714 1,730 1,806 James A. MacPherson AB Labor-Progressive 1.96% 742 774 804 978 980 983 984 1,351 1,357 1,386 James Enright AB CCF 1.72% 649 684 688 689 690 989 999 1,006 1,233 1,531 1,624 M. E. Butterworth AB CCF 1.45% 549 578 578 581 584 635 638 642 Joseph Dowler AB CCF 1.44% 545 557 560 562 565 William Halina AB Labor-Progressive 1.31% 496 512 547 585 586 590 594 Cecil Chapman AB Independent Movement 1.26% 476 509 510 510 580 584 Clarence Richards AB Independent Movement 1.12% 422 458 463 463 Jan Lakeman AB Labor-Progressive 0.66% 251 270 302 Alex Herd AB Labor-Progressive 0.31% 119 125 G.V. Murdoch AB Labor-Progressive 0.19% 72 98 0 17 31 36 63 71 153 180 254 1,206 2,137 2,242 2,437 2,437 2,747 16 65,651 37,834 2,213 6,306 40,047 (61.0%) Edmonton (1944 Alberta general election)(analysis of transferred votes, candidates ranked in order of 1st preference) #90EE90 Social Credit Ernest Manning 1 14271 37.72 14271 15000 #EEDDAA CCF Elmer Roper 10 6345 16.88 5253 15000 #DCDCDC Independent Movement John Percy Page 14 7171 20.26 5032 15000 #DCDCDC Veterans' and Active Force William Williams 16 5535 15.78 3532 15000 #DCDCDC Independent Movement Johnnie Caine 13 1977 5.55 1400 15000 #90EE90 Social Credit Henry Carrigan 15 3307 9.34 1188 15000 #90EE90 Social Credit Orvis A. Kennedy 16 5171 14.74 876 15000 #EEDDAA CCF Clifford Lee 9 1074 2.85 854 15000 #90EE90 Social Credit Norman B. James 16 5397 15.38 781 15000 #90EE90 Social Credit John Gillies 12 1806 5.06 755 15000 #FF6347 LPP James A. MacPherson 10 1386 3.69 742 15000 #EEDDAA CCF James Enright 11 1624 4.43 649 15000 #EEDDAA CCF M. E. Butterworth 8 642 1.70 549 15000 #EEDDAA CCF Joseph Dowler 5 565 1.49 545 15000 #FF6347 LPP William Halina 7 594 1.57 496 15000 #DCDCDC Independent Movement Cecil Chapman 6 584 1.55 476 15000 #DCDCDC Independent Movement Clarence Richards 4 463 1.22 422 15000 #FF6347 LPP Jan Lakeman 3 302 0.80 251 15000 #FF6347 LPP Alex Herd 2 125 0.33 119 15000 #FF6347 LPP G.V. Murdoch 2 98 0.26 72 15000 2747 7.26 16 15000 2,747 7.26 Soldiers' vote The second phase of the general election took place beginning in November 1944 and ending January 1945. Three members of the armed forces commissioned in World War II were elected to represent Alberta service men and women fighting or stationed overseas. In addition those who were in veterans hospitals at the time of the vote and retired service personnel who already returned from duty but missed the August 4, 1944, vote. The votes for the special seats set aside for Albertans serving in the armed forces were tallied from four geographic areas: https://archive.org/details/centennialseries04perr/page/150/mode/2up A Century of Democracy: Elections of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, 1905-2005 2006 Legislative Assembly of Alberta 0-9689217-9-5 Edmonton 162–163 AreaDescription1Canada (outside Alberta), Newfoundland, Bermuda, the United States of America, and any other country not included in the other areas listed.2Italy and all other countries bordering on the Mediterranean Sea (excepting France.3Europe, excepting those countries in Areas 2 and 4.4Great Britain, Northern Ireland and Iceland The following votes were received: BranchArea1 2 3 4 TotalArmy 673 2,388 1,972 1,092 6,125Air Force 689 18 121 379 1,207Navy 419 5 8 221 653Total 1,781 2,411 2,101 1,692 7,985 Servicemembers inside Alberta used special ballots for voting in their districts. Only Calgary provided a detailed breakdown. DistrictParty Total SC CCF IndM Independent Movement LPP Labour-ProgressiveCalgary331 244 192 43 810 Approximately 4,000 military votes were received in Edmonton, August 9, 1944 Manning Far Out in Front, Roper Is Second in City Edmonton Journal 1–2 but no separate figures were reported in the final results. After 3,000 had been counted, some officials said that the vote was mainly for Social Credit. This election was not run under the Elections Act and was instead run from an executive council order. This meant that the laws regarding eligibility by age and the Instant runoff voting system did not apply to the armed forces' vote. Saskatchewan was the only other province or state to implement an election for service men in World War II.http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,885746,00.html https://archive.today/20130204085850/http://www.time.com/time/archive/preview/0,10987,885746,00.html dead February 4, 2013 Experiment in Democracy Time Magazine October 16, 1944 2008-05-27 The service men vote had been pushed for by the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) opposition. Elmer Roper harshly criticized the Social Credit government for having no plans to make voting options available for persons serving overseas. The Social Credit government responded by announcing that there would be an election of the soldiers' representatives, but it had not decided the date of the vote prior to the first phase of general election being completed.Alberta election to be Tuesday August 8th Red Deer Advocate 1 July 12, 1944 The soldiers' Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs) were meant to be non-partisan and sat on the opposition side of the Assembly. The order in council forebode any candidate running in the election from contesting it along party lines. The vote also temporarily increased the number of seats in the Assembly from 57 to 60. One member represented each branch of the service: Army, Navy and Air Force. This was the second soldiers' wartime vote held in the province's history, the first being the soldiers' and nurses vote held as the second part of the 1917 Alberta general election. The writ period began in late November 1944. A total of 32 candidates registered to run in the election. The seat provided for the Army was hotly contested with 22 candidates, the Navy had three candidates and the Air Force had 7 candidates. The polls were open a record length of time as the voting was conducted from January 8, 1945, to January 20, 1945. Polling stations were set up on the front lines and at army bases where Albertans were stationed around the world. Four Chief Returning Officers were appointed to conduct the vote, a record that stands to this day. The vote was conducted under First Past the Post rules with no ballot transfers. Elsewhere in the Alberta 1944 election, Instant-runoff voting was used to elect single members, and votes were transferred if necessary because to be elected a successful candidate had to have a majority of votes. The official results from the vote conducted in Alberta were released on January 31, 1945. The votes for the rest of the world were released on January 6, 1945. An oddity of this vote is that the Government of Alberta did not print an official document detailing the election results or expenses of operating the election for the general public as it did with the rest of the general election that year. This was because the executive council order made by the Social Credit government did not require it. Full printing of the official results did appear in both the Calgary Herald and the Calgary Albertan as they were announced by the Chief Electoral Officer at a press conference held in Edmonton on February 5, 1945. The Herald was the only newspaper to break down the results by counting station.Calgary Herald February 6, 1945 2 Two Calgarians Win Elections For Servicemen Turnout for this election was generally low; the election came during the closing months of World War II when Germany was on its heels and starting to collapse and the tables had turned for Japanese forces as well. In addition to the heavy fighting there were also large numbers of troops in transit during the voting period. Chief Returning Officer Robert Addison estimated that almost 3,300 Alberta soldiers eligible were unable to vote because of being in transit to various fronts. The returns themselves were counted in four places, voting conducted in Alberta was counted and released in Edmonton first, while voting conducted overseas was counted in London and sent to Edmonton by telegraph. The highest turnout came by Army soldiers fighting in Italy and the lowest turnout was in the Mediterranean with only five service-men voting. No statistics were released on how many service men and woman were eligible to vote in total. Voters for this election were eligible to cast a ballot if they were residents of Alberta for one full calendar year prior to enlisting in the military. The only other eligibility requirement was that they missed casting a ballot in their home electoral district during the first phase of the election. The Government of Alberta commissioned four Chief Electoral Officers to help run the election. The election proved to be a logistical challenge as no similar election had ever been conducted on a worldwide scale. Robert Addison was in charge of overseeing the election in Edmonton and coordination operations around the world. James Thompson was Chief Returning Office in charge of overseeing the vote in the Mediterranean and the Franco-Belgian Fighting Fronts. A.P. Van Buren was in charge of Canada, United States and Alaska, Newfoundland, Bermuda, Nassau and Jamaica. L.P. Danis was the Chief Returning Officer for France, Belgium and Holland. The jobs of the Chief Electoral Officers included finding out where Albertans were stationed, setting up polling stations, and overseeing collection of ballots. In some cases polling stations were set up directly in the trenches causing delays to the election as election staff came under hostile fire.Calgary Herald January 5, 1945 2 Service vote begins January 8, 1945, and ended January 20, 1945 Not much is known about the election campaigns, as there was very little information published in the press about the election. The results showed there were no clear front runners in all three races. The Navy vote saw Loftus Dudley Ward hold a lead when the first votes for Alberta were released by the Chief Electoral Officer on January 31, 1945. Ward managed to hang on to win despite getting very few overseas votes. In the Air Force vote, Joseph Roy Burton was marginally leading the field after the Alberta votes were released. On the final total Frederick C. Colborne won with a surge of overseas votes. James Harper Prowse was the biggest surprise in the Army race as he had only 34 votes before surging to win with 1,050 (but just 17 per cent of the votes) by the time the final totals were released. The result of these elections, conducted using the First past the post voting system, shows the uncertainty of that system. All three winners won with only a minority of the votes cast in their respective constituencies. Prowse won with only 17 per cent of the votes cast by army voters. Results Canadian Army vote official resultsService rankNameVotes%HomeCaptainJames Harper Prowse1,05017.14%EdmontonLieutenant ColonelEric Wyld Cormack1,02016.65%AlixColonelE.B. Wilson5148.39%EdmontonSapperEric Joseph Poole4727.71%Red DeerBrigadier M.C. Gernard Renvoize Bradbrook3846.27% CalgaryCaptainJames Blakley Corbet2363.85%EdmontonRegimental Quartermaster SergeantA. Begg 2243.66%Medicine HatCaptainWilliam Thomas Sabine2243.66%EdmontonCraftsmanArthur Frank Balfour 2213.61%CalgarySergeantClarence Alexander Mumford2033.31%CalgaryCorporal Donald Hugh McLeod 2013.28%CalgaryCaptainRobert Hugh Miller1873.05%EdmontonSergeantDouglas Sterling McLaughlin1702.78%KinusoSergeantAlfred Sigman Brooks1602.61%Purple SpringsMajorWilford Addinell1572.56%EdmontonLieutenant James Reginald Dowdell1201.96%EdmontonSquadron Quartermaster SergeantDavid Elliot Scott 1181.93%Stony PlainMajor William Graham Ledingham 1101.80%CalgaryCorporalAlex Brown Johnston 1061.73%Picture ButteRegimental Quartermaster Sergeant H.A.L. Duffin1021.67%CalgaryWarrant Officer Class IIRobert Duncan McIlroy921.50%VulcanSupportBernard LaFleur540.88%McLennanTotal Valid Ballots6,125100% Royal Canadian Air Force vote official resultsFebruary 6, 1945 The Albertan 2 Calgarians Elected in Servicemen's Vote 12Service rankNameVotes%HomeWing Commander Frederick C. Colborne25220.88%CalgaryWarrant OfficerJoseph Roy Burton24420.22%EdmontonSergeantJames Melville Bell 18114.99%EdmontonFlight OfficerNiel Allen Bell17814.75%WayneSergeantFrank Pierpoint Appleby14912.34%AthabascaFlight OfficerClaude Andrew Cambell12610.44%EdmontonFlight OfficerHarold E. Bronson776.38%CherhillTotal Valid Ballots1,207100% Royal Canadian Navy vote official resultsService rankNameVotes%HomeChief Petty Officer Loftus Dudley Ward29344.87%CalgaryLieutenant John P. Dewis19129.25%CanmoreLeading Writer John Francis McVean16925.88%EdmontonTotal Valid Ballots653100% References 2 External links Elections Alberta Category:1944 elections in Canada 1944 Category:1944 in Alberta Category:August 1944 in Canada