1942 Canadian conscription plebiscite

Canadian referendum on conscription during the Second World War November 2022 Are you in favour of releasing the Government from any obligations arising out of any past commitments restricting the methods of raising men for military service? Canada 1921 All 9 provinces, and 1 of the 2 territories of Canada VOTE conscription plebiscite 1942.png 200px Advertisement appearing in The Canadian Champion (Milton, Ontario, April 23, 1942) soliciting votes for the 1942 Canadian conscription plebiscite. 1942 04 27 2,945,514 1,543,006 4,638,847 6,502,234 Canada 1942 Referendum.svg Results by province and territoryYes#7D9CBB 60–69%#47729e 70–79%#28497c 80–89%No#8b8b54 70–79% 300px A plebiscite on conscription was held in Canada on 27 April 1942.Nohlen, D (2005) Elections in the Americas: A data handbook, Volume I, p127 978-0-19-928357-6 It was held in response to the Conservative Party lobbying Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King (Liberal leader) to introduce compulsory overseas military service, the government having previously promised not to introduce same in 1940. The result was 66% voting in favour,Nohlen, p130 with Quebec being the only province to have a majority voting against. Quebec's strong majority against the commitment's release prompted the prime minister not to pursue the issue until later events prompted a change in position. Content The following question appeared on the ballot: Are you in favour of releasing the Government from any obligations arising out of any past commitments restricting the methods of raising men for military service?French: Consentez-vous à libérer le gouvernement de toute obligation résultant d'engagements antérieurs restreignant les méthodes de mobilisation pour le service militaire? Opinion polling Completion Date Polling firm Source YesNo Undecided Lead April 27, 1942 Official results 65.62% 34.38% 31.24% March 1942 Gallup 64 p.c. of Canadians would free govt. from manpower promises March 14, 1942 The Evening Citizen A1 64 28 8 36 February 1942 Gallup 60 24 16 36 December 27, 1941 Gallup Gallup and Fortune Polls. (1942). The Public Opinion Quarterly, 6(1), 140–174. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2745046 60 30 10 30 Quebec polling only Completion Date Polling firm Source YesNo Lead April 27, 1942 Official results 27.9% 72.1% 44.2% March 1942 Gallup 25 75 50 February 1942 Gallup 39 61 22 Results National Canadian conscription plebiscite, 1942 National results 2945514 1543006 6502234 50327 Nohlen By province |- style="text-align:center;background:#E9E9E9;" ! colspan="5" | Canadian conscription plebiscite, 1942 Provincial results |- style="text-align:center;background:#E9E9E9;" ! rowspan="2" style="text-align:left;" | Jurisdiction ! colspan="2" | 14px Yes ! colspan="2" | No |- style="text-align:center;background:#E9E9E9;" ! Votes !! % !! Votes !! % |- | style="text-align:left;" | Alberta || 186,624 || 71.1 || 75,880 || 28.9 |- | style="text-align:left;" | British Columbia || 253,844 || 80.4 || 62,033 || 19.6 |- | style="text-align:left;" | Manitoba || 218,093 || 80.3 || 53,651 || 19.7 |- | style="text-align:left;" | New Brunswick || 105,629 || 69.8 || 45,743 || 30.2 |- | style="text-align:left;" | Nova Scotia || 120,763 || 77.1 || 35,840 || 22.1 |- | style="text-align:left;" | Ontario || 1,202,953 || 84.0 || 229,847 || 16.0 |- | style="text-align:left;" | Prince Edward Island || 23,569 || 82.9 || 4,869 || 17.1 |- | style="text-align:left;" | Quebec || 375,650 || 27.9 || 971,925 || 72.1 |- | style="text-align:left;" | Saskatchewan || 183,617 || 73.1 || 67,654 || 26.9 |- | style="text-align:left;" | Yukon || 847 || 74.4 || 291 || 25.6 |- style="background:#F2F2F2;" ! style="text-align:left;" | Total civilian vote !! 2,670,088 !! 63.3 !! 1,547,724 !! 36.7 |- style="background:#F2F2F2;" | style="text-align:left;" | Military vote || 251,118 || 80.5 || 60,885 || 19.5 |- style="background:#F2F2F2;" ! style="text-align:left;" | Canada !! 2,921,206 !! 64.5 !! 1,608,609 !! 35.5 |} The referendum was held in all 245 electoral districts, which covered all nine provinces and one of the two territories. Residents in the Northwest Territories did not have a vote, as their area was not organized as an electoral district. References Category:Referendums in Canada Category:1942 referendums Category:1942 in Canada Category:Conscription referendums Category:1942 in Quebec Category:April 1942 in Canada Category:Politics of Canada in World War II Category:Third premiership of William Lyon Mackenzie King