1958 Liberal Party of Canada leadership election

Party election in Canada September 2023October 2025 1958 Liberal Party of Canada leadership election Canada 1957 presidential no 1948 1968 January 16, 1958 Delegate count Percentage x150px CA Liberal nohash Lester B. Pearson 1,074 77.8% x150px CA Liberal nohash Paul Martin Sr. 305 22.1% Leader Louis St. Laurent Lester B. Pearson Liberal CA Liberal 1958 January 16, 1958 Ottawa Coliseum,Lansdowne Park,Ottawa, Ontario Lester Pearson Louis St. Laurent 3 1 In 1958, the Liberal Party of Canada held a leadership election to replace leader Louis St. Laurent, who had resigned as Prime Minister after the party's defeat in the 1957 election. On the first ballot, former External Affairs minister Lester Pearson defeated former cabinet minister Paul Martin and Mayor of Portage la Prairie, Harold Lloyd Henderson.1958 Liberal Convention http://www.cpac.ca/en/1958-liberal-convention/ CPAC Cable Public Affairs Channel February 6, 2016 February 7, 2016 https://web.archive.org/web/20160207102009/http://www.cpac.ca/en/1958-liberal-convention/ dead Background The Liberals had held power for 22 years until their defeat in the 1957 federal election on June 10, 1957, which returned a Progressive Conservative minority government. Louis St. Laurent, who had led the Liberals since 1948, announced on September 6, 1957 that he would not be leading the Liberals into another election.St. Laurent Statement Globe and Mail September 7, 1957 Candidates Harold Lloyd Henderson, 51, Mayor of Portage la Prairie, Manitoba. Paul Martin Sr., 54, former Minister of National Health and Welfare (1946–1957), MP for Essex East, Ontario since 1935. Lester B. Pearson, 60, former Secretary of State for External Affairs (1948–1957), MP for Algoma East, Ontario since 1948. Donald Hugh Mackay, Mayor of Calgary, withdrew his candidacy a week before the convention. Former Finance Minister Walter Edward Harris, who had lost his seat in the election, had initially been expected to be Pearson's main competitor but did not run.Pearson's Post Position: Leadership Struggle Expected Globe and Mail September 7, 1957 Newfoundland MP and former Minister for Citizenship and Immigration Jack Pickersgill was also expected to run but did not stand. Other names mentioned as possible candidates were former Fisheries Minister and British Columbia MP James Sinclair (Coast—Capilano), former Transport Minister and Montreal MP George Carlyle Marler (Saint-Antoine—Westmount), and former Public Works Minister Robert Winters who had lost his Queens—Lunenburg, Nova Scotia seat in the election. Pearson was the choice of the party establishment, had strong support from MPs in Quebec and Toronto, and won overwhelmingly on the first ballot and was also helped by being awarded the 1957 Nobel Peace Prize weeks before the convention. Martin, who had been on the left of the St. Laurent cabinet, attempted to appeal to the rank-and-file, Results + First Ballot Candidate Delegate Support Percentage 50px Lester B. Pearson 1,074 77.8% 50px Paul Martin Sr. 305 22.1% Harold Lloyd Henderson 1 0.1% Total 1,380 100% First ballot #ddd 600px 410px Pearson CA Liberal 77.83 Martin CA Liberal 22.10 Henderson CA Liberal 0.07 References 1958 Category:1958 elections in Canada Category:1958 political party leadership elections Category:January 1958 in Canada Category:1950s in Ottawa Category:Lester B. Pearson