1953 British Columbia general election
The 1953 British Columbia general election was the 24th general election in the Province of British Columbia, Canada. It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. The election was called on April 10, 1953, and held on June 9, 1953. The new legislature met for the first time on September 15, 1953.
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48 seats of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia 25 seats needed for a majority | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The minority government formed in 1952 by the conservative Social Credit party of Premier W.A.C. Bennett lasted only nine months before new elections were called. Social Credit was re-elected with a majority in the legislature to a second term in government with almost 38% of the popular vote.
The social democratic Co-operative Commonwealth Federation formed the official opposition with the only significant opposition caucus (14 seats).
The British Columbia Liberal Party had a net loss of two of its six seats despite maintaining its 23% share of the popular vote. They lost five of the six seats they had won in 1952, but picked up three new seats.
The Progressive Conservative Party lost three of its four seats in the legislature, as its share of the popular vote fell from almost 17% to under 6%.
One seat was won by a Labour candidate.
Results
| Party | Leader | Candidates | First Preference Votes | Seats | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Votes | ± | % FPv | ± | 1952 | 1953 | ± | ||||
| Social Credit League | W. A. C. Bennett | 48 | 274,771 | 65,722 | 37.75 | 10.55 |
19 | 28 / 48 |
9 | |
| Co-operative Commonwealth | Arnold Webster | 47 | 224,513 | 12,049 | 30.85 | 0.07 |
18 | 14 / 48 |
4 | |
| Liberal | Arthur Laing | 48 | 171,761 | 8,528 | 23.59 | 0.13 |
6 | 4 / 48 |
2 | |
| Progressive Conservative | Deane Finlayson | 39 | 40,780 | 88,659 | 5.60 | 11.24 |
4 | 1 / 48 |
3 | |
| Labour | Tom Uphill | 1 | 1,601 | 311 | 0.22 | 0.06 |
1 | 1 / 48 |
 | |
| Labour Progressive | 25 | 7,496 | 4,982 | 1.03 | 0.70 | |||||
| Christian Democratic | 14 | 5,036 | 2,140 | 0.69 | 0.24 | |||||
| Independent[a 1] | 7 | 1,971 | 659 | 0.27 | 0.10 | |||||
| Total | 229 | 727,839 | 100.00 | |||||||
| Rejected ballots[2] | 43,766 | 1,883 |
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| Actual voters who voted[2] | 522,052 | 21,404 |
70.55% | 2.02 | ||||||
| Registered voters[2] | 740,006 | 53,067 |
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- Includes a People's Party of BC candidate in Delta.
MLAs elected
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Alberni: Stanley John Squire
Burnaby: Ernest Winch
Cariboo: Ralph Chetwynd
Chilliwack: William Kenneth Kiernan
Columbia: Richard Orr Newton
Comox: William Campbell Moore
Cowichan-Newcastle: Robert Strachan
Cranbrook: Leo Nimsick
Delta: Thomas Irwin
Dewdney: Lyle Wicks
Esquimalt: Herbert Joseph Bruch
Fernie: Thomas Aubert Uphill
Fort George: Llewellyn Leslie King
Grand Forks-Greenwood: Rupert Haggen
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Kaslo-Slocan: Randolph Harding
Lillooet: James Gordon Gibson
Mackenzie: Anthony Gargrave
Nelson-Creston: Wesley Drewett Black
North Okanagan: Lorne Shantz
North Vancouver: George Henry Tomlinson Jr.
Oak Bay: Philip Archibald Gibbs
Omineca: Cyril Morley Shelford
Peace River: Charles William Parker
Prince Rupert: Arthur Bruce Brown
Revelstoke: Vincent Segur
Rossland-Trail: Robert Sommers
Saanich: John Douglas Tisdalle
Salmon Arm: James Allan Reid |
Similkameen: Frank Richter, Jr.
Skeena: Frank Howard
Vancouver-Burrard: Eric Charles Fitzgerald Martin
Vancouver-Burrard: Bert Price
Vancouver Centre: Alexander Small Matthew
Vancouver Centre: George Churchill Moxham
Victoria City: Lydia Arsens
Victoria City: William Chant
Victoria City: Walter Percival Wright
Yale: Irvine Finlay Corbett
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Synopsis of results
| Riding | First preference votes | Final counts | Winning party | |||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Name | SC | CCF | Lib | PC | Lab | LPP | CDP | Ind | Total | # | SC | CCF | Lib | PC | Lab | CDP | 1952 | 1953 | ||
| Alberni | 1,637 | 3,116 | 2,022 | 320 | – | 139 | – | – | 7,234 | 4th | – | 3,715 | 2,811 | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| Atlin | 108 | 553 | 275 | – | – | – | – | – | 936 | Elected on 1st count | CCF | CCF | ||||||||
| Burnaby | 8,151 | 12,689 | 3,351 | 641 | – | 367 | 396 | – | 25,595 | 2nd | 8,161 | 12,947 | 3,364 | 646 | – | 401 | CCF | CCF | ||
| Cariboo | 2,733 | 992 | 1,050 | 509 | – | – | – | – | 5,284 | Elected on 1st count | SC | SC | ||||||||
| Chilliwack | 8,776 | 2,456 | 2,631 | 589 | – | – | – | – | 14,452 | Elected on 1st count | SC | SC | ||||||||
| Columbia | 924[a 1] | 481 | 676 | 80 | – | – | – | – | 2,161 | 3rd | 1,038 | – | 787 | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Comox | 4,420 | 5,462 | 2,944 | 378 | – | 357 | – | – | 13,561 | 4th | 5,762 | 6,717 | – | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| Cowichan-Newcastle | 2,686 | 4,517 | 2,330 | 510 | – | 168 | – | 118 | 10,329 | 5th | 3,878 | 5,345 | – | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| Cranbrook | 2,219 | 2,955 | 1,615 | – | – | – | – | – | 6,789 | 2nd | 2,756 | 3,460 | – | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| Delta | 13,079 | 11,095 | 5,500 | 591 | – | 390 | 315 | 20 | 30,990 | 6th | 15,417 | 13,108 | – | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Dewdney | 7,307 | 7,003 | 3,715 | 559 | – | 250 | 72 | – | 18,906 | 5th | 9,066 | 8,310 | – | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Esquimalt | 3,264 | 3,089 | 1,998 | 480 | – | – | – | – | 8,831 | 3rd | 4,147 | 3,848 | – | – | – | – | CCF | SC | ||
| Fernie | 702 | – | 1,229 | – | 1,601 | – | – | – | 3,532 | 2nd | – | – | 1,402 | – | 1,793 | – | Lab | Lab | ||
| Fort George | 3,160 | 1,677 | 1,802 | – | – | – | – | – | 6,639 | Elected on 1st count | SC | SC | ||||||||
| Grand Forks-Greenwood | 583 | 995 | 324 | 177 | – | – | – | – | 2,079 | 2nd | 618 | 1,016 | 393 | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| Kamloops | 4,037 | 1,368 | 2,272 | 427 | – | 80 | – | – | 8,184 | 3rd | 4,171 | 1,434 | 2,503 | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Kaslo-Slocan | 867 | 1,481 | 792 | – | – | – | – | – | 3,140 | 2nd | 1,165 | 1,692 | – | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| Lillooet | 1,065 | 1,372 | 1,103 | 452 | – | – | – | – | 3,992 | 3rd | – | 1,694 | 1,830 | – | – | – | PC | Lib | ||
| Mackenzie | 2,687 | 4,468 | 3,397 | 230 | – | – | – | – | 10,782 | 3rd | – | 5,191 | 4,497 | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| Nanaimo and the Islands | 2,626 | 3,631 | 1,375 | 2,046 | – | 115 | – | 32 | 9,825 | 5th | – | 4,358 | – | 4,376 | – | – | PC | PC | ||
| Nelson-Creston | 3,450 | 2,636 | 1,803 | 772 | – | 99 | – | – | 8,760 | 4th | 4,199 | 3,404 | – | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| New Westminster | 3,787 | 4,903 | 4,309 | – | – | 157 | 89 | – | 13,245 | 4th | – | 5,970 | 5,658 | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| North Okanagan | 4,398 | 1,749 | 2,071 | 700 | – | 90 | – | – | 9,008 | 3rd | 4,578 | 1,868 | 2,407 | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| North Vancouver | 7,728 | 5,820 | 6,377 | 1,338 | – | 217 | 182 | – | 21,662 | 5th | 9,291 | – | 9,134 | – | – | – | Lib | SC | ||
| Oak Bay | 3,280 | 508 | 3,182 | 1,220 | – | – | – | – | 8,190 | 3rd | 3,681 | – | 4,110 | – | – | – | Lib | Lib | ||
| Omineca | 1,390 | 952 | 1,145 | 172 | – | – | – | – | 3,659 | 3rd | 1,612 | – | 1,379 | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Peace River | 2,481 | 1,921 | 1,378 | – | – | – | – | – | 5,780 | 2nd | 3,022 | 2,216 | – | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Prince Rupert | 1,731 | 2,074 | 1,864 | – | – | – | – | – | 5,669 | 2nd | – | 2,578 | 2,611 | – | – | – | CCF | Lib | ||
| Revelstoke | 639 | 1,009 | 551 | – | – | – | – | 522 | 2,721 | 3rd | – | 1,284 | 1,012 | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| Rossland-Trail | 4,182 | 3,470 | 2,899 | 621 | – | – | – | – | 11,172 | 3rd | 5,778 | 4,549 | – | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Saanich | 6,681 | 5,037 | 4,256 | 990 | – | – | – | – | 16,964 | 3rd | 8,876 | 6,466 | – | – | – | – | CCF | SC | ||
| Salmon Arm | 1,627 | 1,341 | 623 | 600 | – | 101 | – | – | 4,292 | 4th | 2,013 | 1,806 | – | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Similkameen | 4,465 | 3,419 | 2,109 | 323 | – | – | – | – | 10,316 | 3rd | 5,418 | 4,105 | – | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Skeena | 1,372 | 1,768 | 1,413 | 220 | – | – | – | – | 4,773 | 3rd | – | 2,110 | 2,097 | – | – | – | Lib | CCF | ||
| South Okanagan | 6,756 | 2,427 | 1,961 | 403 | – | – | – | – | 11,547 | Elected on 1st count | SC | SC | ||||||||
| Yale | 1,177 | 835 | 834 | 107 | – | – | – | – | 2,953 | 3rd | 1,354 | – | 1,137 | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Vancouver-Burrard (A) | 11,527 | 9,216 | 5,936 | 1,259 | – | 360 | 658 | – | 28,956 | 5th | 14,924 | 11,360 | – | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Vancouver-Burrard (B) | 11,273 | 9,323 | 5,858 | 1,276 | – | 367 | 643 | – | 28,740 | 5th | 14,674 | 11,446 | – | – | – | – | SC | SC | ||
| Vancouver Centre (A) | 7,066 | 6,238 | 4,079 | 971 | – | 572 | 505 | – | 19,431 | 5th | 9,016 | 7,757 | – | – | – | – | CCF | SC | ||
| Vancouver Centre (B) | 6,782 | 6,283 | 3,985 | 1,007 | – | 580 | 480 | – | 19,117 | 5th | 8,679 | 7,707 | – | – | – | – | CCF | SC | ||
| Vancouver East (A) | 13,225 | 19,475 | 5,272 | 747 | – | 842 | 743 | – | 40,304 | 4th | 13,872 | 19,942 | 5,796 | – | – | – | CCF | CCF | ||
| Vancouver East (B) | 12,910 | 20,583 | 4,727 | 803 | – | 816 | 351 | – | 40,190 | Elected on 1st count | CCF | CCF | ||||||||
| Vancouver-Point Grey (A) | 19,768 | 10,058 | 14,612 | 4,533 | – | 348 | 194 | 193 | 49,706 | 5th | 22,503 | – | 20,567 | – | – | – | PC | SC | ||
| Vancouver-Point Grey (B) | 20,205 | 9,556 | 12,022 | 7,373 | – | 337 | 212 | 64 | 49,769 | 6th | 24,144 | – | 18,928 | – | – | – | PC | SC | ||
| Vancouver-Point Grey (C) | 19,061 | 9,441 | 17,412 | 3,607 | – | 338 | 196 | – | 50,055 | 5th | 21,354 | – | 22,730 | – | – | – | SC | Lib | ||
| Victoria City (A) | 8,616 | 4,881 | 6,915 | 1,227 | – | 126 | – | 1,022 | 22,787 | 5th | 9,999 | – | 8,869 | – | – | – | Lib | SC | ||
| Victoria City (B) | 9,131[a 2] | 5,267 | 6,484 | 1,383 | – | 153 | – | – | 22,418 | 4th | 10,330 | – | 8,344 | – | – | – | Lib | SC | ||
| Victoria City (C) | 9,032 | 4,923 | 7,193 | 1,139 | – | 127 | – | – | 22,414 | 4th | 10,084 | – | 8,907 | – | – | – | Lib | SC | ||
- Richard Orr Newton had resigned in order to provide a seat for Robert Bonner. Bonner stood for election in Vancouver-Point Grey in 1953, while Newton sought reelection in his old seat.
- William Chant was previously a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.
- = open seat
- = candidate was in previous Legislature
- = incumbent had switched allegiance
- = previously incumbent in another riding
- = not incumbent; was previously elected to the Legislature
- = incumbency arose from byelection gain
- = previously an MP in the House of Commons of Canada
- = multiple candidates
Analysis
| First preference | Final count | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parties | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th | 1st | 2nd | 3rd | 4th | 5th |
| █ Social Credit | 30 | 10 | 8 | – | – | 28 | 10 | 1 | – | – |
| █ Co-operative Commonwealth | 17 | 15 | 14 | 1 | – | 14 | 17 | 5 | – | – |
| █ Liberal | – | 23 | 24 | 1 | – | 4 | 21 | 5 | – | – |
| █ Progressive Conservative | – | – | 2 | 35 | 2 | 1 | – | – | 4 | 1 |
| █ Labour | 1 | – | – | – | – | 1 | – | – | – | – |
| █ Labour Progressive | – | – | – | 3 | 18 | – | – | – | 1 | – |
| █ Christian Democratic | – | – | – | – | 4 | – | – | – | – | 1 |
| █ Independent | – | – | – | 1 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – |
| Party in 1st place | Party in 2nd place | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Socred | CCF | Liberal | |||
| Social Credit | – | 15 | 15 | 30 | |
| Co-operative Commonwealth | 10 | – | 7 | 17 | |
| Labour | – | – | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 10 | 15 | 23 | 48 | |
| Party in 1st place | Party in 2nd place | Total | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Socred | CCF | Liberal | |||
| Social Credit | – | 14 | 14 | 28 | |
| Co-operative Commonwealth | 8 | – | 6 | 14 | |
| Liberal | 2 | 2 | – | 4 | |
| Progressive Conservative | – | 1 | – | 1 | |
| Labour | – | – | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 10 | 17 | 21 | 1 | |
See also
- List of British Columbia political parties
- History and use of the Single Transferable Vote
Further reading
- Electoral History of British Columbia, 1871–1986 (PDF). Elections BC. 1988. ISBN 0-7718-8677-2.
- Elections BC 1988, pp. 221–240, 243–262.
- Elections BC 1988, p. 2.
- Elections BC 1988, pp. 243–262.
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