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1959 Alberta general election
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65 seats in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta ; 33 seats were needed for a majority
Premier before election; Ernest Manning; Social Credit	Premier after election ; Ernest Manning; Social Credit

The 1959 Alberta general election was held on June 18, 1959, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.

Ernest C. Manning, in his fifth election as party leader and provincial premier, led the Social Credit Party to its seventh consecutive term in government, with 55% of the popular vote, and all but four of the sixty five seats in the legislature.

Social Credit was also helped by a split in the opposition vote: whereas in the 1955 election, opponents were largely united behind the Liberal Party, in this election the vote was divided between the Liberals and the resurgent Progressive Conservative Party under the leadership of Cam Kirby, won almost 15% of the popular vote, placing ahead of the Liberals whose leader, Grant MacEwan lost his Calgary seat. The Tories and Liberals each won only one seat in the legislature while the Alberta CCF was shut out of the legislature for the first time in seventeen years. The other two opposition seat were taken by a Coalition candidate in Banff and an Independent Social Credit-er, both with strong local support.

Change in voting system

Under an Act passed in 1956, Alberta's MLAs were now elected through First-past-the-post voting.^[1]

Previous to this election, the Social Credit government had done away with the Instant-runoff voting system in use in the rural constituencies, and the Single Transferable Vote system in Edmonton and Calgary, both of which had been in place since 1924. The move was made, the government claimed, to prevent the waste of votes caused by votes being declared spoiled due to unsatisfactory ballot marking, to bring Alberta in line with the other provinces who were using the First past the post systems, and to stop what the government called a conspiracy by the opposition parties to gang up on the SC government. The cancellation of STV and AV also standardized and simplified voting results across the province. Under single transferable vote and instant-runoff voting, final results would take up to five days to count the necessary vote transfers, before the last seat in a multiple-member district, Edmonton nor Calgary, was declared filled. (Manning always knew he was elected only hours after the polls closed due to his high vote count on the First Count.) The delay was especially large in the Edmonton, which elected seven members in 1955.

The 1955 election had produced a large opposition in the Legislature (large by Alberta standards anyway). Besides Liberals, Conservatives and CCF-ers electing MLAs in proportion to their numbers in the cities, the government had lost a few members in rural constituencies due to IRV, when they had received the largest portion of the vote in the constituency in the First Count (but not a majority) but were not elected to the seat due to another candidate receiving many vote transfers and eventually accumulating a majority of the vote themselves. The cancellation of IRV system in the rural districts was meant to prevent this in the future.^[2] The cancellation of STV in the cities gave the government a windfall of seats as well. SC candidates captured all the seats in Edmonton and all but one in Calgary although getting only 48 percent of the Edmonton city vote and only 54 percent of the Calgary vote.^[3]

Electoral redistribution

An Act was passed in 1957 that provided for the increase in the number of MLAs from 61 to 65, upon the next election.^[4] The following changes were made:

Abolished	New
New districts
	Dunvegan^{[a 1]}
Abolition of multi-member districts
Calgary (six members)	Calgary Bowness Calgary-Centre Calgary-Glenmore Calgary-North Calgary-North East Calgary-South East Calgary-West
Edmonton (seven members)	Edmonton North Edmonton-Centre Edmonton-North East Edmonton-North West Edmonton-Norwood Jasper West Strathcona Centre Strathcona East Strathcona West

^ from part of Peace River

Prior to this election, one or more multi-member districts had been used in each Alberta election since 1909.

Alongside the change to FPTP, this increase necessitated the creation of 15 new districts, the most since 1913. The change was met by some harsh criticism at the time. The government was accused of changing the rules to help itself and for failing to consult the public, but it did not hurt the government's popularity at the polls.^[2]

Results

Party		Party Leader	# of candidates	Seats			Popular Vote
Party		Party Leader	# of candidates	1955	Elected	% Change	#	%	% Change
	Social Credit	Ernest C. Manning	64	37	61	+64.9%	230,283	55.69%	+9.27%
	Progressive Conservative	Cam Kirby	60	3	1	−66.7%	98,730	23.88%	+14.69%
	Liberal	Grant MacEwan	51	15	1	−93.9%	57,408	13.88%	−17.25%
	Independent Social Credit		2	1	1	-	2,393	0.58%	−0.14%
	Coalition	Frank Gainer	1	1	1	-	2,279	0.55%	−0.66%
	Co-operative Commonwealth	Floyd Albin Johnson	32	2	-	−100%	17,899	4.33%	−3.91%
	Independent		2	1	-	−100%	3,640	0.88%	−0.25%
	Labor–Progressive		4	-	-	-	884	0.21%	−0.69%
Total			216	61	65	+6.6%	413,516	100%
Source: Elections Alberta

Popular vote

Social Credit			55.69%
PC			23.88%
Liberal			13.88%
CCF			4.33%
Ind. Social Credit			0.58%
Coalition			0.55%
Others			1.09%

Seats summary

Social Credit			93.85%
PC			1.54%
Liberal			1.54%
Ind. Social Credit			1.54%
Coalition			1.54%

Results by riding

Electoral district	Candidates										Incumbent
Electoral district	Social Credit		PC		Liberal		CCF		Other		Incumbent
Acadia-Coronation		Marion Kelts 2,450 57.34%				James Leland Sims 1,408 32.95%		Lester A. Lindgren 404 9.45%
Alexandra		Anders O. Aalborg 2,354 59.28%		A.H. Sweet 1,248 31.43%		Hilda A. Cross 358 9.02%						Anders O. Aalborg
Athabasca		Antonio Aloisio 2,333 54.17%		Robert Shopland 707 16.42%		Richard Edward Hall 1,069 24.82%				John Harry (Lab-Pro) 188 4.36%
Banff-Cochrane		Robin W. Echlin 2,208 48.94%								Francis Leo Gainer (Coal) 2,279 50.51%		Francis Leo Gainer
Bonnyville		Karl Earnest Nordstrom 2,465 51.50%		Victor E. Justik 860 17.97%		Jake Josvanger 1,447 30.23%						Jake Josvanger
Bow Valley-Empress		William Delday 2,863 56.17%								Bryce C. Stringam (Ind.) 2213 43.42%		Bryce C. Stringam
Bruce		Earl M. Hardy 2,324 55.11%		Clifford G. Patterson 833 19.75%		Clare L. Liden 534 12.66%		Edward I. Thompson 518 12.28%
Calgary Bowness		Charles E. Johnston 6,681 59.09%		Bruce Norris 3,194 28.25%		Evelyn Leew 1,018 9.00%		Kay Halliday Grose 379 3.35%
Calgary-Centre		Frederick C. Colborne 4,824 53.69%		Runo Carl Berglund 2,642 29.40%		Gordon Arnell 1,154 12.84%		Grant McHardy 349 3.88%
Calgary-Glenmore		A. Ross Lawson 4,681 40.58%		Ernest S. Watkins 4,893 42.42%		Reg. Clarkson 1,916 16.61%
Calgary-North		Rose Wilkinson 6,655 51.68%		James David Macdonald 3,385 26.29%		Grant MacEwan 2,429 18.86%		Aylmer John Eggert Liesemer 374 2.90%
Calgary-North East		Albert W. Ludwig 5,945 64.02%		Melvin P. Stronach 1,829 19.70%		E. Kitch Elton 1,060 11.42%		Jack Hampson 420 4.52%
Calgary-South East		Arthur J. Dixon 5,643 66.69%		Ernest Henry Starr 1,537 18.16%		Peter Petrasuk 792 9.36%		George E. Ellinson 437 5.16%
Calgary-West		Donald S. Fleming 5,060 49.99%		Roy Victor Deyell 3,392 33.51%		Ted Duncan 1,397 13.80%		Ken Tory 242 2.39%
Camrose		Chester I. Sayers 3,229 53.12%		John E. Stuart 1,638 26.95%		Stanley Ross Gould 732 12.04%		Archie Olstad 468 7.70%
Cardston		Edgar W. Hinman 2,205 73.43%		John A. Spencer 791 26.34%								Edgar W. Hinman
Clover Bar		Floyd M. Baker 3,393 57.78%		Andrew M. Adamson 1,225 20.86%		Roy C. Marler 935 15.92%		Ernest Wilfred Davies 310 5.28%
Cypress		Harry E. Strom 3,199 79.09%		Wayne N. Anderson 831 20.54%								Harry E. Strom
Didsbury		James Lawrence Owens 3,042 61.38%		Douglas N. Munn 1,350 27.24%		Walter P. Hourihan 556 11.22%						James Lawrence Owens
Drumheller		Gordon Edward Taylor 3,922 83.84%		Eneas A. Toshach 740 15.82%								Gordon Edward Taylor
Dunvegan		Joseph M. Scruggs 1,080 38.72%		Bennidict V. Griep 661 23.70%		Steven P. Tachit 648 23.23%		Floyd A. Johnson 383 13.73%
Edmonton North		Ethel Sylvia Wilson 4,831 52.92%		John Verchomin 3,356 36.76%				Peter Gomuwka 881 9.65%
Edmonton-Centre		Ambrose Holowach 3,912 46.53%		Gerard Joseph Amerongen 2,185 25.99%		Laurette C. Douglas 1,684 20.03%		Robert Atkin 589 7.01%
Edmonton-North East		Lou W. Heard 4,960 49.52%		Allan Welsh 2,389 23.85%		Louis Marchand 1,325 13.23%		Alex Goruk 1,063 10.61%		William Harasym (Lab-Pro) 218 2.18%
Edmonton-North West		Edgar H. Gerhart 4,823 42.63%		Ned Feehan 3,249 28.72%		Harper McCrae 2,071 18.31%		James (Jim) Forest 1,146 10.13%
Edmonton-Norwood		William Tomyn 5,071 54.49%		Nestor Marchyshyn 1,482 15.93%		P.W. Bill Jones 1,522 16.36%		Frank G. McCoy 932 10.02%		William A. Tuomi (Lab-Pro) 251 2.70%
Edson		Norman Alfred Willmore 3,074 56.84%		Chris. H.R. Nielsen 1,678 31.03%		Melvyn A. Parkyn 634 11.72%						Norman Alfred Willmore
Gleichen		George E. Bell 2,267 59.94%		A. John Van Wezel 754 19.94%		Carman W. Ellis 752 19.88%						George E. Bell
Grande Prairie		Ira McLaughlin 4,213 65.43%		David T. Williamson 1,391 21.60%		Mac Perkins 816 12.67%						Ira McLaughlin
Grouard		Roy Ells 3,727 57.01%		Paul Soulodre 1,309 20.02%		Paul E. Maisonneuve 1,476 22.58%
Hand Hills		Clinton Keith French 3,052 65.99%		William J. Newman 1,074 23.22%		Val Gobel 489 10.57%						Wallace Warren Cross
Jasper West		Richard H. Jamieson 5,047 40.65%		John Percy Page 4,507 36.30%		Abe William Miller 2,782 22.41%
Lac La Biche		Elvin J. Woynarowich 1,518 41.27%		Henry T. Thompson 411 11.17%		Michael Maccagno 1,734 47.15%						Michael Maccagno
Lac Ste. Anne		William Patterson 2,286 46.53%		L.D. Gould 1,129 22.98%		John A. Mills 907 18.46%		Charley Keeley 582 11.85%
Lacombe		Allan Russell Patrick 3,089 63.42%		Denis R. Stafford 1,162 23.86%				Robert H. Carlyle 620 12.73%				Allan Russell Patrick
Leduc				Peter Wyllie 1,494 33.11%				Andrew Simon Borys 676 14.98%		Ronald Earl Ansley (Ind. SoCred) 2,334 51.73%
Lethbridge		John C. Landeryou 7,250 61.77%		Thomas Spanos 2,917 24.85%		Robery Henry Jeacock 1,525 12.99%						John C. Landeryou
Little Bow		Peter Dawson 2,939 64.71%		Bernard W. Tonken 989 21.77%		Donald A. McNiven 603 13.28%						Peter Dawson
Macleod		James Hartley 3,731 72.12%		Leo E. Toone 949 18.35%		Dennis Arthur Mouser 475 9.18%						James Hartley
Medicine Hat		Elizabeth G. Robinson 5,604 64.87%		John H. Cocks 1,780 20.60%		Norma DeMan 597 6.91%		John D. Rogers 495 5.73%				Elizabeth G. Robinson
Okotoks-High River		Ernest G. Hansell 2,642 51.42%		James S. McLeod 1,069 20.81%						Ross Laird Ellis (Ind.) 1,427 27.77%		Ross Laird Ellis
Olds		Roderick Angus Macleod 3,424 66.29%		Bruce Hanson 1,728 33.46%								Roderick Angus Macleod
Peace River		William F. Gilliland 2,864 60.64%		Harold C. Sissons 1,190 25.20%		James Mann 650 13.76%						William F. Gilliland
Pembina		Robin D. Jorgenson 3,436 61.50%		Frie Bredo 1,708 30.57%		Gustav Wahl 416 7.45%						Robin D. Jorgenson
Pincher Creek-Crowsnest		William A. Kovach 3,145 66.89%		Alex Grant 1,133 24.10%		C. Boyden 410 8.72%						William A. Kovach
Ponoka		Glen F. Johnston 2,406 49.88%		Ivor E. Davies 1,529 31.70%		Erwin E. Schultz 860 17.83%
Red Deer		William Kenneth Ure 6,691 63.61%		William J. Cameron "Cam" Kirby 3,797 36.10%
Redwater		John Dubetz 2,092 49.05%		Martha P. Bielish 901 21.13%		Alfred Macyk 1,262 29.59%
Rocky Mountain House		Alfred J. Hooke 3,235 74.45%				Tom Bert 660 15.19%		Raymond E. Schmidt 437 10.06%				Alfred J. Hooke
Sedgewick		Jack C. Hillman 2,805 62.75%		Kenneth M. Geddes 796 17.81%		Mildred G. Redman 541 12.10%		Arthur C. Bunney 319 7.14%				Jack C. Hillman
Spirit River		Adolph O. Fimrite 3,010 63.68%		Charles J. Stojan 1,059 22.40%				James W. Graham 593 12.54%		C.J. Lampert (Ind. SoCred) 58 1.23%		Adolph O. Fimrite
St. Albert		Keith Everitt 2,157 36.28%		Stanley M. Walker 1,187 19.96%		Arthur J. Soetaert 2,082 35.02%		Earl Toane 473 7.95%
St. Paul		Raymond Reierson 3,412 68.38%		Gordon Shave 534 10.70%		J. Van Brabant 1,034 20.72%						Raymond Reierson
Stettler		Galen C. Norris 3,150 60.71%		Gordon Taylor 991 19.10%		Henry Kroeger 721 13.89%		Alice Ness 297 5.72%				Galen C. Norris
Stony Plain		Cornelia R. Wood 2,880 46.25%		Robert K. Clarkson 1,227 19.70%		John Harold McLaughlin 2,091 33.58%						John Harold McLaughlin
Strathcona Centre		Joseph Donovan Ross 4,564 53.81%		Pat Walsh 2,226 26.25%		Leslie M. Lyons 1,215 14.33%		Keith Wright 422 4.98%
Strathcona East		Ernest C. Manning 7,337 49.62%		James E. Simpson 3,812 25.78%		George Johnson 2,610 17.65%		Hugh Smith 999 6.76%
Strathcona West		Randolph H. McKinnon 3,639 41.63%		Eric M. Duggan 2,683 30.69%		Frank J. Edwards 1,982 22.67%		H. Douglas Trace 423 4.84%
Taber		Roy S. Lee 3,678 77.64%		Leslie P. Cluff 1,037 21.89%								Roy S. Lee
Vegreville		Alex W. Gordey 2,248 47.63%		Joseph M. Melnychuk 531 11.25%		John Koshuta 676 14.32%		Stanley N. Ruzycki 1,253 26.55%
Vermilion		Ashley H. Cooper 2,204 49.35%		D.J. Frunchak 799 17.89%		Russell James Whitson 1,224 27.41%				John P. Hocaluk (Lab-Pro) 227 5.08%
Wainwright		Henry A. Ruste 3,111 64.76%		Donald Mills 831 17.30%		Henry D. Frizzell 572 11.91%		John Wesley Connelly 274 5.70%				Henry A. Ruste
Warner		Leonard C. Halmrast 2,430 72.52%				Mark R. Stringam 915 27.31%						Leonard C. Halmrast
Wetaskiwin		John A. Wingblade 3,352 58.12%		Robert D. Angus 1,010 17.51%		Fred R. MacNaughton 642 11.13%		David Pat. Garland 749 12.99%
Willingdon		Nicholas A. Melnyk 2,421 63.13%		Alex Hushlak 991 25.84%				Nick W. Svekla 392 10.22%

References

^ The Election Act, S.A. 1956, c. 15
^ ^a ^b Bob Hesketh, "The Abolition of Preferential voting in Alberta", Prairie Forum, Spring 1987
^ A Report on Alberta Elections
^ An Act to Amend The Legislative Assembly Act (2), S.A. 1957, c. 41