1953 British Columbia general election

Template:Short description Script error: No such module "Unsubst". Script error: No such module "infobox".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". 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.

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

Elections to the 24th Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (1953)**Script error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".**
Party	Leader	Candidates	First Preference Votes				Seats
Party	Leader	Candidates	Votes	±	% FPv	±	1952	1953	± Template:Canadian party colour	W. A. C. Bennett	48	274,771	65,722Increase	37.75	10.55Increase	19	Template:Composition bar	9Increase Template:Canadian party colour	Arnold Webster	47	224,513	12,049Decrease	30.85	0.07Increase	18	Template:Composition bar	4Decrease Template:Canadian party colour	Arthur Laing	48	171,761	8,528Decrease	23.59	0.13Increase	6	Template:Composition bar	2Decrease Template:Canadian party colour	Deane Finlayson	39	40,780	88,659Decrease	5.60	11.24Decrease	4	Template:Composition bar	3Decrease Template:Canadian party colour	Tom Uphill	1	1,601	311Increase	0.22	0.06Increase	1	Template:Composition bar	Template:No change Template:Canadian party colour	25	7,496	4,982Increase	1.03	0.70Increase Template:Canadian party colour	14	5,036	2,140Decrease	0.69	0.24Decrease Template:Canadian party colour^{[a 1]}	7	1,971	659Increase	0.27	0.10Increase
Total		229	727,839		100.00
Rejected ballotsScript error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".			43,766	1,883Decrease
Actual voters who votedScript error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".			522,052	21,404Decrease	70.55%	2.02Increase
Registered votersScript error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".			740,006	53,067Decrease

↑ Includes a People's Party of BC candidate in Delta.

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MLAs elected

Alberni: Stanley John Squire

Atlin: Frank Calder

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

Kamloops: Phil Gaglardi

Kaslo-Slocan: Randolph Harding

Lillooet: James Gordon Gibson

Mackenzie: Anthony Gargrave

Nanaimo and the Islands: Larry Giovando

Nelson-Creston: Wesley Drewett Black

New Westminster: Rae Eddie

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

South Okanagan: W. A. C. Bennett

Vancouver-Burrard: Eric Charles Fitzgerald Martin

Vancouver-Burrard: Bert Price

Vancouver Centre: Alexander Small Matthew

Vancouver Centre: George Churchill Moxham

Vancouver East: Arthur James Turner

Vancouver East: Arnold Alexander Webster

Vancouver-Point Grey: Thomas Audley Bate

Vancouver-Point Grey: Robert Bonner

Vancouver-Point Grey: Arthur Laing

Victoria City: Lydia Arsens

Victoria City: William Chant

Victoria City: Walter Percival Wright

Yale: Irvine Finlay Corbett

Synopsis of results

Results by riding - 1953 British Columbia general election (all districts)**Script error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".**
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
Name									Total	#							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.

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<templatestyles src="Legend/styles.css" /> = previously incumbent in another riding

<templatestyles src="Legend/styles.css" /> = not incumbent; was previously elected to the Legislature

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Analysis

Parties ranked by preferenceScript error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".
First preference						Final count
Parties	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	5th
Template:Canadian party colour	30	10	8	–	–	28	10	1	–	–
Template:Canadian party colour	17	15	14	1	–	14	17	5	–	–
Template:Canadian party colour	–	23	24	1	–	4	21	5	–	–
Template:Canadian party colour	–	–	2	35	2	1	–	–	4	1
Template:Canadian party colour	1	–	–	–	–	1	–	–	–	–
Template:Canadian party colour	–	–	–	3	18	–	–	–	1	–
Template:Canadian party colour	–	–	–	–	4	–	–	–	–	1
Template:Canadian party colour	–	–	–	1	1	–	–	–	–	–

Template:Canadian party colour Template:Canadian party colour Template:Canadian party colour

Party candidates in 2nd place (first preference)**Script error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".**
Party in 1st place		Party in 2nd place			Total
Party in 1st place		Socred	CCF	Liberal	Total
–	15	15	30
10	–	7	17
–	–	1	1
Total		10	15	23	48

Template:Canadian party colour Template:Canadian party colour Template:Canadian party colour Template:Canadian party colour Template:Canadian party colour

Party candidates in 2nd place (final count)**Script error: No such module "Footnotes".Script error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".**
Party in 1st place		Party in 2nd place			Total
Party in 1st place		Socred	CCF	Liberal	Total
–	14	14	28
8	–	6	14
2	2	–	4
–	1	–	1
–	–	1	1
Total		10	17	21	1

1953 British Columbia general election

Contents

Results

MLAs elected

Synopsis of results

Analysis

See also

Further reading

Navigation menu

1953 British Columbia general election

Results

MLAs elected

Synopsis of results

Analysis

See also

Further reading

Navigation menu

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