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1871 Ontario general election

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1871 Ontario general election
← 1867
March 21, 1871
1875 →
82 seats in the 2nd Legislative Assembly of Ontario
42 seats were needed for a majority
  First party Second party
 
Leader Edward Blake John Sandfield Macdonald
Party Liberal Conservative
Leader's seat Bruce South Cornwall
Last election 41 41
Seats won 43 38
Seat change Increase2 Decrease3
Premier before election

John Sandfield Macdonald
Conservative

Premier after election

Edward Blake
Liberal

The 1871 Ontario general election was the second general election held in the province of Ontario, Canada. It was held on March 21, 1871, to elect the 82 Members of the 2nd Parliament of Ontario ("MPPs").[1]

While it is generally accepted that that the Ontario Liberals led by Edward Blake secured a slim edge over the incumbent Conservatives led by Premier John Sandfield Macdonald, such an understanding was partially developed with the benefit of hindsight on a period during which the Liberals' ousted the Sandfield Macdonald ministry, commenced the building of a far more expansive administration, and within a year carried out an orderly transition of its party and the government leadership while largely remained stable and united. In the months following the election however, the incumbent government did not concede it has lost control of the legislature and continued to govern without convening the new parliament. Challenges to the election of a dozen members further muddied the situation and provided additional fodder for Sandfield Macdonald to resist convening the new parliament for eight months and to disregard multiple votes of no confidence.[2] The impasse was resolved on December 19 that year after his Treasurer resigned from cabinet and voted with the opposition.[3]

Neither the outgoing nor the incoming premier remained on the scene for long. The rapid decline of Premier Sandfield Macdonald's health was evident throughout that year. His ministry's demise at the year's end foretold his own in just five months. Matthew Crooks Cameron, his principal lieutenant in government and his most ardent defender in the legislature, assumed leadership of the Conservative Party and of the opposition. Premier Blake served only ten months, resigning in October 1972 to devote his attention to leading the national Liberal Party. He and George Brown convinced their former reform colleague Oliver Mowat to return to politics to succeed him, a move that secured his own legacy as founding head of a 34-year continuous Liberal rule.

The partisan makeup of the new parliament was not remotely as straight forward as the numbers suggest, as candidates' partisan affiliations were not formally registered as they are in modern days. While partisan affiliations were generally more clearly defined than during the 1867 election, there remained candidates who made use of party labels of past affiliations that did not reflect their political allegiance in practice, or were elected without having declared their allegiance.

Significant changes to the rules of engagement

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As attorney general Sandfield Macdonald delivered in 1868 An Act respecting Elections of Members of the Legislative Assembly[4], the province's first statute that comprehensively consolidated and codified elections law. The statute instituted the key requirement to hold balloting for general elections on the same day throughout the province. It also considerably broadened the franchise.

He also delivered, at the eve the election call, the Controverted Elections Act of 1871[5], which consolidated an array of challenges to election conducts under corrupt practices, and depoliticised the adjudication process by transferring the power to adjudicate such challenges from parliamentary committees to the Court of Queen's Bench (predecessor of Ontario's superior court). This new regime end up playing a big role in ending his government.

While not a formal change to any legislation, both majors party held candidate nomination conventions with increased formality and managed the process with much firmer hands. The result of local nomination conventions of both parties received greater formal coverage in the press. Accordingly, while there remained no formal requirements for formal registration or declaration of candidates' partisan affiliations and no restrictions on usage, the identity of the two main parties' candidate were easier to discern than in the 1867 election. However, they also provided informal support to selected candidates not endorsed by them for various strategic reasons. Furthermore, certain candidates campaigned with labels of past affiliations but were not aligned with the party while other candidates downplay the party they are affiliated with.

This was the last election where sitting members of the federal parliament were not prevented from nomination or election. Before the federal election in the following year however, the Parliament of Canada would legislate the elimination of dual mandates by disallowing nominations of sitting provincial legislators in federal election contests.[6] This pending would impact both parties by removing six members elected in this election from the legislature, including the incumbent Liberal Premier and Treasurer, and two Conservative former cabinet members.

Uncertain election outcome

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Partisan allegiance not all certain

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Party affiliations were not formally recorded in contemporaneous elections record, but were a mixture of declarations made by the candidates or the parties, assessments by third parties such as the press, and presumptions from another events such as acceptance of specific offices. The various data tables in the result section report and tally the party affiliations as recorded in various resources maintained by the Legislative Assembly or by Elections Ontario, and not all were formally compiled contemporaneously. Even contemporaneous affiliations data were a combination of both formal undisputed declaration and informal assessment recorded in references published by third-party, with occasional uncertainties that reflected the lesser formality in partisan association at the time. The uncertainty of the election outcome stemmed in large part from this uncertainty of allegiance.

In the months following the election, identifying and tallying the elected members professed partisan affiliations was not the primary focus of press coverage. Various outlets classified members as "ministerialists" committed to sustain the incumbent ministry versus those opposing the government. Known partisan affiliation were considered along with other factors such as family ties and previous behaviour. While the likely leaning of specific members were extensively discussed by many outlets, only a small number of outlets post the tally of their assessments of the likely strength on the two sides. The following are a few samples of reported tally. (Election for Algoma were to be held later.)

Ministerialists Opposition Independent

(or unknown)

Election

uncertain

Total
Toronto Leader, 22 March 1871, p. 1 43 34 9 1 81
Toronto Globe, 23 March 1871, p. 2 32 41 7 1 81
Ottawa Free Press, 23 March 1871, p. 2 32 41 7 1 81
Sarnia Observer, 24 March 1871, p. 1 33 43 5 81
Toronto Globe, 6 December 1871, p. 2 29 40 6 7 82

Double return

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Liberal leader Edward Blake was re-elected in Bruce South and also in Durham West (where he held the federal seat), but would only be able to cast one vote in parliament. This reduced the strength of the opposition by one until he could resign one of the seats and a writ for byelection can be moved. At that time, both steps could only be taken when the parliament was in session.

Elections challenged and invalided

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The election of elevens members were challenged under the newly adopted Controverted Elections Act of 1871. While challenged were raised against elected members of both party, only one Liberals had his election invalided while five members on the government side were unseated. All sought to win back their seat in the subsequent byelections and all but one were successful, by those byelection could only be called with parliament in session, and their temporary absence deprived the Premier numerous votes during the crucial non-confidence votes.

Results data as reported by formal records available

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Elections to the 2nd Parliament of Ontario (1871)[7]
Political party Party leader MLAs Votes
Candidates 1867 1871 ± # ± % ± (pp)
Liberal 76 41 43 2Increase 68,366 9,323Decrease 52.30% 3.54Increase
Conservative 73 41 38 3Decrease 59,926 20,185Decrease 45.85% 4.44Decrease
Conservative-Liberal 1 – 1 1Increase 1,116 1,116 0.85% New
Independent 9 – – – 1,303 220Decrease 1.00% 0.04Increase
Total 159 82 88 130,711 100.00%
Voter turnout 130,711 28,612Decrease 62.93 10.93Decrease
Registered electors 207,717 8,005Decrease
Acclamations █ Liberal 7
█ Conservative 8
Other candidates receiving nil votes[a 1] █ Independent 2
  1. ^ one in Halton, and another in Peel
Seats and popular vote by party
Party Seats Votes Change (pp)
█ Liberal
43 / 88
52.30%
 3.54
 
█ Conservative
38 / 88
45.85%
 -4.44
 
█ Other
1 / 88
1.85%
 0.90
 

Synopsis of results

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Results by riding - 1871 Ontario general election[7]
Riding Winning party Turnout Votes
Name[a 1] 1867 Party Votes Share Margin
# 		Margin
% 		Lib Con CL Ind Total
 
Addington Con Lib 809 50.82% 26 1.63% 59.31% 809 783 – – 1,592
Algoma Con Con acclaimed
Bothwell Lib Lib 1,304 55.02% 238 10.04% 72.17% 1,304 1,066 – – 2,370
Brant North Lib Lib 740 60.26% 252 20.52% 60.73% 740 488 – – 1,228
Brant South Con Con 1,172 52.70% 120 5.40% 66.55% 1,052 1,172 – – 2,224
Brockville and Elizabethtown Con Con 620 50.28% 7 0.57% 66.33% 613 620 – – 1,233
Bruce North Lib Lib acclaimed
Bruce South Lib Lib 2,082 55.21% 393 10.42% 79.79% 2,082[a 2] 1,689 – – 3,771
Cardwell Con CL 1,116 63.16% 465 26.32% 67.14% 651 – 1,116 – 1,767
Carleton Lib Con 822 50.31% 10 0.61% 63.46% 812 822 – – 1,634
Cornwall Con Con acclaimed
Dundas Lib Lib 1,216 56.09% 264 12.18% 76.28% 1,216 952 – – 2,168
Durham East Con Con acclaimed
Durham West Lib Lib acclaimed[a 2]
Elgin East Con Lib 1,442 53.11% 169 6.22% 63.82% 1,442 1,273 – – 2,715
Elgin West Con Lib 969 55.69% 198 11.38% 76.55% 969 771 – – 1,740
Essex Con Lib 1,204 51.23% 418 17.79% 50.95% 1,204 786 – 360 2,350
Frontenac Con Con acclaimed
Glengarry Con Con 962 52.89% 105 5.77% 72.30% 857 962 – – 1,819
Grenville South Con Con 797 51.22% 38 2.44% 76.42% 759 797 – – 1,556
Grey North Con Con 1,339 58.42% 386 16.84% 50.22% 953 1,339 – – 2,292
Grey South Con Con 1,625 59.92% 538 19.84% 61.83% 1,087 1,625 – – 2,712
Haldimand Lib Lib 1,212 60.78% 430 21.56% 59.90% 1,212 782 – – 1,994
Halton Lib Lib 1,194 55.98% 255 11.95% 57.51% 1,194 939 – – 2,133
Hamilton Lib Lib 1,294 54.23% 202 8.47% 60.54% 1,294 1,092 – – 2,386
Hastings East Con Con 186 88.57% 162 77.14% 10.10% 24 186 – – 210
Hastings North Con Con 604 86.04% 506 72.08% 41.29% 98 604 – – 702
Hastings West Con Con acclaimed
Huron North Con Lib 2,259 55.86% 474 11.72% 68.67% 2,259 1,785 – – 4,044
Huron South Lib Lib 1,561 53.55% 207 7.10% 71.64% 1,561 1,354 – – 2,915
Kent Lib Lib 1,382 53.55% 183 7.09% 61.15% 1,382 1,199 – – 2,581
Kingston Con Con 607 50.04% 21 1.73% 58.21% 586 607 – 20 1,213
Lambton Lib Lib acclaimed
Lanark North Lib Lib acclaimed
Lanark South Con Con 816 42.88% 150 7.88% 66.10% 666 816 – 421 1,903
Leeds North and Grenville North Lib Con 723 61.01% 261 22.03% 52.71% 462 723 – – 1,185
Leeds South Con Con acclaimed
Lennox Con Con 1,183 56.41% 269 12.83% 62.95% – 2,097[a 3] – – 2,097
Lincoln Con Con acclaimed
London Con Con 985 63.84% 427 27.67% 57.06% 558 985 – – 1,543
Middlesex East Lib Con 1,622 51.41% 89 2.82% 74.92% 1,533 1,622 – – 3,155
Middlesex North Lib Lib 1,286 56.58% 299 13.15% 69.34% 1,286 987 – – 2,273
Middlesex West Con Lib 1,362 58.81% 408 17.62% 77.17% 1,362 954 – – 2,316
Monck Con Con 931 50.13% 5 0.27% 66.35% 926 931 – – 1,857
Niagara Con Con 277 62.25% 109 24.49% 56.98% 168 277 – – 445
Norfolk North Con Lib 1,122 56.78% 268 13.56% 74.43% 1,122 854[a 4] – – 1,976
Norfolk South Lib Lib 1,009 53.30% 125 6.60% 71.73% 1,009 884[a 4] – – 1,893
Northumberland East Lib Lib 694 37.70% 30 1.63% 53.22% 694 664 – 483 1,841
Northumberland West Lib Lib 1,013 50.90% 36 1.81% 67.48% 1,013 977 – – 1,990
Ontario North Lib Lib 1,279 73.80% 833 48.07% 44.11% 1,279 446 – – 1,733
Ontario South Lib Lib 1,180 52.17% 98 4.33% 65.81% 1,180 1,082 – – 2,262
Ottawa Lib Lib 574 76.33% 396 52.66% 27.68% 574 178 – – 752
Oxford North Lib Lib acclaimed
Oxford South Lib Lib 1,430 57.78% 385 15.56% 65.86% 1,430 1,045 – – 2,475
Peel Con Con 1,118 51.36% 59 2.71% 75.91% 1,059 1,118 – – 2,177
Perth North Con Con 1,630 57.88% 444 15.77% 68.20% 1,186 1,630 – – 2,816
Perth South Lib Con 1,302 50.60% 31 1.20% 71.99% 1,271 1,302 – – 2,573
Peterborough East Con Con 779 61.68% 299 23.67% 60.55% 480 779 – 4 1,263
Peterborough West Con Lib 648 52.13% 53 4.26% 69.91% 648 595 – – 1,243
Prescott Lib Con 853 54.26% 134 8.52% 75.61% 719 853 – – 1,572
Prince Edward Lib Lib 1,522 52.23% 130 4.46% 78.19% 1,522 1,392[a 5] – – 2,914
Renfrew North Con Con 640 56.74% 152 13.48% 74.31% 488 640 – – 1,128
Renfrew South Lib Con 448 63.46% 190 26.91% 59.88% 258 448 – – 706
Russell Con Con 773 51.29% 46 3.05% 56.15% 727 773 – 7 1,507
Simcoe North Lib Con 1,354 44.39% 313 10.26% 69.41% 1,696[a 6] 1,354 – – 3,050
Simcoe South Con Con acclaimed
Stormont Con Con 705 50.18% 5 0.36% 74.34% 700 705 – – 1,405
Toronto East Con Con 1,232 52.56% 120 5.12% 52.26% 1,112 1,232 – – 2,344
Toronto West Con Lib 1,487 53.05% 171 6.10% 51.84% 1,487 1,316 – – 2,803
Victoria North Lib Con 518 54.76% 90 9.51% 61.55% 428 518 – – 946
Victoria South Lib Lib 1,046 60.05% 350 20.09% 59.97% 1,742[a 7] – – – 1,742
Waterloo North Lib Lib acclaimed
Waterloo South Lib Lib 1,215 60.27% 414 20.54% 69.42% 1,215 801 – – 2,016
Welland Lib Lib 1,182 53.12% 139 6.25% 61.08% 2,225[a 8] – – – 2,225
Wellington Centre Con Lib 1,465 64.94% 674 29.88% 58.89% 1,465 791 – – 2,256
Wellington North Lib Lib 1,531 63.53% 652 27.05% 59.40% 1,531 879 – – 2,410
Wellington South Lib Lib acclaimed
Wentworth North Lib Lib 1,071 57.24% 271 14.48% 70.95% 1,071 800 – – 1,871
Wentworth South Lib Lib 957 66.97% 485 33.94% 56.08% 957 472 – – 1,429
York East Lib Lib 791 70.19% 455 40.37% 36.52% 791 336 – – 1,127
York North Lib Con 1,306 50.10% 5 0.19% 66.64% 1,301 1,306 – – 2,607
York West Con Lib 865 56.32% 194 12.63% 62.54% 865 671 – – 1,536
  1. ^ order is as given in EO reports
  2. ^ a b Edward Blake was elected in two ridings.
  3. ^ the incumbent John Stevenson received 914 votes
  4. ^ a b James Wilson (incumbent in Norfolk North) campaigned and lost in two ridings
  5. ^ William Anderson had been elected as a Liberal in an 1870 byelection
  6. ^ the incumbent William Lount received 655 votes
  7. ^ the incumbent Thomas Matchett received 696 votes
  8. ^ the incumbent William Beatty received 1,043 votes
  = open seat
  = turnout is above provincial average
  = winning 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
  = other incumbents renominated
  = previously an MP in the House of Commons of Canada
  = multiple candidates

Analysis

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Party candidates in 2nd place[7]
Party in 1st place Party in 2nd place Total
Accl Lib Con
Liberal 7 2 34 43
Conservative 8 29 1 38
Conservative-Liberal 1 1
Total 15 32 35 82
Candidates ranked 1st to 3rd place, by party[7]
Parties Accl 1st 2nd 3rd
█ Liberal 7 36 32 1
█ Conservative 8 30 35
█ Conservative-Liberal 1
█ Independent 7
Resulting composition of the 2nd Legislative Assembly of Ontario[7]
Source Party
Lib Con CL Total
Seats retained Incumbents returned 19 16 35
Returned by acclamation 7 8 15
Open seats held 3 3
Ouster of incumbents changing allegiance 4 4
Defeat of incumbent by same-party candidate 2 1 3
Byelection loss reversed 1 1
Seats changing hands Incumbents defeated 8 7 15
Open seats gained 3 2 1 6
Total 43 38 1 82

MLAs elected by region and riding

[edit]

Party designations are as follows:

  Liberal
  Conservative
  Conservative-Liberal

Later resignations on campaigning at the federal level

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Resignation New incoming MLA
District Outgoing MLA Elected as MP Winner
1872 federal election
Bruce South   Edward Blake Green tickY   Rupert Mearse Wells
London   John Carling Green tickY   William Ralph Meredith
Middlesex West   Alexander Mackenzie Green tickY[a 1]   John Watterworth
Monck   Lachlin McCallum Red XN   Henry Ryan Haney
1873 federal byelection (Durham West)
Brant South   Edmund Burke Wood Green tickY   Arthur Sturgis Hardy
1874 federal election
Wellington North   Robert McKim Red XN[a 2]   George Turner Orton
  1. ^ elected in Lambton
  2. ^ campaigned in Wellington Centre

See also

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Notes and references

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Notes

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  1. ^ Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.[8] Lauder was returned in the subsequent byelection.
  2. ^ Declined the seat in favour of sitting for Bruce South[8] John McLeod (Liberal) won the subsequent byelection.
  3. ^ Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.[8] Ardagh was returned in the subsequent byelection.
  4. ^ Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.[8] Monk was returned in the subsequent byelection.
  5. ^ Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.[8] Hamilton was returned in the subsequent byelection.
  6. ^ Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.[8] James Bethune (Liberal) won the subsequent byelection.
  7. ^ Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.[8] James Simeon McCuaig (Conservative) won the subsequent byelection.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "1871 General Election". Elections Ontario. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
  2. ^ "Mr Sandfield Macdonald's Position". The Morning Chronicle (Halifax, NS). December 20, 1871. p. 1.
  3. ^ "MR. WOOD'S RESIGNATION: THE MINISTRY BREAKING UP". The Globe (1844-1936). December 16, 1871. p. 2.
  4. ^ An Act respecting Elections of Members of the Legislative Assembly, 32 Vic 1868, c. 21
  5. ^ The Controverted Elections Act of 1871, 34 Vic (1870-71), c. 3
  6. ^ An Act to compel Members of a Local Legislature in any Province where dual representation is not allowed, to resign their Seats before becoming Candidates in any Seats in the Dominion Parliament, S.C. 1872, c. 15
  7. ^ a b c d e "1871 general election results". Elections Ontario. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
  8. ^ a b c d e f g Journals of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario. Toronto: Legislative Assembly of Ontario. 1872. pp. 5–15.
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