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Spirit River (electoral district)

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Coordinates: 55°44′N 118°50′W / 55.74°N 118.83°W / 55.74; -118.83
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Spirit River
Alberta electoral district
Defunct provincial electoral district
LegislatureLegislative Assembly of Alberta
District created1940
District abolished1971
First contested1940
Last contested1967

Spirit River was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1940 to 1971.[1]

History

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Boundary history

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Spirit River was created out of the northern half of the Grande Prairie district for the 1940 election. It contained the towns of Spirit River and Rycroft, and the Peace River formed its northern boundary. It saw no major boundary changes until it was replaced by Spirit River-Fairview, Grande Prairie and Smoky River in 1971.

Representation history

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Members of the Legislative Assembly for Spirit River
Assembly Years Member Party
See Grande Prairie 1930-1940
9th 1940 - 1944 Henry DeBolt Social Credit
10th 1944 - 1948
11th 1948 - 1952
12th 1952 - 1955 Adolph Fimrite
13th 1955 - 1959
14th 1959 - 1963
15th 1963 - 1967
16th 1967 - 1971
See Spirit River-Fairview 1971-1986, Grande Prairie
1971-1993, and Smoky River 1971-1993

In the 1940 election, Spirit River was picked up by Social Credit candidate Henry DeBolt (for whom the community DeBolt was named).[2] This is despite the fact that the incumbent Social Credit MLA for the area, William Sharpe, was defeated in what remained of the Grande Prairie district by an independent challenger. DeBolt served as MLA for twelve years, but lost the Social Credit nomination for the 1952 election to Adolph Fimrite.[2] He attempted to defend his seat as an independent candidate, but finished last in a field of four candidates.

Fimrite, who won on the second count in 1952, defended the seat until it was abolished in 1971. The last election in this district saw a surge in support for the New Democrats, foreshadowing party leader Grant Notley's 1971 victory over Fimrite in Spirit River-Fairview, which absorbed most of Spirit River.

Election results

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1940s

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1940 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Credit Henry DeBolt 1,409 43.12% -
Independent Movement G.H. McDonald 1,087 33.26% -
Co-operative Commonwealth E.T. Sather 772 23.62% -
Second count
Social Credit Henry DeBolt 1,707 56.86% +13.74%
Independent Movement G.H. McDonald 1,295 43.14% +9.88%
No second preference 266
Total valid votes[3] 3,268
Rejected, spoiled and declined 188
Electors / turnout 5,455 63.35% -
Social Credit pickup new district.

Final count swing reflects increase in vote share from the first count.

1944 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Credit Henry DeBolt 1,984 57.27% +14.15%
Co-operative Commonwealth E.T. Sather 1,178 34.01% +10.39%
Labor–Progressive Eric Johnson 302 8.72%
Total valid votes[3] 3,464
Rejected, spoiled and declined 144
Electors / turnout 5,592 64.52% +1.17%
Social Credit hold Swing +1.88%
1948 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Credit Henry DeBolt 2,155 54.10% -3.17%
Co-operative Commonwealth Uri Powell 1,194 29.98% -4.03%
Liberal David Keay 631 15.84%
Total valid votes[3] 3,983
Rejected, spoiled and declined 282
Electors / turnout 6,190 68.90% +4.38%
Social Credit hold Swing +0.43%

1950s

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1952 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Credit Adolph Fimrite 1,738 39.76% -14.34%
Co-operative Commonwealth R. Graeme Thomlinson 1,222 27.96% -2.02%
Liberal Edmund Harrington 861 19.70% +3.86%
Independent Social Credit Henry DeBolt 550 12.58%
Final count
Social Credit Adolph Fimrite 2,041 59.01% +21.25%
Co-operative Commonwealth R. Graeme Thomlinson 1,418 40.99% +13.03%
No second/third preference 912
Total valid votes[3] 4,371
Rejected, spoiled and declined 377
Electors / turnout 7,158 66.33% -2.57%
Social Credit hold Swing -6.16%
1955 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Credit Adolph Fimrite 2,369 51.22% +11.46%
Liberal Ed Harrington 1,306 28.24% +8.54%
Co-operative Commonwealth R. Graeme Thomlinson 950 20.54% -7.42%
Total valid votes[3] 4,625
Rejected, spoiled and declined 332
Electors / turnout 6,781 73.10% +6.77%
Social Credit hold Swing +1.46%

In 1959, Alberta abandoned instant runoff voting in rural districts, instead electing MLAs by the first past the post method. This change is evident in the dramatic drop in spoiled (incorrectly marked) ballots.

1959 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Credit Adolph Fimrite 3,010 63.77% +12.55
Progressive Conservative Charles Stojan 1,059 22.44%
Co-operative Commonwealth James Graham 593 12.56% -7.98%
Independent Social Credit C.J. Lampert 58 1.23%
Total valid votes[3] 4,720
Rejected, spoiled and declined 7
Electors / turnout 7,158 66.33% -6.77%
Social Credit hold Swing -4.95%

1960s

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1963 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Credit Adolph Fimrite 3,077 69.80% +6.03%
New Democratic Uri Powell 948 21.51% +8.95%
Liberal Lionel Lizee 383 8.69%
Total valid votes[3] 4,408
Rejected, spoiled and declined 5
Electors / turnout 6,478 68.12% +1.79%
Social Credit hold Swing -1.46%
1967 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Social Credit Adolph Fimrite 2,627 56.20% -13.60%
New Democratic Bert Strand 1,634 34.96% +13.45%
Liberal John Listhaeghe 413 8.84% +0.15%
Total valid votes[3] 4,674
Rejected, spoiled and declined 7
Electors / turnout 6,382 73.35% +5.23%
Social Credit hold Swing -13.53%

Plebiscite results

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1957 liquor plebiscite

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1957 Alberta liquor plebiscite results: Spirit River[4]
Question A: Do you approve additional types of outlets for the
sale of beer, wine and spirituous liquor subject to a local vote?
Ballot choice Votes %
Yes 762 53.81%
No 654 46.19%
Total votes 1,416 100%
Rejected, spoiled and declined 29
6,160 eligible electors, turnout 23.46%

On October 30, 1957, a stand-alone plebiscite was held province wide in all 50 of the then current provincial electoral districts in Alberta. The government decided to consult Alberta voters to decide on liquor sales and mixed drinking after a divisive debate in the legislature. The plebiscite was intended to deal with the growing demand for reforming antiquated liquor control laws.[5]

The plebiscite was conducted in two parts. Question A, asked in all districts, asked the voters if the sale of liquor should be expanded in Alberta, while Question B, asked in a handful of districts within the corporate limits of Calgary and Edmonton, asked if men and women should be allowed to drink together in establishments.[4]

Province wide Question A of the plebiscite passed in 33 of the 50 districts, while Question B passed in all five districts. Spirit River voted in favour of the proposal, but the No side also polled a close vote. Voter turnout in the district was the lowest in the province, falling to half of the province wide average of 46%.[4]

Official district returns were released to the public on December 31, 1957.[4] The Social Credit government in power at the time did not consider the results binding.[6] However, the results of the vote led the government to repeal all existing liquor legislation and introduce an entirely new Liquor Act.[7]

Municipal districts lying inside electoral districts that voted against the plebiscite were designated Local Option Zones by the Alberta Liquor Control Board and considered effective dry zones. Business owners who wanted a license had to petition for a binding municipal plebiscite in order to be granted a license.[8]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Election results for Spirit River". abheritage.ca. Heritage Community Foundation. Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
  2. ^ a b Mardon, Ernest G.; Mardon, Austin A. (2012). Alberta Catholic Politicians. Edmonton, AB: Golden Meteorite Press. p. 29.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h "Election results for Spirit River". Heritage Community Foundation. Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved September 4, 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ^ a b c d Alberta Gazette. Vol. 53 (December 31 ed.). Government of Alberta. 1957. pp. 2, 247–2, 249.
  5. ^ "Albertans Vote 2 to 1 For More Liquor Outlets". Vol L No 273. The Lethbridge Herald. October 31, 1957. pp. 1–2.
  6. ^ "No Sudden Change In Alberta Drinking Habits Is Seen". Vol L No 267. The Lethbridge Herald. October 24, 1957. p. 1.
  7. ^ "Entirely New Act On Liquor". Vol LI No 72. The Lethbridge Herald. March 5, 1958. p. 1.
  8. ^ "Bill 81". Alberta Bills 12th Legislature 1st Session. Government of Alberta. 1958. p. 40.

Further reading

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55°44′N 118°50′W / 55.74°N 118.83°W / 55.74; -118.83

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