Timeline of Canadian elections

This article provides a timeline of elections in Canada, including all the provincial, territorial and federal elections. The information starts from when each province was formed or entered the Confederation, and continues through to the present day. The background colour indicates which party won the election. Several provinces held elections before joining Canada, but only their post-Confederation elections are shown. These include:

• Ontario's first 13 elections as Upper Canada, from 1792 to 1840;
• Quebec's first 15 elections as Lower Canada, from 1792 to 1840;
• the 8 joint elections of Ontario and Quebec as the Province of Canada, from 1840 to Confederation;
• New Brunswick's first 21 elections, beginning in 1785 (the 21st Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick was elected in 1866, one year before Confederation, and continued until 1870, three years after Confederation);
• Nova Scotia's first 23 elections, beginning in 1758;
• Prince Edward Island's first 25 elections, beginning in 1769; and
• Newfoundland's first 28 elections, beginning in 1832.

The most recent election in most provinces is shown with a box equivalent to five years of government, as this the maximum length of office as set by the constitution. However, elections can be called at any time by a provincial government. The federal government and five provinces have changed to fixed election dates every four years. For these legislatures, the box is shown as running until the next scheduled election, but one could still be earlier if the government falls due to a motion of no confidence. The provinces are:

• British Columbia,
• Ontario,
• New Brunswick,
• Newfoundland and Labrador, and
• Prince Edward Island.

1867 - 1899

1900 - 1939

1940 - 1979

1980 - present

Notes

^A  Coalition between Conservative and Liberal parties (who won 41 out of 82 seats each).

^B  Conservative and Liberal parties won 15 seats each (out of 30).

^C  Although Yukon was created in 1898, the Territorial Council was wholly appointed from 1898 to 1900.

^D  Coalition between Liberal and Conservative parties.

^E  The Liberal party won the most seats, but lost a motion of no-confidence shortly after the election resulting in a coalition between the Conservative and Progressive parties.

^F  Power went back and forth a few times surrounding the 1878 election. For most of that legislature, the Liberals controlled a minority parliament with the support of some Conservative members.

Summary

The table below shows how many elections each party has won in each province and territory. Note that Nunavut and the Northwest Territories use consensus government, which means there are no political parties. Of thirty-nine federal elections, twenty-three have won by the Liberals, sixteen have been by the Conservatives, and one by a coalition.

* Although the 21st New Brunswick election is shown in the main table, it took place a year before New Brunswick entered the Canadian confederation. As such it was not a Canadian election, and is thus excluded from this table.

References

British Columbia

Government of British Columbia. "Important Dates in BC Election History". Electoral History of British Columbia. Elections BC. Retrieved on 2008-10-07.

Government of British Columbia. "1871-1986" (HTML). Electoral History of British Columbia. Elections BC. Retrieved on 2008-10-07.

Government of British Columbia (2002). "1987-2001 Supplement" (PDF). Electoral History of British Columbia. Elections BC. Retrieved on 2008-10-07.

Government of British Columbia. "Statement of Votes" (PDF). 38th Provincial General Election. Elections BC. Retrieved on 2008-10-07.

Government of British Columbia. "Statement of Votes" (PDF). 39th Provincial General Election. Elections BC. Retrieved on 2008-10-07.

Alberta

Government of Alberta. "Candidate Summary of Results (General Elections 1905-2004)". Comparative Statistics. Retrieved on 2006-12-02.

Government of Alberta. "Electoral Summary: 1905 - 2004". Comparative Statistics. Retrieved on 2006-12-02.

Saskatchewan

Government of Saskatchewan. "Provincial Vote Summaries" (HTML). Historical. Elections Saskatchewan. Retrieved on 2006-11-19.

Manitoba

Government of Manitoba (June 3, 2003). "Historical Summaries" (PDF). Statement of Votes for the 38th Provincial General Election. Elections Manitoba. Retrieved on 2006-12-01.

Government of Manitoba (June 10, 2003). "Official Election Results" (ASP). Manitoba's 38th General Election. Elections Manitoba. Retrieved on 2006-12-02.

Ontario

"Composition Of Legislature Following Ontario General Elections". Elections Ontario. Retrieved on 2008-08-22.

Quebec

"Élections" (in English). QuébecPolitique.com. Retrieved on 2006-12-16.

"Les premiers ministres du Québec depuis 1867" (in French). Directeur général des élections. Retrieved on 2006-12-08.

New Brunswick

"New Brunswick Votes 2006". CBC.ca. Retrieved on 2006-12-23. (results back to 1956)

Doyle, Arthur T. (1984). Elections in New Brunswick, 1784-1984. Fredericton: Brunswick Press. ISBN 0888383916. 

Nova Scotia

Government of Nova Scotia. "Election Summary From 1867 - 2006" (PDF). Elections Statistics. Elections Nova Scotia. Retrieved on 2006-12-02.

Prince Edward Island

"Historical Election Dates". Elections PEI. Retrieved on 2006-12-02.

Newfoundland and Labrador

"General Election Statistics (1949-1999)". Elections Newfoundland and Labrador. Retrieved on 2008-08-22.

Wayne Green. "Report on the 2003 General Election" (PDF). Elections Newfoundland and Labrador. Retrieved on 2008-08-22.

Paul Reynolds. "October 9, 2007 Provincial General Election Report" (PDF). Elections Newfoundland and Labrador. Retrieved on 2008-08-22.

Yukon

"Election Results". Nodice.ca. Retrieved on 2006-12-02. (Results back to 1974)

"General Elections". Elections Yukon. Retrieved on 2006-12-02. (Dates of all elections)

Donald Taylor. "The Yukon Legislative Assembly". Canadian Parliamentary Review. Retrieved on 2006-12-23. (Non-partisan nature of Legislative Assembly before 1974)

Northwest Territories

"History of Northwest Territories in Confederation". Collections Canada. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.

"History of the Northwest Territories". Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly. Retrieved on 2006-12-19.

"Election Results and Dates 1876 - 1905" (PDF). Saskatchewan Archives. Retrieved on 2006-04-13.

"Councils and Assemblies". Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly. Retrieved on 2006-04-13. (1951 to date)

Nunavut

"Nunavut Election '99 - Results". CBC Radio. Retrieved on 2006-12-05.

"Nunavut Votes 2004". CBC News. Retrieved on 2006-12-01.

Federal

"History of Federal Ridings since 1867". Parliament of Canada. Retrieved on 2006-12-23.

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