| William Ernest Payne | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta | |
| In office November 16, 1931 – August 22, 1935 |
|
| Preceded by | George Smith |
| Succeeded by | Alfred Hooke |
| Constituency | Red Deer |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 1, 1878 Colborne, Ontario |
| Political party | Conservative |
| Occupation | lawyer and politician |
William Ernest Payne (October 1, 1878 – after 1935)[1] was a lawyer and provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1931 to 1935 sitting with the Conservative caucus in opposition.
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Payne moved to Red Deer, Alberta in 1902 and joined the law firm started by George Welling Greene. He worked as a lawyer in Red Deer for many years until he attempted to win a seat in the Alberta Legislature.[2]
Payne ran as a candidate for the Conservatives in the 1926 Alberta general election in the Red Deer electoral district. He faced a hotly contested three way race against incumbent George Smith and former MLA John Gaetz. Payne was eliminated losing to Smith on the second vote count.[3]
Payne ran for a second time in the 1930 Alberta general election. He would face Smith for the second time in a two way race. Payne came very close to winning, when the polls showed he was short by 88 votes.[4]
Smited died in 1931 forcing a by-election that was held on November 16, 1931. Payne ran for office for his third time and won the hotly contested race defeating United Farmers candidate R.L. Gaetz by a couple hundred votes to pick up the district.[5]
Payne ran for a second term in office in the 1935 Alberta general election but was defeated by Social Credit candidate Alfred Hooke who ended up winning in a landslide. Payne finished a distant fourth out of five candidates.[6]