Ontario prohibition referendum, 1921

An Ontario prohibition referendum was held on April 18, 1921 concerning a ban on the importation of alcoholic beverages into Ontario.

Referendum question

Shall the importation and the bringing of intoxicating liquors into the province be forbidden?

History

Though the Queen's Privy Council for Canada had ruled in 1896 that provinces do not have the authority to prohibit the importation of alcohol, the Canada Temperance Act allowed the federal government to enact a prohibition if a majority was reached in a referendum. Similar referendums had previously been undertaken in Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia in 1920, and in New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island in 1921.

Initially, the Ontario referendum was to be held on the same day as those in Alberta, Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Nova Scotia. Concerns about the voter list eventually led to its re-scheduling.

Results

Total prohibition, or "bone-dry" prohibition, was brought into effect in Ontario. Though the provincial government was bound by the results, the enactment of an importation ban would be delayed.

See also

• Canada Temperance Act 1878
• Ontario prohibition plebiscite, 1894
• Ontario prohibition referendum, 1902
• Ontario prohibition referendum, 1919
• Ontario prohibition referendum, 1924
• Prohibition in Canada

Elections and referendums in Ontario General elections 1867 1871 1875 1879 1883 1886 1890 1894 1898 1902 1905 1908 1911 1914 1919 1923 1926 1929 1934 1937 1943 1945 1948 1951 1955 1959 1963 1967 1971 1975 1977 1981 1985 1987 1990 1995 1999 2003 2007 2011 2014 next By-elections List of Ontario by-elections Referendums 1894 1902 1919 1921 1924 2007