1871 Ontario general election

1871 Ontario general election
← outgoing members
82 seats in the 2nd Legislative Assembly of Ontario ; 42 seats were needed for a majority
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 Legislative Assembly of Ontario ("MLAs").^[1]

The Ontario Liberal Party, led by Edward Blake, won a slim majority of the seats, and formed the government.

The Ontario Conservative Party, led by John Sandfield Macdonald, served as the official opposition.

Electoral reforms

Earlier in 1871, the Legislative Assembly passed an Act to give the courts jurisdiction to rule on petitions dealing with corrupt practices in elections.^[2]

In 1872, the Parliament of Canada passed an Act to compel MPs who were also members of a provincial legislature to resign such seats if they wished to stand again in a federal election.^[3] Five MLAs in the 1871 election were thus obliged to leave the Legislative Assembly in order to stand in federal ridings in 1872.

Results

Elections to the 2nd Parliament of Ontario (1871)^[4]
Political party		Party leader	MLAs				Votes
Political party		Party leader	Candidates	1867	1871	±	#	±	%	± (pp)
	Liberal		76	41	43	2	68,366	9,323	52.30%	3.54
	Conservative		73	41	38	3	59,926	20,185	45.85%	4.44
	Conservative-Liberal		1	–	1	1	1,116	1,116	0.85%	New
	Independent		9	–	–	–	1,303	220	1.00%	0.04
Total			159	82	88		130,711		100.00%
Voter turnout							130,711	28,612	62.93	10.93
Registered electors							207,717	8,005
Acclamations			█ Liberal		7
Acclamations			█ Conservative		8
Other candidates receiving nil votes^{[a 1]}			█ Independent		2

^ 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	3.54
█ Conservative	38 / 88	45.85%	-4.44
█ Other	1 / 88	1.85%	0.90	0.9

Synopsis of results

Results by riding - 1871 Ontario general election^[4]
Riding	Winning party								Turnout	Votes
Name^{[a 1]}	1867		Party		Votes	Share	Margin #	Margin %		Lib	Con	CL	Ind	Total
Name^{[a 1]}	1867		Party		Votes	Share	Margin #	Margin %						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

^ order is as given in EO reports
^ ^a ^b Edward Blake was elected in two ridings.
^ the incumbent John Stevenson received 914 votes
^ ^a ^b James Wilson (incumbent in Norfolk North) campaigned and lost in two ridings
^ William Anderson had been elected as a Liberal in an 1870 byelection
^ the incumbent William Lount received 655 votes
^ the incumbent Thomas Matchett received 696 votes
^ 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

Party candidates in 2nd place^[4]
Party in 1st place		Party in 2nd place			Total
Party in 1st place		Accl	Lib	Con	Total
	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^[4]
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^[4]
Source		Party
Source		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
Seats changing hands	Open seats gained	3	2	1	6
Total		43	38	1	82

MLAs elected by region and riding

Party designations are as follows:

Liberal

Conservative

Conservative-Liberal

Northern Ontario

Algoma: Frederick William Cumberland

Ottawa Valley

Carleton: George William Monk^[a]
Lanark North: Daniel Galbraith
Lanark South: Abraham Code
Ottawa: Richard William Scott
Prescott: George Wellesley Hamilton^[b]
Renfrew North: Thomas Deacon
Renfrew South: Eric Harrington
Russell: William Craig

Saint Lawrence Valley

Brockville and Elizabethtown: William Fitzsimmons
Cornwall: John Sandfield MacDonald
Dundas: Simon S. Cook
Glengarry: James Craig
Grenville South: Mcneil Clarke
Kingston: William Robinson
Leeds North and Grenville North: Henry Merrick
Leeds South: Herbert Stone MacDonald
Stormont: William Colquhoun^[c]

Central Ontario

Addington: Hammel Madden Deroche
Durham East: Arthur Trefusis Heneage Williams
Durham West: Edward Blake^[d]
Frontenac: Delino Dexter Calvin
Hastings East: Henry Corby
Hastings North: George Henry Boulter
Hastings West: Ketchum Graham
Lennox: John Thomas Grange
Northumberland East: William Wilson Webb
Northumberland West: Alexander Fraser
Peterborough East: George Read
Peterborough West: Thomas McCulloch Fairbairn
Prince Edward: Gideon Striker^[e]
Victoria North: Duncan McRae
Victoria South: Samuel Casey Wood

Georgian Bay

Bruce North: Donald Sinclair
Grey North: Thomas Scott
Simcoe North: William Davis Ardagh^[f]
Simcoe South: Thomas Roberts Ferguson

Wentworth/Halton/Niagara

Midwestern Ontario

Brant North: Hugh Finlayson
Brant South: Edmund Burke Wood
Bruce South: Edward Blake
Grey South: Abram William Lauder^[g]
Haldimand: Jacob Baxter
Huron North: Thomas Gibson
Huron South: Robert Gibbons
Norfolk North: John Fitzgerald Clarke
Norfolk South: Simpson McCall
Oxford North: George Perry
Oxford South: Adam Oliver
Perth North: Andrew Monteith
Perth South: Thomas B. Guest
Waterloo North: Moses Springer
Waterloo South: Isaac Clemens
Wellington Centre: Charles Clarke
Wellington North: Robert McKim
Wellington South: Peter Gow

Southwestern Ontario

Bothwell: Archibald McKellar
Elgin East: John Henry Wilson
Elgin West: Thomas Hodgins
Essex: Albert Prince
Kent: James Dawson
Lambton: Timothy Blair Pardee
London: John Carling
Middlesex East: Richard Tooley
Middlesex North: James Sinclair Smith
Middlesex West: Alexander Mackenzie

Peel/York/Ontario

Cardwell: George McManus
Ontario North: Thomas Paxton
Ontario South: Charles Godfrey
Peel: John Coyne
Toronto East: Matthew Crooks Cameron
Toronto West: Adam Crooks
York East: Hugh Powell Crosby
York North: Alfred Boultbee
York West: Peter Patterson

Later resignations on campaigning at the federal level

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

^ elected in Lambton
^ campaigned in Wellington Centre

Notes and references

Notes

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

References

^ "1871 General Election". Elections Ontario. Retrieved January 3, 2021.
^ The Controverted Elections Act of 1871, S.O. 1870-71, c. 3
^ 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
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e "1871 general election results". Elections Ontario. Retrieved November 11, 2023.
^ ^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.

[5] Halton, and another in Peel

[6] rder is as given in EO reports

[Blake-7] Edward Blake was elected in two ridings.

[8] the incumbent John Stevenson received 914 votes

[Wilson-9] James Wilson (incumbent in Norfolk North) campaigned and lost in two ridings

[10] William Anderson had been elected as a Liberal in an 1870 byelection

[11] the incumbent William Lount received 655 votes

[12] the incumbent Thomas Matchett received 696 votes

[13] the incumbent William Beatty received 1,043 votes

[22] ted in Lambton

[23] Wellington Centre

[15] Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.^[5] Monk was returned in the subsequent byelection.

[16] Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.^[5] Hamilton was returned in the subsequent byelection.

[17] Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.^[5] James Bethune (Liberal) won the subsequent byelection.

[18] Declined the seat in favour of sitting for Bruce South^[5] John McLeod (Liberal) won the subsequent byelection.

[19] Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.^[5] James Simeon McCuaig (Conservative) won the subsequent byelection.

[20] Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.^[5] Ardagh was returned in the subsequent byelection.

[21] Election declared void because of corrupt practices. Writ for new election issued.^[5] Lauder was returned in the subsequent byelection.

[1] "1871 General Election". Elections Ontario. Retrieved January 3, 2021.

[2] The Controverted Elections Act of 1871, S.O. 1870-71, c. 3

[3] 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

[EOData-4] "1871 general election results". Elections Ontario. Retrieved November 11, 2023.

[Journals1872-14] ^ ^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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