Primer on Alberta Election Systems 1905-2026 Provincial - Edmonton - Calgary - Lethbridge

Provincial elections

1905 -- First past the Post, single-member districts. (FPTP used in by-elections)

1909-1921 FPTP and Block Voting (FPTP used in by-elections)

mixture of single-member districts (FPTP) and one or more multi-member districts, where Block Voting was used.

MMD in Edmonton two seats Block Voting 1909, 1913, 1921

MMD in Calgary two seats Block Voting 1909

1917 only MMD was the army vote overseas.

each soldier had two votes.

Roberta MacAdams scored with her slogan "Give one of your votes to the soldier of

your choice, and give your other vote to the Sister."

  (An instance of non-district electing - votes collected from inside and outside Canada)

1921 5-seat districts in Edmonton and Calgary, and a 2-seat district in Medicine Hat.

1924 -1956 STV/IRV (IRV used in by-elections)

1924 STV adopted in the existing MMDs -- Edm, Calgary and M.H.

Instant-Runoff Voting (AKA Alternative Voting ) adopted in single-member districts

elsewhere. Theoretically, each member was elected with at least half the votes cast

in their district, but due to exhausted votes, sometimes less than half of cast votes

elected the eventual winner.

1924-1955 STV in Edmonton MMD of 5, 6 or 7 seats.

1924-1955 STV in Calgary MMD of 5 or 6 seats.

   each voter had one vote, but could mark back-up preferences to be used to transfer

    the votes to another candidate if needed.

prior to 1930 election - Medicine Hat re-drawn and divided into single-member

     districts. used IRV until 1955

only exception: 1944 Armed Services vote -- three seats elected by First Past the Post

one seat for Army, Navy and Airforce.

Serving Alberta residents in the respective branch could vote for rep.

(An instance of non-district electing - votes collected from around the world)

1956 - present First Past the Post, single-member districts  (FPTP used in by-elections)

many elected with only minority of votes cast in their district.

Use of various election systems in Edmonton and Calgary, Lethbridge at city level

1884 Town of Calgary town-wide district Block Voting

1892 Town of Edmonton - city-wide district staggered terms Block voting used.

1894 Calgary became city -- ward system three wards, nine aldermen, all nine elected three in each ward

1895-1913 Calgary staggered elections -- one third elected each year for three-year terms, a single-member in each ward, through FPTP.

1899 Town of Strathcona mayor (FPTP) and six aldermen city-wide district Block Voting

1900 Town of Strathcona mayor (FPTP), three aldermen city-wide district Block Voting

staggered terms

1904 City of Edmonton city-wide district staggered terms Block voting

1905 City of Edmonton city-wide district staggered terms a form of Limited Voting

electing four councillors to two-year terms - Griesbach, Manson, Smith, J.H. Picard

As well, Charles May and Kenneth McLeod had been elected to two year terms in 1904 but had resigned partway through their terms. (May resigned to run for the mayor's post and was elected.) City council filled these seats after the 1905 election by appointment of the two most-popular unsuccessful candidates - Robert Mays and David Latta. This equivalency of electing six members by relative vote standings while each voter only had four votes meant the election was an example of limited voting. (In early 1906 the provincial Legislature passed amendments to the city charter, and since then, vacant seats are filled by a by-election, or during the period when staggered terms were used, as part of a general municipal election.)

The use of equivalent of limited voting meant tht perhaps the top four were elected as a block while Latta and Mays were perhaps the choice of a different group of voters. David Latta was Irish Catholic

Mays was official of the North West Electric Company, and perhaps campaigned on call for Edmonton power plant to operate during the days (to allow electric lights and elevators to operate).

Neither ran for re-election in 1906 (so perhaps the other councillors did not make them feel welcome).

1906-1910 City of Edmonton city-wide district

staggered terms electing variable number of councillors - 4 or 5. Block voting

1907 City of Strathcona - Eight aldermen two in each ward Block Voting

1908-1912 Strathcona - 8 aldermen staggered terms, one elected in each ward (FPTP)

(1912 Cities of Strathcona and Edmonton amalgamated)

1912 February Edmonton (new amalgamated Edmonton-Strathcona)

city-wide district electing ten --

five to two year terms; five to one-year terms.

1912 December Edmonton (new amalgamated Edmonton-Strathcona)

1912-1964 annual elections

1912-1963 city-wide district staggered terms electing five to two-year terms

(occasionally one or two additional councillors elected to one-year terms.)

1912-1922 Block Voting

1913 Lethbridge adopted commission form of city government, disbanding its council. using Instant-Runoff Voting to elect its mayor (city-wide) and commissioners (in single-member wards).

1913-1916 Calgary adopted city-wide district staggered elections.

Block voting used.

1916 each voter had seven votes.

1917-1960 Calgary elected its mayor city-wide through IRV

Aldermen were elected in a city-wide district through STV, staggered terms.

nine elected in 1917, electing first woman elected to Calgary city council Annie Gale see https://www.calgary.ca/info-requests/archives/election-exhibit.html

1923-1927 Edmonton - city-wide district, staggered terms, STV.

no women elected using STV (but Izena Ross in her time on council had helped Edmonton change to STV. She was not re-elected in the same election when Edmonton voters voted in favour of STV).

Labour consistently took four seats in each election.

1928-1963 Edmonton - city-wide district, staggered terms,

Block Voting (each voter casts 5, 6 or 7 votes each)

(staggered terms dropped in 1964)

Women had little success -- just ten were elected prior to 1971.

Labour took majority in 1929 and in 1933 but otherwise took few seats (despite electing Labour/CCF mayors - Dan Knott, Harry Ainlay , Joe Clarke, Elmer Roper, Sidney Parsons)

1928 - Lethbridge 7 aldermen elected in city-wide district STV

(STV used just for one election)

1929-1971 Lethbridge staggered terms -- 3 or 4 elected each time Block Voting

1961 Calgary -- Wards established, two-seat wards, two members in each -- STV

1962-1970 Calgary two-seat wards (IRV)

staggered terms so one at a time elected usually

1964-1971 Edmonton city-wide district 12 elected through Block Voting

(about 100,000 voters cast almost 900,000 votes in 1964)

(staggered terms had been cancelled).

1928-1971 women had little success when city-wide districts and Block Voting were used -- just ten were elected prior to 1971.

1971-1980 Edmonton three-seat wards Block voting

women had little success when wards and Block Voting were used -- just four were elected in the 1971-1980 period.

1971 Calgary two-seat wards STV used to elect both in each ward.

(staggered terms cancelled).

1971-present Lethbridge 8 aldermen Block Voting

(staggered terms cancelled)

1974 Calgary two-seat wards Block voting used to elect both in each ward.

1977- present Calgary -- 14 single-seat wards electing through FPTP

1980-2010 Edmonton two-seat wards Block Voting

women had little success when two-seat wards and Block Voting were used -- only about fifteen were elected in this 30-year period.

2010-present Edmonton 12 single-seat wards electing through FPTP

the number of women councillors has ranged randomly: 4, 1, 2, 8, 6 in the five elections between 2010 and 2025.

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At present time, in ALBERTA -- only Edmonton, Calgary and Specialized Municipality of Fort McMurray are using wards (single-member wards so FPTP).

All others elect in city-wide districts using Block Voting.

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Information sources:

Monto When Canada had Effective Voting and P.R. (2025)

Rek, Municipal elections in Edmonton

A Report on Alberta Elections, 1905-1982

online:

https://www.calgary.ca/info-requests/archives/election-exhibit.html

1971 section has sample of the ballot used in 1971, Calgary's last STV election, alongside a ballot for 1974 where each voter had two votes.

1971 Ward Five elected two (not mentioned on the ballot)

1974 Ward Five elected two (not mentioned on the ballot)

The 1971 ballot says voter can vote for multiple candidates (when in reality voter has just one vote - voter indicates first preference and provides back-up alternatives).

Text says voter must rank all candidates but ballot says "mark rankings for any you wish to vote for" (sic).

Text for 1917 says "In 1917, the six elected aldermen who ended up with the highest number of votes served for a two-year term and the remaining three served for a one-year term." but when quota is the amount that most of the winners take in the end, there is no variation in vote tallies - instead under STV the first six to be elected get two-year terms...

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Wiki Lethbridge

Wiki "List of Calgary Municipal elections"

Wiki "2021 Lethbridge Municipal election"

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