British Columbia general election, 1871

Formerly a British colony, British Columbia became a province of Canada on July 20, 1871. An interim Cabinet was appointed by the Lieutenant Governor of British Columbia, and election writs for the first general election as a province of Canada were issued to choose 25 members of the first provincial legislature from 12 ridings (electoral districts). These ridings were:

• Cariboo (three members)
• Comox
• Cowichan (two members)
• Esquimalt (two members)
• Kootenay (two members)
• Lillooet (two members)
• Nanaimo
• New Westminster (two members)
• New Westminster City
• Victoria (two members)
• Victoria City (four members)
• Yale (three members)

Polling conditions

The election was held from October through December 1871, and was conducted by means of a show of hands on nomination day and, if required, an open poll book on polling day. There were no organized political parties.

Statistics

• Votes 3,804
• Candidates 46
• Members 25

Vancouver Island

• Upper Island 310 votes, four seats (77.5 votes/seat)
  • Comox: 24 votes (24 votes/seat)
  • Cowichan: 196 votes (2 seats 98 votes/seat 49 voters/seat)
  • Nanaimo: 90 votes (90 votes/seat)
• "Greater Victoria" 2,074 votes, eight seats (259.25 votes/seat):
  • Victoria: 377 votes (2 seats 188.5 votes/seat 94.25 voters/seat)
  • Victoria City: 1,515 (4 seats 378.75 votes/seat 169.3525 voters/seat)
  • Esquimalt: 182 (2 seats 91 votes/seat 45.5 voters/seat)

Mainland:

• Interior 1,907 votes, ten seats (190.7 votes/seat):
  • Cariboo: 785 votes (3 seats 261.67 votes/seat)
  • Kootenay: 39 votes (2 seats 19.5 votes/seat)
  • Lillooet: 102 votes (2 seats 51 votes/seat
  • Yale: 171 votes (3 seats 57 votes/seat)
• Lower Mainland 686 votes (3 seats 228.67 votes/seat:
  • New Westminster: 323 votes (2 seats 161.5 votes/seat)
  • New Westminster City: unknown at this time (vote was by acclamation)_

Note that these figures refer to votes actually cast, not the population per se nor the total of the potential voters' list.

Results by riding

Note: There is no arrangement to the ridings and members, other than by rough alphabetical order, as all were technically independents. Actual seating of the House or political alignments are not represented.

Byelections

Two sets of byelections were held to confirm appointments to the Executive Council (cabinet), as was the custom in earlier times. Ministerial candidates in this series of byelections were all confirmed by acclamation (so there were no actual polling dates). These byelections were:

• Esquimalt - Alexander Rocke Robertson, acclaimed November 28, 1871
• New Westminster City - Henry Holbrook acclaimed November 28, 1871
• Cariboo - George Anthony Boomer Walkem acclaimed February 23, 1872
• Comox - John Ash acclaimed, January 11, 1873
• Victoria City - Robert Beaven acclaimed January 6, 1873
• New Wesminster - William James Armstrong acclaimed March 21, 1873

Other byelections were also held due to deaths and other appointments; all were contested:

• Cariboo - John George Barnston was elected to replace Cornelius Booth who was appointed to be Clerk of the Bench (provincial court) for the district of Kootenay on April 19, 1872
• Lillooet - William Saul was elected December 21, 1872 to replace Andrew Thomas Jamieson, who had died on October 31, 1872
• Victoria - November 26, 1874. The byelection was due to resignations February 9, 1874 of A. Bunster and Amor De Cosmos upon winning seats in the federal election January 22, 1874 (in Vancouver and Victoria federal ridings, respectively). William Archibald Robertson and William Fraser Tolmie won the vacant seats.
• Lillooet - November 17, 1874. On September 26, 1874, MLAs William Saul and Thomas Basil Humphreys jointly resigned "over a dispute between the two gentlemen as to which represents the popular feeling of the district" (Victoria Colonist September 29, 1874). Humphreys was re-elected and William M. Brown was elected to replace William Saul in a tight three-way race.

Composition of House at dissolution

Note: Government/Opposition status applies to candidate at time of election in 1871, not at time of dissolution in 1875.

Further reading & references

• In the Sea of Sterile Mountains: The Chinese in British Columbia, Joseph Morton, J.J. Douglas, Vancouver (1974). Despite its title, a fairly thorough account of the politicians and electoral politics in early BC.

Elections and referendums in British Columbia General elections Colony of Vancouver Island 1856 1860 1863 United Colony of British Columbia 1866 1869 Post-Confederation 1871 1875 1878 1882 1886 1890 1894 1898 1900 1903 1907 1909 1912 1916 1920 1924 1928 1933 1937 1941 1945 1949 1952 1953 1956 1960 1963 1966 1969 1972 1975 1979 1983 1986 1991 1996 2001 2005 2009 2013 next By-elections List of British Columbia by-elections Referendums 1873 1909 1916 1916 1920 1924 1937 1952 1952 1972 1991 2002 2005 2009 2011