1924 British Columbia general election

1924 British Columbia general election
← outgoing members elected members →
48 seats to the 16th Legislative Assembly of British Columbia ; 25 seats were needed for a majority
Premier before election; John Oliver ; Liberal	Premier after election; John Oliver ; Liberal

Last updated January 17, 2025

The 1924 British Columbia general election was the sixteenth general election in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. The election was called on May 10, 1924, and held on June 20, 1924. The new legislature met for the first time on November 3, 1924.

The Liberal Party was re-elected to its third term in government, falling just short of a majority in the legislature even though it won less than a third of the popular vote. Two Independent Liberals were also elected. Premier John Oliver lost his own seat in Victoria City, but remained Premier until 1927.

The Conservative Party formed the official opposition, while two new parties, the Provincial Party and the Canadian Labour Party won three seats each, and a total of 35% of the vote.

1923 redistribution of ridings

An Act was passed in 1923, providing for an increase in the seats in the Assembly from 47 to 48 upon the next election.^[1] The following changes were made:

Abolished ridings	New ridings
Drawn from other ridings
	Creston ^{[a 1]}
	Mackenzie
	Salmon Arm
	Burnaby ^{[a 2]}
	Skeena
Merger of districts
Kaslo Slocan	Kaslo-Slocan
Cowichan Newcastle	Cowichan-Newcastle
Grand Forks Greenwood	Grand Forks-Greenwood
Rossland Trail	Rossland-Trail
Renaming of districts
Richmond	Richmond-Point Grey

↑ from part of Nelson
↑ from part of New Westminster

Campaign

The Provincial Party, which nominated candidates only in 1924, was formed by a group of British Columbia Conservative Party dissidents known as the "Committee of 100", led and funded by the wealthy General Alexander McRae and political elements from the United Farmers of British Columbia. McRae claimed that the Liberal government of John Oliver and the previous administrations of Conservative Premier William John Bowser, then the opposition leader, were corrupt. Many of his allegations were related to the funding of the Pacific Great Eastern Railway plan to reach Prince George in the Northern interior of the province, which was not achieved until many years later. He claimed that there were kickbacks, patronage and various wrongdoings. His allegations were never proven. The election was bitterly fought with sensational allegations against all three leaders. McRae was not elected. Both Bowser and Oliver lost their seats but Oliver continued to lead his Liberal Party as Premier of a minority government after the election.^[2]

In the single-member districts, there was only one two-way contest, and most were either two- or three-way battles:

Candidate contests in the ridings^[3]
Candidates nominated		Ridings	Party
Candidates nominated		Ridings	Lib	Con	Prov	Lab	Ind-Lib	Ind	Soc	Ind-Con	Farm-Lab	Totals
Single-member districts	2	1	1	1								2
	3	26	24	25	24	1	2			1	1	78
	4	10	10	10	10	5	2		1	2		40
	5	1	1	1	1	1		1				5
Multiple-member districts	Vancouver (6 MLAs)	1	6	6	6	5	1	1	1	1		27
Multiple-member districts	Victoria (4 MLAs)	1	4	4	4	3		1				16
Total		40	46	47	45	15	5	3	2	4	1	168

Aftermath

All three major party leaders had lost their races. In McRae's case, he missed becoming MLA in Vancouver City only because his fellow candidate Andrew McCreight Creery obtained 63 more votes.^[4] In an August byelection, Oliver gained a seat in Nelson when Kenneth Campbell chose to stand aside.^[4] Bowser decided to retire from politics, and Robert Henry Pooley (Esquimalt) was selected as the new Conservative leader.^[4]

The Provincial and Labour members would support critical portions of the Liberal legislative programme in the following session of the Legislature.^[4]

Results

Elections to the 16th Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (1924)^[5]
Political party		Party leader	MLAs				Votes
Political party		Party leader	Candidates	1920	1924	±	#	±	%	± (pp)
	Liberal	John Oliver	46	25	23	2	108,323	25,844	31.34	6.55
	Conservative	William Bowser	47	15	17	2	101,765	8,710	29.45	1.75
	Provincial	Alexander Duncan McRae	45	–	3	3	83,517	83,517	24.16	New
	Canadian Labour ^{[a 1]}		15	3	3		39,044	6,814	11.30	2.20
	Independent Liberal		5	–	2	2	3,549	116	1.03	0.06
	Independent		3	3	–	3	2,520	34,216	0.73	9.64
	People's Party		–	1	–	1	Did not campaign
	Socialist		2	–	–	–	4,364	8,022	1.26	2.24
	Independent Conservative		4	–	–	–	2,046	444	0.59	0.14
	Farmer–Labour		1	–	–	–	478	478	0.14	New
Total			168	47	48		345,608		100.00%

↑ compared with 1920 results for its predecessor Federated Labour

Seats and popular vote by party^[5]
Party	Seats	Votes	Change (pp)
█ Liberal	23 / 48	31.34%	-6.55
█ Conservative	17 / 48	29.45%	-1.75
█ Provincial	3 / 48	24.16%	24.16	24.16
█ Federated Labour/Canadian Labour	3 / 48	11.30%	2.20	2.2
█ Socialist	0 / 48	1.26%	-2.24
█ Independent	0 / 48	0.73%	-9.64
█ Soldier/GAUV	0 / 48	0.00%	-4.58
█ Other	2 / 48	1.76%	-1.60

MLAs elected

Alberni : Richard John Burde (I-Lib)

Atlin : Herbert Frederick Kergin

Burnaby : Francis Aubrey Browne (CLP)

Cariboo : David Alexander Stoddart

Chilliwack : Edward Dodsley Barrow

Columbia : John Andrew Buckham

Comox : Paul Phillips Harrison (I-Lib)

Cowichan-Newcastle : Cyril Francis Davie

Cranbrook : Noel Wallinger

Creston : Fred W. Lister

Delta : Alexander McDonald Paterson

Dewdney : John Alexander Catherwood

Esquimalt : Robert Henry Pooley

Fernie : Thomas Aubert Uphill (CLP)

Fort George : Henry George Thomas Perry

Grand Forks-Greenwood : John McKie

The Islands : Cyrus Wesley Peck

Kamloops : James Reginald Colley

Kaslo-Slocan : Charles Sidney Leary

Lillooet : Albert Edward Munn

Mackenzie : Michael Manson

Nanaimo : William Sloan

Nelson : Kenneth Campbell

New Westminster : Edwin James Rothwell

North Okanagan : K. C. MacDonald

North Vancouver : John Melvin Bryan, Sr.

Omineca : Alexander Malcolm Manson

Prince Rupert : Duff Pattullo

Revelstoke : William Henry Sutherland

Richmond-Point Grey : George Alexander Walkem

Rossland-Trail : James Hargrave Schofield

Saanich : Thomas George Coventry

Salmon Arm : Rolf Wallgren Bruhn

Similkameen : William Alexander McKenzie

Skeena : Horace Cooper Wrinch

South Okanagan : James William Jones

South Vancouver : Robert Henry Neelands (CLP)

Vancouver City : Ian Alistair MacKenzie

Vancouver City : Christopher McRae

Vancouver City : Victor Odlum

Vancouver City : Mary Ellen Smith

Vancouver City : Charles Woodward

Vancouver City : Andrew McCreight Creery

Victoria City : Reginald Hayward

Victoria City : Joshua Hinchcliffe

Victoria City : Gus Lyons

Victoria City : Harold Despard Twigg

Yale : John Duncan MacLean

Synopsis of results

Results by riding - 1924 British Columbia general election (single-member districts)^[6]
Riding	Winning party								Votes
Name	1920		Party		Votes	Share	Margin #	Margin %	Lib	Con	Prov	CLP	I-Lib	Ind	Oth	Total
Name	1920		Party		Votes	Share	Margin #	Margin %								Total

Alberni		Ind		I-Lib	828	42.48%	46	2.35%	–	339	781	–	828	–	–	1,949
Atlin		Lib		Lib	463	38.71%	83	6.94%	463	353	380	–	–	–	–	1,196
Burnaby	New			CLP	1,567	31.22%	243	4.85%	1,324	974	1,155	–	1,567	–	–	5,020
Cariboo		Lib		Prov	493	37.81%	79	6.06%	414	397	493	–	–	–	–	1,304
Chilliwack		Lib		Lib	1,429	37.83%	148	3.91%	1,429	1,067	1,281	–	–	–	–	3,777
Columbia		Lib		Lib	644	56.84%	350	30.89%	644	294	195	–	–	–	–	1,133
Comox		PP		I-Lib	1,261	43.95%	446	15.54%	–	815	793	–	1,261	–	–	2,869
Cowichan-Newcastle	New			Con	1,246	31.26%	114	2.86%	738	1,246	870	1,132	–	–	–	3,986
Cranbrook		Lib		Con	1,326	55.53%	264	11.06%	1,062	1,326	–	–	–	–	–	2,388
Creston	New			Con	879	49.97%	396	22.51%	483	879	397	–	–	–	–	1,759
Delta		Lib		Lib	1,677	46.13%	424	11.66%	1,677	1,253	633	–	72	–	–	3,635
Dewdney		Con		Con	1,259	36.60%	13	0.38%	1,246	1,259	935	–	–	–	–	3,440
Esquimalt		Con		Con	1,280	46.36%	655	23.72%	625	1,280	515	–	–	–	341	2,761
Fernie		FLP		CLP	1,002	40.18%	151	6.06%	641	851	–	1,002	–	–	–	2,494
Fort George		Lib		Lib	1,080	46.67%	52	2.24%	1,080	1,028	206	–	–	–	–	2,314
Grand Forks-Greenwood	New			Con	750	43.53%	108	6.27%	642	750	331	–	–	–	–	1,723
The Islands		Lib		Con	583	34.17%	2	0.11%	542	583	581	–	–	–	–	1,706
Kamloops		Lib		Lib	1,212	41.38%	215	7.34%	1,212	997	720	–	–	–	–	2,929
Kaslo-Slocan	New			Lib	799	39.11%	199	9.74%	799	384	600	260	–	–	–	2,043
Lillooet		Con		Lib	626	42.56%	104	7.07%	626	323	522	–	–	–	–	1,471
Mackenzie	New			Con	742	41.45%	95	5.27%	647	742	401	–	–	–	–	1,790
Nanaimo		Lib		Lib	1,612	46.35%	529	15.21%	1,612	642	141	–	–	–	1,083	3,478
Nelson		Con		Lib	902	43.14%	191	9.14%	902	711	–	–	–	–	478	2,091
New Westminster		Lib		Lib	1,564	37.61%	254	6.10%	1,564	1,310	591	693	–	–	–	4,158
North Okanagan		Lib		Lib	1,362	33.20%	292	7.12%	1,362	907	1,070	–	–	–	764	4,103
North Vancouver		Ind		Lib	1,283	31.34%	120	2.93%	1,283	442	1,151	–	1,163	55	–	4,094
Omineca		Lib		Lib	592	44.08%	139	10.35%	592	298	453	–	–	–	–	1,343
Prince Rupert		Lib		Lib	920	55.89%	255	15.49%	920	–	61	–	–	–	665	1,646
Revelstoke		Lib		Lib	1,099	59.05%	505	27.13%	1,099	594	168	–	–	–	–	1,861
Richmond-Point Grey		Con		Prov	2,141	35.34%	78	1.29%	1,855	2,063	2,141	–	–	–	–	6,059
Rossland-Trail	New			Con	938	48.88%	393	20.48%	545	938	436	–	–	–	–	1,919
Saanich		Lib		Con	1,433	47.43%	521	17.24%	912	1,433	676	–	–	–	–	3,021
Salmon Arm	New			Con	920	36.83%	96	3.84%	754	920	824	–	–	–	–	2,498
Similkameen		Con		Con	1,306	39.56%	82	2.48%	771	1,306	1,224	–	–	–	–	3,301
Skeena	New			Lib	794	50.41%	259	16.44%	794	246	535	–	–	–	–	1,575
South Okanagan		Con		Con	2,009	52.98%	691	18.22%	1,318	2,009	340	125	–	–	–	3,792
South Vancouver		FLP		CLP	1,971	38.74%	687	13.50%	1,141	1,284	692	1,971	–	–	–	5,088
Yale		Con		Lib	1,148	46.09%	383	15.38%	1,148	765	578	–	–	–	–	2,491

= 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

= endorsed by Provincial Party

= endorsed by Conservative Party

= previously an MP in the House of Commons of Canada

= multiple candidates

Results by riding - 1924 British Columbia general election (multiple-member districts)^[6]
Party		Vancouver City			Victoria City
Party		Votes	Share	Change	Votes	Share	Change
	Liberal	58,261	30.71%	-8.26%	15,195	29.40%	-7.55%
	Provincial	51,596	27.19%	New	9,050	17.51%	New
	Conservative	45,685	24.08%	-5.88%	23,075	44.65%	11.86%
	Canadian Labour	29,654	15.63%	4.69%	2,640	5.11%	2.86%
	Socialist	3,281	1.73%	-4.06%	–	–	–
	Independent	750	0.40%	-7.58%	1,715	3.32%	-5.00%
	Independent Conservative	276	0.15%	New	–	–	–
	Independent Liberal	225	0.12%	New	–	–	-3.79%
	Grand Army of United Veterans	–	–	-2.69%	–	–	–
	Women's Freedom League	–	–	-2.06%	–	–	–
	Vancouver Ratepayers Association	–	–	-1.63%	–	–	–
	Soldier–Labour	–	–	–	–	–	-9.88%
	Liberty League of BC	–	–	–	–	–	- 4.57%
	Independent Soldier	–	–	–	–	–	-1.44%
Total		189,728	100.00%		51,675	100.00%
Seats won		5 1			4
Incumbents returned		2			1

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References

↑ Constitution Act Amendment Act, 1923 , S.B.C. 1923, c. 6
↑ Margaret A. Ormsby (1958). British Columbia: A History. MacMillan: Vancouver. p. 420.
↑ Elections BC 1988, pp. 151–155.
1 2 3 4 Hopkins 1925, p. 444.
1 2 Elections BC 1988, pp. 139, 149.
1 2 Elections BC 1988, pp. 141–144, 151–155.

v t e Elections and referendums in British Columbia
General elections	1856 1860 1863 1866 1869 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 2017 2020 2024 44th
Municipal elections	2005 2008 2011 2014 2018 2022
Referendums	1873 1909 1916 1920 1924 1937 1952 1972 1991 2002 2005 2009 2011 2018
Federal elections	1871 by-elections ... 2019 2021
See also: List of British Columbia by-elections