1903 British Columbia general election

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| <- 1900 | October 3, 1903 (1903-10-03) | 1907 ->

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<- outgoing members

elected members ->

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42 seats in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
22 seats were needed for a majority
|  | First party  | Second party

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|  |
Leader  | Richard McBride | James Alexander MacDonald
Party  | Conservative | Liberal
Leader since  | June 1, 1903  | October 3, 1903
Leader's seat  | Dewdney | Rossland City
Seats won  | 22  | 17
Popular vote  | 27,913  | 22,715
Percentage  | 46.43%  | 37.78%

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| Third party  | Fourth party
|  |
Leader  | unknown | vacant
Party  | Socialist | Labour
Leader since  | unknown | vacant
Seats won  | 2  | 1
Popular vote  | 4,787  | 4,421
Percentage  | 7.96%  | 7.36%

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| Premier before election

Richard McBride
Conservative

| Premier after election

Richard McBride
Conservative

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The 1903 British Columbia general election was the tenth general election for the Canadian province of British Columbia. It was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia (MLAs). The election was called on September 5, 1903, and held on October 3, 1903. The new legislature met for the first time on November 26, 1903.

This was the first election in British Columbia that was fought by political parties.[1] Prior to this election, British Columbia politics were non-partisan.

The first election was dominated by the BC Conservative and Liberal parties, which were affiliated with existing parties at the federal level.[a]

The Conservative Party won over 46% of the popular vote and a slim majority of the seats in the legislature.

An act was passed in 1902 to provide for an Assembly of 42 members,[2] of which 31 were elected in single-member districts.[3] Of the multi-member districts, Cariboo returned two MLAs, Victoria City four, and Vancouver City five.[2] Each voter could cast as many votes as there were seats to fill in the multi-member districts.

## Results[edit]

Elections to the Legislative Assembly (1903)[4] Political party  | Party leader  | MLAs  | Votes

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Candidates[b] | 1903  | #  | %
| Conservative | Richard McBride | 41 | 22 | 27,913 | 46.43%
| Liberal[c] | James Alexander MacDonald | 39 | 17 | 22,715 | 37.78%
| Socialist |  | 10 | 2 | 4,787 | 7.96%
| Labour[d] |  | 5 | 1 | 4,421 | 7.36%
| Socialist Labour |  | 1 | – | 284 | 0.47%
Total  | 95  | 42  | 60,120  | 100.00%
Acclamations[5] | █ Conservative | 1
█ Liberal | 1
Seats and popular vote by party  Party | Seats | Votes

|
|

█ Conservative |

22 / 42

46.43%

█ Liberal |

17 / 42

37.78%

█ Socialist |

2 / 42

7.96%

█ Labour |

1 / 42

7.36%

█ Socialist Labour |

0 / 42

0.47%

## Results by riding[edit]

The following MLAs were elected:[6]

Alberni: William Wallace Burns McInnes

Atlin: Henry Esson Young

Cariboo: Harry Jones

Cariboo: James Murphy

Chilliwhack: Charles William Munro

Columbia: Wilmer Cleveland Wells

Comox: Robert Grant

Cowichan: John Newell Evans

Cranbrook: James Horace King

Delta: John Oliver

Dewdney: Richard McBride

Esquimalt: Charles Edward Pooley

Fernie: William Roderick Ross

Grand Forks: George Arthur Fraser

Greenwood: John Robert Brown

The Islands: Thomas Wilson Paterson

Kamloops: Frederick John Fulton

Kaslo: Robert Francis Green

Lillooet: Archibald McDonald[e]

Nanaimo City: James Hurst Hawthornthwaite

Nelson City: John Houston

Newcastle: Parker Williams

New Westminster City: Thomas Gifford

Okanagan: Price Ellison

Revelstoke: Thomas Taylor

Richmond: Francis Lovett Carter-Cotton

Rossland City: James Alexander MacDonald

Saanich: Henry Ernest Tanner

Similkameen: Lytton Wilmot Shatford

Skeena: Charles William Digby Clifford

Slocan: William Davidson

Vancouver City: Charles William John Bowser

Vancouver City: James Ford Garden

Vancouver City: Alexander Henry Boswell MacGowan

Vancouver City: Robert Garnett Tatlow

Vancouver City: Charles Wilson

Victoria City: William George Cameron

Victoria City: Robert Low Drury

Victoria City: Richard Hall

Victoria City: James Dugald McNiven (L-L)

Yale: Stuart Alexander Henderson

Ymir: Harry Wright

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## See also[edit]

* List of political parties in Canada § British Columbia

## Notes[edit]

1. ^ See Conservative Party of Canada and Liberal Party of Canada.
2. ^ First election with candidates nominated by organized political parties
3. ^ Three candidates campaigned under the Liberal–Labour banner
4. ^ Organized only at the riding level
5. ^ Election declared void at the end of the first session of the new Legislature.[7] McDonald would win the subsequent byelection.

## References[edit]

1. ^ Hopkins 1904, p. 215.
2. ^ a b Redistribution Act, 1902, S.B.C. 1902, c. 58
3. ^ Elections BC 1988, p. 535.
4. ^ Elections BC 1988, p. 91.
5. ^ Elections BC 1988, pp. 93–94.
6. ^ Elections BC 1988, pp. 93–96.
7. ^ An Act to qualify Archibald McDonald to represent the Lillooet Electoral District in the present Session of the Legislative Assembly, S.B.C. 1903-4, c. 32

## Further reading[edit]

* In the Sea of Sterile Mountains: The Chinese in British Columbia, Joseph Morton, J.J. Douglas, Vancouver (1974).
* Hopkins, J. Castell (1904). The Canadian Annual Review of Public Affairs, 1903. Toronto: The Annual Review Publishing Company.
* Electoral History of British Columbia, 1871–1986 (PDF). Elections BC. 1988. ISBN 0-7718-8677-2.

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