The 1888 North-West Territories general election was the first general election in the history of the

North-West Territories The Northwest Territories (abbreviated ''NT'' or ''NWT''; french: Territoires du Nord-Ouest, formerly ''North-Western Territory'' and ''North-West Territories'' and namely shortened as ''Northwest Territory'') is a federal territory of Canada. ...

, Canada. Elections were held in various districts between 20 June and 30 June 1888. This was the only general election, where the writs were issued to return on various days. Prior to 1888, members of the 1st Council of the North-West Territories were elected in

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India, or a Zimni election (Urdu: ضمنی انتخاب, supplementary election) in Pakistan, is an election used to f ...

s to supplement members appointed by the

Government of Canada The government of Canada (french: gouvernement du Canada) is the body responsible for the federal administration of Canada. A constitutional monarchy, the Crown is the corporation sole, assuming distinct roles: the executive, as the ''Crown ...

. In order to have an elected member, a constituency needed to be set up in an area with 1,000 people. Others members were appointed. This created a patchwork of represented and unrepresented areas across the sprawling and sparse territory. Twenty-two members were elected in this election.

Robert Brett Robert George Brett (November 16, 1851 – September 16, 1929) was a politician and physician in the North-West Territories and Alberta, Canada and served as the second Lieutenant Governor of Alberta. Early life Robert George Brett was born on ...

was appointed government leader by Lieutenant Governor

Joseph Royal Joseph Royal (7 May 1837 – 23 August 1902) was a Canadian journalist, lawyer, politician, businessman, and Lieutenant Governor of the Northwest Territories. Early life and career Royal studied at St. Mary's Jesuit college in Montreal. Hi ...

. His official title was Chairman of the Lt. Governor's Advisory Council. Three judges were appointed to the legislative assembly to provide legal advice, but they were not able to vote. They represented the territory at large. Voters in this election cast their votes by telling the returning officer who they want to vote for. This system lasted until 1894 when a

secret ballot The secret ballot, also known as the Australian ballot, is a voting method in which a voter's identity in an election or a referendum is anonymous. This forestalls attempts to influence the voter by intimidation, blackmailing, and potential vote ...

was first used in a by-election in the Whitewood district.

Election results

Three members were acclaimed, but the turnout cannot be established as no voters lists were in use. Candidates were all elected as part of a consensus government.

Legal Advisors

Three Members were appointed by Lieutenant Governor

after the election. The purpose was to bring experience in procedure, protocol and amending and introducing legislation. The Legal Advisors held seats at large, were allowed to participate in debates and were paid a salary of $250.00. The three members of the assembly who were appointed, already served as members of the Assembly previously. There were no Legal Advisors reappointed after dissolution of the 1st North-West Legislative Assembly in 1891.

Members of the Legislative Assembly elected

For complete electoral history, see individual districts

Medicine Hat

In the Medicine Hat electoral district, candidate

William Finlay William Thomas Finlay (July 12, 1853 – May 9, 1914) was a merchant, politician and cabinet minister in Alberta and Northwest Territories, Canada. Finlay served as the second mayor of Medicine Hat, represented the electoral district of Med ...

had withdrawn before election day. The returning officer declared

Thomas Tweed Thomas Andrew Tweed (April 14, 1853 – April 4, 1906) was a merchant and political figure in the Northwest Territories, Canada. He represented Medicine Hat in the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories from 1888 to 1894 as a Co ...

elected by acclamation. Finlay lost his nomination deposit of $200.00

References

Notelist

External links

Personnel of the Northwest Territories Assembly 1888–1905History of Northwest Territories Assembly 1876–1905
{{Northwest Territories elections Elections in the Northwest Territories 1888 elections in Canada 1888 in the Northwest Territories June 1888 events