James Alexander Smith (August 22, 1911 – March 29, 1993) was a teacher and politician. He was a

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

from 1955 until 1958. He was born in Bawlf,

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada. A member of the

Social Credit Party of Canada The Social Credit Party of Canada (french: Parti Crédit social du Canada), colloquially known as the Socreds, was a populist political party in Canada that promoted social credit theories of monetary reform. It was the federal wing of the Canadi ...

, Smith first ran for the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

in a by-election held in the electoral district of

Battle River—Camrose Battle River—Camrose was a federal electoral district in Alberta, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1953 to 1968. This riding was created in 1952 from parts of Battle River, and Camrose ridings. It was abolish ...

. He defeated

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

candidate Mac Smith by fewer than 400 votes; former Member of Parliament William Irvine, of the

Co-operative Commonwealth Federation The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF; french: Fédération du Commonwealth Coopératif, FCC); from 1955 the Social Democratic Party of Canada (''french: Parti social démocratique du Canada''), was a federal democratic socialism, democra ...

, came in third. He ran for re-election in the 1957 general election and won in a landslide. In the 1958 election, he lost his seat to Progressive Conservative candidate

Clifford Smallwood Clifford Silas Smallwood (July 28, 1915 – November 14, 1979) was a farmer and served as a Canadian federal politician from 1958 to 1968. Federal politics Smallwood first ran as a candidate for the House of Commons of Canada in the 1957 feder ...

, whom Smith had defeated the year before, in the context of a total

electoral wipeout An electoral wipeout occurs when a major party receives far fewer votes or seats in a legislature than their position justifies. It is the opposite of a landslide victory; the two frequently go hand in hand. A use of the phrase generally assumes ...

for Social Credit. Smith faced Smallwood again in the 1962 general election and was again defeated. Smith ran in the electoral district of

Peace River The Peace River (french: links=no, rivière de la Paix) is a river in Canada that originates in the Rocky Mountains of northern British Columbia and flows to the northeast through northern Alberta. The Peace River joins the Athabasca River in th ...

in the

1963 Events January * January 1 – Bogle–Chandler case: Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation scientist Dr. Gilbert Bogle and Mrs. Margaret Chandler are found dead (presumed poisoned), in bushland near the Lane Cov ...

and

1965 Events January–February * January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years. * January 20 ** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...

elections. He lost to PC MP

Ged Baldwin Gerald William "Ged" Baldwin, (January 18, 1907 – December 16, 1991) was a Canadian politician who was known as the "Father and Grandfather" of the ''Access to Information Act''. Life and career Born in Palmerston, New Zealand, Baldwin ...

both times. He married Margaret Bowen on July 2, 1936 at

Wainwright, Alberta Wainwright is a town in east-central Alberta, Canada. It is approximately southeast of Edmonton. Located west of the Alberta–Saskatchewan border, Wainwright is south of Vermilion in the Battle River valley. Highway 41, called the Buffal ...

. He died in Edmonton in 1993.

References

External links

* 1911 births 1993 deaths Social Credit Party of Canada MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Alberta People from Bawlf, Alberta {{Alberta-politician-stub