Yale (provincial electoral district)

Yale was a provincial electoral district in British Columbia, Canada from the province's joining Confederation in 1871. It was a 3-member constituency and retained the name Yale until the 1894 election, at which time it was split into three ridings, Yale-East, Yale-North and Yale-West; other ridings in the southeast of the province had previously been split off, e.g., Fernie, Ymir, Grand Forks, which later emerged or were rearranged into the various Kootenay and Okanagan ridings. In 1903 the name Yale (by itself) was revived, this time as a one-member riding only, the new riding largely based upon Yale-West. Its last appearance on the hustings was 1963. In 1966, it was amalgamated into the new riding of Yale-Lillooet, which was extant until 2009, when most of its core area was made part of the new Fraser-Nicola riding.

Geography edit

The original Yale riding encompassed the whole of today's Kootenay, Okanagan, Similkameen, Thompson and Nicola regions, plus its original core in the Fraser Canyon, south from and including Lytton. The riding's name is from the town of Yale, British Columbia, then still an important centre in the new province and in fact one of the very few actual towns in the riding at the time.

Notable MLAs edit

Notable candidates edit

Election results edit

Note: Winners of each election are in bold.

1st 1871 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Independent George Coxon 1 29 16.96% unknown
  Independent William H. Kay 8 4.68% unknown
  Independent Moses Lumby 17 9.94% unknown
  Independent James Robinson 35 20.47% unknown
  Independent Charles Augustus Semlin 29 16.96% unknown
  Independent Robert Smith 53 30.99% unknown
Total valid votes 171 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %
1 The Returning Officer cast the deciding vote for Semlin, who had the same number of votes.


1875 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % Elected
Reform caucus John Andrew Mara 130 20.57  Y
Reform caucus Forbes George Vernon 125 19.78  Y
Independent Government Robert Smith 117 18.57  Y
Reform John F. Allison 100 15.82
Independent Government Charles Augustus Semlin 94 14.87
Independent Government James Robinson 59 9.34
Independent James Ross 7 1.1
Total valid votes 632 100.00
3rd 1878 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
Government Preston Bennett 158 20.05% unknown
Opposition Dixon Joseph Lauder 87 11.04% unknown
Opposition William McCormack 93 11.80% unknown
Government John Andrew Mara 172 21.83% unknown
Opposition Charles Augustus Semlin 120 15.23% unknown
Government Forbes George Vernon 158 20.05% unknown
Total valid votes 788 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %
4th 1882 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
Government Preston Bennett 194 19.56% unknown
Independent Henry Dodson Green-Armytage 98 9.88%
Government William McGirr 60 6.05% unknown
Government John Andrew Mara 240 24.19% unknown
Government Edward Peason 78 7.86% unknown
  Independent Charles Augustus Semlin 254 25.60% unknown
  Independent Gilbert Malcolm Sproat 68 6.86% unknown
Total valid votes 992 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %
British Columbia By-election: Yale November 15, 1882 2
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
Government Thomas Basil Humphreys 157 39.15% unknown
Opposition George Bohun Martin 244 60.05% unknown
Total valid votes 401 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %
2 Death of Preston Bennett August 9, 1882.
5th 1886 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
Government Archibald Irwin 196 14.91% unknown
Government George Bohun Martin 283 21.54% unknown
Opposition Henry Nicholson 93 7.08% unknown
Opposition Thomas Roadley 88 6.77% unknown
Opposition Charles Augustus Semlin 364 27.70% unknown
Government Forbes George Vernon 290 22.07% unknown
Total valid votes 1,314 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %
6th 1890 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
Opposition Irwin Archibald 256 13.17% unknown
Government George Bohun Martin 445 22.89% unknown
Opposition Charles Augustus Semlin 396 20.37% unknown
Government Forbes George Vernon 496 25.51% unknown
Government James Wardle 351 18.06% unknown
Total valid votes 1,944 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %

7th 1894 British Columbia general election

split to three ridings:

8th 1898 British Columbia general election

9th 1900 British Columbia general election

10th 1903 British Columbia general election 4
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal Stuart Alexander Henderson 309 60.59% unknown
  Conservative Thomas Gray McManamon 201 39.41% unknown
Total valid votes 510 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %
4Restored seat reduced to one member only; successor to Yale-West
11th 1907 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal Stuart Alexander Henderson 289 58.27% unknown
  Conservative Charles Augustus Semlin 207 41.73% unknown
Total valid votes 496 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %
12th 1909 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal Stuart Alexander Henderson 265 36.81% unknown
  Conservative Richard McBride 455 63.19% unknown
Total valid votes 720 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %
13th 1912 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Conservative Alexander Lucas 524 65.26% unknown
  Liberal John P. McConnell 279 34.74% unknown
Total valid votes 281 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout 71.98%
14th 1916 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Conservative Alexander Lucas 609 42.95% unknown
  Liberal Joseph Walters 809 57.05% unknown
Total valid votes 1,418 100.00%
Total rejected ballots
Turnout %
15th 1920 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal James Robert Cameron 737 31.95% unknown
  Conservative John McRae 913 39.58% unknown
Independent Liberal Joseph Walters 657 28.48%
Total valid votes 2,307 100.00%
1924 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes %
Liberal John Duncan MacLean 1,148 46.09
Conservative John McRae 765 30.71
Provincial James Sugrue Fagan 578 23.20
Total valid votes 2,491 100.00
17th 1928 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal John Joseph Alban Gillis 1,514 57.22% unknown
  Conservative Romald Helmerow Helmer 1,132 42.78% unknown
Total valid votes 2,646 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 27
Turnout %
18th 1933 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal John Joseph Alban Gillis 1,193 68.64% unknown
Non-Partisan Independent Group Romald Helmerow Helmer 312 17.95% unknown
  Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. John Wise Langley 233 13.41% unknown
Total valid votes 1,738 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 23
Turnout %
19th 1937 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal John Joseph Alban Gillis 968 59.94% unknown
  Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. John Wise Langley 422 26.13% unknown
  Conservative John Wilson North 225 13.93% unknown
Total valid votes 1,615 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 40
Turnout %
20th 1941 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Conservative Alexander Rennie Ross Craig 616 34.92% unknown
  Liberal John Joseph Alban Gillis 1,148 65.08% unknown
Total valid votes 1,764 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 55
Turnout %
21st 1945 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal John Joseph Alban Gillis 1077 34.92% unknown
  Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. Angus Hugh MacIsaac 536 33.23% unknown
Total valid votes 1,613 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 63
Turnout %
22nd 1949 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
Coalition John Joseph Alban Gillis 1,407 46.90% unknown
  Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. Angus Hugh MacIsaac 865 28.83% unknown
  Independent William John Trout 728 24.27% unknown
Total valid votes 3,000 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 42
Turnout %
23rd British Columbia election, 19522
Party Candidate Votes
1st count
% Votes
final count
% ±%
  Progressive Conservative Bernard (Ben) Cherry 338 10.74% - -% unknown
Social Credit League Irvine Finlay Corbett 1,024 32.53% 1,390 51.46%
  Liberal John Joseph Allan Gillis 1,067 33.89% 1,311 48.54% unknown
  Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. Angus Hugh MacIsaac 659 20.93% - -% unknown
  Independent George Murray 60 1.91% - -% unknown
Total valid votes 3,148 % 2,701 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 98
Turnout %
2 Preferential ballot - final count is between top two candidates from earlier counts; intermediary counts (of 4) not shown.
24th British Columbia election, 1953 3
Party Candidate Votes
1st count
% Votes
final count
% ±%
Social Credit Irvine Finlay Corbett 1,177 39.86% 1,354 54.36%
  Co-operative Commonwealth Federation Evan Donald MacDougall 835 28.28% - - % unknown
Total valid votes 2,953 100.00% 2,491 %
Total rejected ballots 278
Total Registered Voters 5,933 (1952 list)
Turnout 70.15%
3 Preferential ballot; final count is between top two candidates from first count; intermediary counts (of 3) not shown
25th 1956 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
Social Credit Irvine Finlay Corbett 1,315 47.34 unknown
  Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. Joe Madden 599 21.56% unknown
  Liberal Olga McLean 703 25.31% unknown
  Conservative Kenneth Moyes 161 5.80% unknown
Total valid votes 2,778 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 61
Turnout %
26th 1960 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal John Allan Collett 964 27.30% unknown
Social Credit Irvine Finlay Corbett 1,103 31.24% unknown
  Conservative William Joseph Lauder 390 11.05% unknown
  Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. Evan Donald MacDougall 1,074 30.42% unknown
Total valid votes 3,531 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 107
Turnout %
27th 1963 British Columbia general election
Party Candidate Votes % ± Expenditures
  Liberal John Allan Collett 599 13.10% unknown
Social Credit Irvine Finlay Corbett 1,691 36.99% unknown
  Conservative John Willison Green 584 12.78% unknown
  New Democrat William Leonard Hartley 1,697 37.43% unknown
Total valid votes 4,571 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 58
Turnout %

Before the 28th general election in 1966, parts of the former riding of Yale became incorporated into the new riding of Yale-Lillooet, which survives to the present.

References edit

External links edit

Legislative Assembly of British Columbia
Preceded by Constituency represented by the Premier of British Columbia
1927–1928
Succeeded by