User:Vjw/sandbox/1867 Canadian federal election

Canada was in an interesting period in history. It was the 1860s, when relations between Britain and the United States were cool. Against the backdrop of the Civil War, there was an incident involving the Trent, a ship carrying Dixie diplomats. It was a tense moment that could have escalated into war. The arena of which would have been the BNA colonies. Fortunately, it all worked out, but trade links were weakening and it was necessary to orient oneself eastwards. Next came the Grand Coalition, the Charlottetown and Quebec conferences, the dissolution of the coalition and the Macdonald government. Here also came the raids of the Fenians, who did not stabilise Canada, wanting to use it as a bargaining chip for Irish independence.

A strong political will and the complexity of the domestic situation gave birth to the state. So here we have July 1, 1867 and the British North America Act came into force. The Dominion of Canada was created by the union of Upper and Lower Canada, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia. The election was to be a fait accompli, confirming the consolidation of Canada.

Election
Although, in fact, these were four separate elections that bore little resemblance to the current one. Before confederation, the two Canadas were formally equal, including in parliament. They had the same number of seats - from 1854 there were 65, the same number of representatives in the cabinet and the speakers rotated through the provinces. But Upper Canada had a larger population, so the Reformers promoted 'representation by population' to their advantage. The Conservatives responded by arguing that this was aimed at creating inter-ethnic conflict and destroying the union. The debate went on for years and the problem was resolved at conferences. Ontario got 82 seats (Algoma is a worthy mention), Quebec was left with 65, of which 12 with an English-speaking majority were protected by the BNA Act and could not be taken away without residents' consent. And for the balance Nova Scotia was allocated 19 seats and New Brunswick 15 (given that Halifax and St John have two each). The 'double majority' requirement, which required the simultaneous consent of sections of Canada East and West for the bill to pass, was also eliminated.

In these provinces, the day of nomination, voting and declaration vary from riding to riding. Writ was returned on August 7th. The elections lasted from August 26 to September 21 with the results to be determined by September 24 (for the distant Chicoutimi-Saguenay and Gaspé ridings the deadline would be extended to October 24). About 10% of the district's population was eligible to vote, which did not include most of the workers and Indigenous.

The electoral process is interesting for us: In the beginning, the officer organised a public 'open air' meeting so that voters could nominate candidates. Usually candidates announced their plans to run well in advance of nomination day, so the meeting was an indicator of public opinion. Surprises did occur, though. If only one person was nominated, that person automatically won the seat - an acclamation. If one or more opponents were found, they all had a week to earn the favour of the voters. This could range from notes in the newspaper to crowded meetings. Interestingly, the same candidate could run for federal and provincial seats at the same time. It was also allowed to be nominated for more than one riding.

So much for polling day. There was a polling officer assigned to each precinct who recorded the votes in the poll vote. After the polls closed, he handed the books to the centre, where the votes were counted and announced. Voting lasted for two days, with intermediate results announced at the end of the first day. Voting was open, which was not conducive to party structure. If a candidate lost a seat, voters who voted for him or her could expect retribution from the winning side in the form of lost public services, contracts and projects. Often the desire to win was so strong that candidates resorted to bribery and intimidation. People who held censorship in several districts were involved. Clashes were observed at polling stations.

In the constituencies where elections were held earlier, candidates distanced themselves from party affiliation, rather tying themselves to the 'minsterialists'. This was taken advantage of by the Conservatives, who won such constituencies, and in the subsequent campaign they showed themselves to be more confident than Grits and Rouge.

The hottest spot in the election was Kamoraska. Here Chapais and Pelletier were nominated in the local riding, and the former was elected acclamation in the federal one. Pelletier's admirers offered to give him the remaining seat, but Chapais was undeterred: he wanted two. At the suspiciously uncomfortable meeting, the protesters wanted the returning officer to admit responsibility for his illegal actions. He refused, and the angry mob proceeded to stone the house, take away the ballot papers, and drown the officer if he dared to choose Chapais. Two were fatally injured.

The reason for the conflict was simple: the returning officer was in close relations with Chapais and in order for him to win, he tried to disenfranchise the parishes who supported Pelletier. These statements were copies, which negated the law. And if that wasn't enough, there was a serious error in his proclamation, which had to be overturned by a second one. The officer was withdrawn and Kamouraska would elect a representative after two years. Pelletier, by the way, will win.

In the Maritimes, the elections were closer to the current ones. In New Brunswick, the vote was secret, lasting one day, but the polling date was still different. In Nova Scotia voting took place in one day, September 18th. This rule has existed after excessive violence was reported in the 1843 election. The first session of the parliament of united Canada has begun on November 6th, 1867.

Campaign
A fluid liberal-conservative coalition was built on a strong combination of patriotism and patronage, as well as John A. Macdonald's ponification. Joint persuasion brought together representatives of opposing views. In Quebec, the main supporters of the Bleus/Conservatives were Catholics, pleased with the party's contributions to church affairs, such as clerical control of teaching. The bishopric also supported it - the Archbishop of Quebec, for example, declared that it was God's will to accept what came out of legitimate authority. Equally influential were Montreal's big business and the closely-knit English-speaking electorate of the Eastern Cantons. In Ontario, the movement was a continuation of the Grand Coalition of the mperialist Tories and the moderate Liberals. There their votes were secured by local elites. In Nova Brunswick, the Confederacy was supported by Anglophones compared to the anti-Confederate Acadians. In Nova Scotia, they felt insecure compared to the Howe supporters.

As supporters of confederation, conservatives rely on Britain and its political model, thus contrasting manifestations of American democracy. They supported the centralisation of power, which would allow greater trade links and expansion along the rest of the British colonies. In addition, their programme contained provisions to support duties on manufactured goods; increased defence capacity, permission for dual representation etc. The Coalition possessed some internal organisation and were well versed in the sentiments of the population. They knew what they were fighting for.

That is not the case with the opposition. The success of the Ontario Reformers and the similar success of the Quebec Tories in 1863 set the stage for the formation of a workable government. When George Brown agreed to a coalition with the Quebec Bleus and the Ontario Conservatives, he knew it was for the good of the future confederation. He left government the following year, when many reformers had time to embrace Macdonald's policies. Brown felt difficult, but did not lose his dignity and decided to start again. He resuscitated the Reform movement. He held a convention for 700 people in Toronto in June 27th. In his speech he argued against coalition with the Conservatives, for separation of church and state, and for maintaining relations with the United States. There were shifts towards free trade as well. The Reformers were voted for by representatives of export industries and by pioneer farmers who had influence from the west of the province to Toronto. Just to garner support further east, Brown advanced in Southern Ontario (not because you think). On the first day he was leading his opponent by a slim margin. The next day, through manipulation, he lost the election. Decided he had done enough, in October he will leave Canada and politics, becoming 'the noblest victim of them all.' The Reformists have shown themselves to be weak because the theme of patriotism has divided the traditional liberal vote.

They did not have an easy time with the parties in Lower Canada. The Quebec Rouge worked closely with the reformists in the assembly, but the anti-French stance of the Grits caused some distrust. The local Liberals were known as opponents of church domination. At the same time they promoted the principles of democratism, republicanism and positive innovation. Having long disowned the confederation, they finally embraced it in this election. But on the whole they were going against the tide, and the clerical attack had a major impact on Rouge's results.

In New Brunswick the party lines shifted smoothly from a choice between Confederates and Constitutionalists to Liberals and Conservatives. Given the position in the Confederacy, the supporters gained an unchallenged majority. This was essentially a continuation of the trend of the 1866 election. Then, fearing by Fenian raids, Tilley pushed for an union with Canada.

The leader of the Nova Scotia Party, Joseph Howe, was a good orator, a courageous reformer and a ruthless opponent of the Confederation, which he saw as violent. Being loyal to the Empire, he went to England several times to prove his point. Preventing confederation was futile: the Nova Scotian parliament accepted confederation, but it was still possible to win back. During 1867 Howe conducted a political tour of the province, which was greeted with indescribable enthusiasm. Large crowds came to listen to the jibes towards Ottawa. The consequence of this campaign was that the anti-Confederates took 18 seats, the outgoing provincial PM Tupper being the only one to win among the Unionists. It was the zenith of the movement before Nova Scotia recognised the fact of confederation and Howe did not become an afterthought in supporting Macdonald.

Results
In the long run, the Coalition won a decisive victory with 51 seats in Ontario, 46 in Quebec and 13 in the Maritimes and received just over half of all the votes. John Macdonald was the first Canadian PM to eliminate anti-Confederate sentiment domestically and pursued a skillful domestic policy. Trade, too, has returned to normal and the new railways have consolidated the country more strongly. Under his rule, the slogan 'A mari usque ad mare' would become a reality.

However, the road to confederation was not complete for everyone. In Manitoba Louis Riel showed up, becoming a Métis leader and forming a provisional government, causing discontent among some Anglophone settlers. In British Columbia the confederacy was defended by the Amor de Cosmos and the League. In Newfoundland there was a fierce battle between supporters and opponents of union with Canada. And Prince Edward Island decided not to rush into it, remaining a British dominion for a little while longer. One thing is certain - the Canadians were beginning to control their own destiny.

Detailed analysis
Acclamations

The following MPs were acclaimed:
 * Ontario: 3 Conservative, 3 Liberal-Conservatives, 9 Liberals
 * Quebec: 14 Conservatives, 5 Liberal-Conservatives, 4 Liberals
 * New Brunswick: 1 Conservative, 3 Liberals
 * Nova Scotia: 4 Anti-Confederates