Banff-Cochrane
Alberta electoral district
2010 boundaries
Provincial electoral district
LegislatureLegislative Assembly of Alberta
District created1940
District abolished1975
District re-created1979
District re-abolished2019
First contested1940
Last contested2015

Banff-Cochrane was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada, mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1940 to 1975, and again from 1979 to 2019.[1]

The Banff-Cochrane electoral district is home to the town of Banff and the popular tourist destination Banff National Park, environmental issues tend to dominate here.

The cost of living is significantly high especially in Canmore where there is a struggle to fill low wage service sector jobs, due to the high cost of living. Bears and wildlife encounters are also common in this riding, requiring extra attention to waste disposal. The area has many ski resorts and a number of ranchers and farmers make their home in the Alberta Foothills.

The riding was first created in 1940 out of the north half of the old Rocky Mountain riding, and the Cochrane riding. From 1975 to 1979 the riding was renamed Banff but was later reversed.

History

The electoral district has existed twice. The first iteration was created in the 1940 boundary re-distribution from the electoral districts of Cochrane and Rocky Mountain. In 1975 the riding name was changed to Banff and it was set back to Banff-Cochrane in the 1977 re-distribution.

The 2010 electoral boundary re-distribution saw Banff-Cochrane gain the land south of Cochrane that was in the old Foothills-Rocky View electoral district.[2]

The Banff-Cochrane electoral district was dissolved in the 2017 electoral boundary re-distribution, and portions of the district would form the newly created Banff-Kananaskis and Airdrie-Cochrane electoral districts.[3]

Boundary history

Members of the Legislative Assembly for Banff-Cochrane[5]
Assembly Years Member Party
See Cochrane 1909–1940 and Rocky Mountain 1909–1940
9th 1940–1944 Frank Laut Independent
10th 1944–1946 Arthur Wray Social Credit
1946–1948 Independent
Social Credit
11th 1948–1952
12th 1952–1955 Lee Leavitt Social Credit
13th 1955–1959 Frank Gainer Coalition
14th 1959–1963
15th 1963–1967
16th 1967–1971 Clarence Copithorne Independent
1971 Progressive
Conservative
17th 1971–1975
See Banff 1975–1979
19th 1979–1982 Greg Stevens Progressive
Conservative
20th 1982–1986
21st 1986–1989
22nd 1989–1993 Brian Evans
23rd 1993–1997
24th 1997–2001 Janis Tarchuk
25th 2001–2004
26th 2004–2008
27th 2008–2012
28th 2012–2015 Ron Casey
29th 2015–2019 Cam Westhead New Democratic
See Banff-Kananaskis and Airdrie-Cochrane 2019–

Electoral history

The electoral district was created in the 1940 boundary redistribution primarily from the ridings of Cochrane and Rocky Mountain. The first representative to win the district was Independent candidate Frant Laut who defeated former Cochrane Social Credit incumbent William King in a hotly contested race.

Laut was defeated running for a second term in the 1944 general election by Social Credit candidate Arthur Wray. Two years into his term Wray was suspended by the Social Credit caucus on February 20, 1946 for criticizing the Alberta government after requests to the Public Works department to remove snow from Cochrane roads was ignored.[6] The situation came to a head a year later when the Social Credit members passed a motion in the legislature to force Wray to move his desk to the opposition side of the house. His stand against cabinet won praise from his constituents in Cochrane.

The 1948 election would see a hotly contested battle as King and Laut attempt to regain their seat. Wray hung on to a second term in vote transfers. Wray would run for a third term in the 1952 election but would be defeated finishing a distant third by Social Credit candidate Lee Leavitt.

Leavitt was defeated by Frank Gainer who was one of two joint nominee's by the Progressive Conservative and Liberal parties in the 1955 election. He ran with the Coalition banner and sat in the legislature with it. Gainer won re-election in a hotly contested race in 1959. Pundits at the time figured he would be chosen to lead the four opposition members of different stripes with his Coalition banner, however no one was picked. He won a third term in 1963 before retiring in 1967.

The wide open race in 1967 saw Independent candidate Clarence Copithorne defeat Social Credit candidate Roy Wilson to win the district. Copithorne joined the Progressive Conservative caucus on April 15, 1971. He stood for reelection as a Progressive Conservative a few months later winning a strong plurality. He retired from provincial politics at dissolution in 1975.

In 1975 the riding name was changed to Banff before being changed back in 1979. Progressive Conservative candidate Greg Stevens held the district for three terms before retiring in 1993. He was replaced by Brian Evans for two terms. Janis Tarchuck was elected in 2001 and served until 2012 when she was replaced by Ron Casey. Ron Casey would be defeated by NDP member Cameron Westhead in the 2015 general election.

Legislature results 1940–1975

1940 general election

1940 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
IndependentFrank Laut2,93161.06%
Social CreditWilliam Robert King1,86938.94%
Total 4,800
Rejected, spoiled and declined 227
Eligible electors / turnout 6,25380.39%
Independent pickup new district.
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1940 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1944 general election

1944 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes
1st count
%Votes
final count
±%
Social CreditArthur H. Wray1,56838.51%1,805-0.43%
IndependentFrank Laut1,60239.34%1,757-21.72%
Co-operative CommonwealthD. MacGregor90222.15%
Total 4,072
Rejected, spoiled and declined 118
Eligible electors / turnout 5,69873.53%-6.86%
Social Credit gain from Independent Swing -11.48%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1944 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
Instant-runoff voting requires a candidate to receive a plurality (greater than 50%) of the votes.
As no candidate received a plurality of votes, the bottom candidate was eliminated and their 2nd place votes were applied to both other candidates until one received a plurality.

1948 general election

1948 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes
1st count
%Votes
final count
±%
Independent Social CreditArthur H. Wray1,65841.57%1,964
Independent MovementFrank Laut1,24631.24%1,465
Social CreditWilliam Robert King1,08427.18%-11.33%
Total 3,988
Rejected, spoiled and declined 291
Eligible electors / turnout 7,35658.17%-15.36%
Independent Social Credit gain from Social Credit Swing 5.58%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1948 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
Instant-runoff voting requires a candidate to receive a plurality (greater than 50%) of the votes.
As no candidate received a plurality of votes, the bottom candidate was eliminated and their 2nd place votes were applied to both other candidates until one received a plurality.

1952 general election

1952 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Social CreditLee Leavitt1,84554.73%27.55%
LiberalC.C. Mathews1,03530.70%
Independent Social CreditArthur H. Wray49114.57%-27.01%
Total 3,371
Rejected, spoiled and declined 283
Eligible electors / turnout 6,43056.83%-1.34%
Social Credit gain from Independent Social Credit Swing 6.85%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1952 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1955 general election

1955 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
CoalitionFrank L. Gainer2,34254.87%
Social CreditLee Leavitt1,92645.13%-9.61%
Total 4,268
Rejected, spoiled and declined 293
Eligible electors / turnout 6,45270.69%13.86%
Coalition gain from Social Credit Swing -7.14%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1955 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1959 general election

1959 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
CoalitionFrank L. Gainer2,27950.79%-4.08%
Social CreditRobin W. Echlin2,20849.21%4.08%
Total 4,487
Rejected, spoiled and declined 25
Eligible electors / turnout 7,13663.23%-7.46%
Coalition hold Swing -4.08%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1959 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1963 general election

1963 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
CoalitionFrack L. Gainer2,17949.66%-1.13%
Social CreditVictor Watson1,87842.80%-6.41%
New DemocraticJack Fraser3317.54%
Total 4,388
Rejected, spoiled and declined 12
Eligible electors / turnout 6,92163.57%0.35%
Coalition hold Swing 2.64%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1963 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1967 general election

1967 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
IndependentClarence Copithorne2,42849.88%
Social CreditRoy Wilson2,06642.44%-0.36%
New DemocraticJack Fraser3747.68%0.14%
Total 4,868
Rejected, spoiled and declined 31
Eligible electors / turnout 7,65364.01%0.44%
Independent gain from Coalition Swing 0.29%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1967 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1971 general election

1971 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeClarence Copithorne3,80155.34%
Social CreditSlim Martin2,64738.54%-3.90%
New DemocraticBeverly Coulter4206.12%-1.57%
Total 6,868
Rejected, spoiled and declined 187
Eligible electors / turnout 10,61966.44%2.42%
Progressive Conservative notional gain from Independent Swing 4.68%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1971 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

Legislature results 1979–2015

1979 general election

1979 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeGreg Stevens5,57866.87%-2.37%
Social CreditThomas McArthur1,46217.53%2.56%
New DemocraticBob Ritchie7599.10%-0.67%
LiberalMorna F. Schechtel5436.51%0.50%
Total 8,342
Rejected, spoiled and declined N/A
Eligible electors / turnout 15,08655.30%
Progressive Conservative notional hold Swing N/A
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1979 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
Change in comparison to Banff electoral district results in the 1975 Alberta general election.

1982 general election

1982 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeGreg Stevens8,36972.30%5.43%
Western Canada ConceptLarry Peterson1,91916.58%
New DemocraticDavid Evans1,28811.13%2.03%
Total 11,576
Rejected, spoiled and declined 38
Eligible electors / turnout 18,63462.33%7.03%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing 3.19%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1982 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1986 general election

1986 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeGreg Stevens4,53666.05%-6.25%
New DemocraticEd Fisher1,45221.14%10.02%
IndependentBill Deacon4446.46%
RepresentativeBetty Ann Stimson4366.35%
Total 6,868
Rejected, spoiled and declined 22
Eligible electors / turnout 16,29042.30%-20.03%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing -5.41%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1986 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1989 general election

1989 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeBrian Evans4,38951.02%-15.02%
LiberalJim N. Tanner2,41128.03%
New DemocraticSteven Scott1,80220.95%-0.19%
Total 8,602
Rejected, spoiled and declined 35
Eligible electors / turnout 17,66548.89%6.60%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing -10.95%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1989 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1993 general election

1993 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeBrian Evans6,55252.55%1.53%
LiberalPaula Andrews4,18333.55%5.52%
New DemocraticCindy McCallum1,0488.41%-12.54%
IndependentBrian L. Horejsi6074.87%
Natural LawGinger (V.M.) Sheets-Revitt770.62%
Total 12,467
Rejected, spoiled and declined 29
Eligible electors / turnout 20,23561.75%12.86%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing -2.00%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1993 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

1997 general election

1997 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeJanis Tarchuk7,18061.13%8.57%
LiberalJudy Stewart3,15126.83%-6.73%
New DemocraticJeff Eamon7546.42%-1.99%
Social CreditScott Mudford6615.63%
Total 11,746
Rejected, spoiled and declined 32
Eligible electors / turnout 23,64649.81%-11.94%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing 7.65%
Source(s)
Source: "Banff-Cochrane Official Results 1997 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

2001 general election

2001 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeJanis Tarchuk9,41870.29.1
LiberalNorman Kent2,14716.0-10.0
New DemocraticCathy Harrop1,3119.83.4
IndependentCory Morgan5384.0
Total 13,414
Rejected, spoiled and declined 51
Eligible electors / turnout 27,22849.5-0.4
Progressive Conservative hold Swing 10.0

2004 general election

2004 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeJanis Tarchuk4,23852.75%-17.46%
LiberalIan McDougall1,64820.51%4.51%
GreensChris Foote1,20414.99%
Alberta AllianceBob Argent4775.94%
New DemocraticMelissa Cambridge4675.81%-3.96%
Total 8,034
Rejected, spoiled and declined 65
Eligible electors / turnout 21,33037.97%-11.48%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing -10.98%

2008 general election

2008 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeJanis Tarchuk4,72749.34%-3.41%
LiberalPatricia Robertson2,75328.74%8.22%
GreenDan Cunin1,35314.12%-0.87%
New DemocraticAnne Wilson5756.00%0.19%
IndependentZrinko R. Amerl1721.80%
Total 9,580
Rejected, spoiled and declined 39
Eligible electors / turnout 25,77837.31%-0.66%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing -5.82%

2012 general election

2012 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
Progressive ConservativeRon Casey6,63241.82%-7.52%
WildroseTom Copithorne5,93337.41%
LiberalPeter Helfrich2,23414.09%-14.65%
New DemocraticJamie Kleinsteuber1,0596.68%0.68%
Total 15,858
Rejected, spoiled and declined 135
Eligible electors / turnout 28,66355.80%18.48%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing -8.10%

2015 general election

2015 Alberta general election
Party Candidate Votes%±%
New DemocraticCameron Westhead8,42642.83%36.15%
WildroseScott Wagner5,69228.93%-8.48%
Progressive ConservativeRon Casey5,55528.24%-13.58%
Total 19,673
Rejected, spoiled, and declined 86
Eligible electors / turnout 36,48554.16%-1.64%
New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative Swing 4.74%
Source(s)
Source: "49 - Banff-Cochrane Official Results 2015 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved May 21, 2020.

Senate nominee results

2004 Senate nominee election district results

2004 Senate nominee election results: Banff-Cochrane[7] Turnout 38.05%
Affiliation Candidate Votes % votes % ballots Rank
Progressive ConservativeBert Brown3,18316.46%50.60%1
Progressive ConservativeBetty Unger2,74514.20%43.63%2
Progressive ConservativeJim Silye2,36012.21%37.51%5
Progressive ConservativeDavid Usherwood2,23211.54%35.48%6
  Independent Link Byfield 2,094 10.83% 33.29% 4
Progressive ConservativeCliff Breitkreuz1,8539.58%29.46%3
  Independent Tom Sindlinger 1,588 8.21% 25.24% 9
Alberta Alliance Michael Roth 1,130 5.84% 17.96% 7
Alberta Alliance Vance Gough 1,109 5.74% 17.62% 8
Alberta Alliance Gary Horan 1,041 5.39% 16.55% 10
Total votes 19,335 100%
Total ballots 6,291 3.07 votes per ballot
Rejected, spoiled and declined 1,826

Voters had the option of selecting 4 candidates on the ballot.

Plebiscite district results

1948 electrification plebiscite

District data for the 1948 electrification plebiscite

Option A Option B
Are you in favour of the generation and distribution of electricity being continued by the Power Companies? Are you in favour of the generation and distribution of electricity being made a publicly owned utility administered by the Alberta Government Power Commission?
2,624     64.31% 1,456     35.69%
Province wide result: Option A passed.

1957 liquor plebiscite

1957 Alberta liquor plebiscite results: Banff-Cochrane[8]
Question A: Do you approve additional types of outlets for the
sale of beer, wine and spirituous liquor subject to a local vote?
Ballot choice Votes %
Yes 2,324 78.33%
No 643 21.67%
Total votes 2,967 100%
Rejected, spoiled and declined 37
6,237 eligible electors, turnout 48.16%
Question B1: Should mixed drinking be allowed
in beer parlours in Calgary and the surrounding areas?
Ballot choice Votes %
Yes 115 87.12%
No 17 12.88%
Total votes 132 100%
Rejected, spoiled and declined 0
242 eligible electors, turnout 54.55%

On October 30, 1957 a stand-alone plebiscite was held province wide in all 50 of the then current provincial electoral districts in Alberta. The government decided to consult Alberta voters to decide on liquor sales and mixed drinking after a divisive debate in the legislature. The plebiscite was intended to deal with the growing demand for reforming antiquated liquor control laws.[9]

The plebiscite was conducted in two parts. Question A, asked in all districts, asked the voters if the sale of liquor should be expanded in Alberta, while Question B, asked in a handful of districts within the corporate limits of Calgary and Edmonton, asked if men and women should be allowed to drink together in establishments.[8] Question B was slightly modified depending on which city the voters were in.[8]

Province wide Question A of the plebiscite passed in 33 of the 50 districts while Question B passed in all five districts. Banff-Cochrane voted overwhelmingly in favor of the plebiscite. The district recorded a slightly above average voter turnout, a few points above the province wide 46% average.[8] The landslide in favour of Question A was attributed to recognition of the tourist industry in Banff and the national parks.

Banff-Cochrane also voted on question B1 with a number of residents lying inside the electoral district within the corporate limits of Calgary. Residents voted for mixed drinking with a super majority. Turnout for question B was also quite high.[8]

Official district returns were released to the public on December 31, 1957.[8] The Social Credit government in power at the time did not consider the results binding.[10] However the results of the vote led the government to repeal all existing liquor legislation and introduce an entirely new Liquor Act.[11]

Municipal districts lying inside electoral districts that voted against the plebiscite were designated Local Option Zones by the Alberta Liquor Control Board and considered effective dry zones. Business owners who wanted a license had to petition for a binding municipal plebiscite in order to be granted a license.[12]

1967 Daylight Saving plebiscite

District data from the 1967 Daylight Saving plebiscite

Do you favour province-wide daylight saving time?
For Against
2,323   48.17% 2,499   51.82%
Province wide result: Failed

1971 Daylight Saving plebiscite

District data from the 1971 Daylight Saving plebiscite

Do you favour province-wide daylight saving time?
For Against
4,034   59.46% 2,750   40.54%
Province wide result: Passed

Student vote results

2004 election

Participating schools[13]
Holy Spirit Catholic School
Lawerence Grassi Middle School
Mitford Middle School
Our Lady of the Snows

On November 19, 2004 a student vote was conducted at participating Alberta schools to parallel the 2004 Alberta general election results. The vote was designed to educate students and simulate the electoral process for persons who have not yet reached the legal majority. The vote was conducted in 80 of the 83 provincial electoral districts with students voting for actual election candidates. Schools with a large student body that reside in another electoral district had the option to vote for candidates outside of the electoral district than where they were physically located.

2004 Alberta student vote results[14]
Affiliation Candidate Votes %
GreenChris Foote10726.42%
Progressive ConservativeJanis Tarchuk10225.19%
LiberalIan McDougall9322.96%
Alberta AllianceBob Argent5413.33%
New DemocraticMelissa Cambridge4912.10%
Total 405 100%
Rejected, spoiled and declined 16

2012 election

2012 Alberta student vote results
Affiliation Candidate
Progressive ConservativeRon Casey
LiberalPete Helfrich[15][16]
New DemocraticJamie Kleinsteuber

See also

References

  1. "Election results for Banff-Cochrane". abheritage.ca. Wayback Machine: Heritage Community Foundation. Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  2. Alberta Electoral Boundaries Commission (June 2010). "Proposed Electoral Division Areas, Boundaries, and Names for Alberta. Final Report to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. ISBN 978-0-9865367-1-7. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  3. Alberta Electoral Boundaries Commission (October 2017). "Proposed Electoral Division Areas, Boundaries, and Names for Alberta. Final Report to the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. ISBN 978-1-988620-04-6. Retrieved May 29, 2020.
  4. Electoral Divisions Act, S.A. 2003, c. E-4.1
  5. "Members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta 1905–2006" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 30, 2007. Retrieved February 27, 2010.
  6. "Given Bum's Rush". Vol. XXXIX No. 59. The Lethbridge Herald. February 20, 1944. p. 3.
  7. "Senate Nominee Election 2004 Tabulation of Official Results" (PDF). Elections Alberta. Archived from the original (PDF) on July 4, 2009. Retrieved March 1, 2010.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Alberta Gazette. Vol. 53 (December 31 ed.). Government of Alberta. 1957. pp. 2, 247–2, 249.
  9. "Albertans Vote 2 to 1 For More Liquor Outlets". Vol L No 273. The Lethbridge Herald. October 31, 1957. pp. 1–2.
  10. "No Sudden Change In Alberta Drinking Habits Is Seen". Vol L No 267. The Lethbridge Herald. October 24, 1957. p. 1.
  11. "Entirely New Act On Liquor". Vol LI No 72. The Lethbridge Herald. March 5, 1968. p. 1.
  12. "Bill 81". Alberta Bills 12th Legislature 1st Session. Government of Alberta. 1958. p. 40.
  13. "School by School results". Student Vote Canada. Archived from the original on October 5, 2007. Retrieved April 27, 2008.
  14. "Riding by Riding Results – the Candidates". Student Vote Canada. Archived from the original on February 13, 2012. Retrieved April 19, 2008.
  15. "Provincial liberals choose Banff-Cochrane candidate". February 1, 2012.
  16. "Pete Helfrich for Banff-Cochrane". February 4, 2012.

Further reading

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