Electoral history of William Lyon Mackenzie King

This article is the electoral history of William Lyon Mackenzie King, the tenth Prime Minister of Canada. A Liberal, he was Canada's longest-serving prime minister, with three separate terms as prime minister (1921–1926, 1926–1930 and 1935–1948), for a total of 21 years and 154 days. He defeated Prime Ministers Arthur Meighen and R.B. Bennett at different times, and was succeeded by Prime Minister Louis St. Laurent in 1948.

King was elected to the House of Commons of Canada twelve times (1908, 1909, 1919, 1921, 1922, 1926 (twice), 1930, 1935, 1940, and 1945).

He was elected leader of the Liberal Party of Canada in 1919, by the first leadership convention for a federal party in Canada.

Summary

Mackenzie King in 1919.

Mackenzie King at the end of his career.

King was the longest-serving Prime Minister, in office for a total of 21 years, 154 days. He led the Liberal Party of Canada in seven consecutive general elections, winning six times (1921, 1925, 1926, 1935, 1940, 1945) and losing once (1930).^[1] He won minority governments three times (1925, 1926 1945) and majority governments three times (1921, 1935, and 1940). He is in a three-way tie with Sir John A. Macdonald and Sir Wilfrid Laurier for the number of general elections he contested as leader of a party.

His unbroken term in office from October 23, 1935 to November 14, 1948 (just over thirteen years) is the second-longest unbroken term, coming after Laurier's unbroken term in office of over fifteen years (July 11, 1896 to October 6, 1911) and just ahead of Macdonald's longest unbroken term of just under thirteen years (October 17, 1878 to June 6, 1891).^[1]

King was the third of four prime ministers to serve non-consecutive terms, the others being Macdonald, Meighen, and Pierre Trudeau.

King was the fourth of five prime ministers from Ontario, the others being Sir John A. Macdonald, Alexander Mackenzie, Sir Mackenzie Bowell, and Lester Pearson.

King stood for election to the House of Commons of Canada sixteen times, in ten general elections and six by-elections. He was elected twelve times and defeated four times. Three of the by-elections were ministerial by-elections, triggered by King entering the federal Cabinet, once as Minister of Labour (1909) and twice as prime minister (1922, 1926). Two of the by-elections were in response to his defeats in his own constituency in general elections, which compelled him to seek election to a safe seat to re-enter the Commons. One by-election was after his election as leader of the Liberal Party, where he stood for election in a vacant seat to enter the House of Commons as quickly as possible.

King was a member of the House of Commons for five different constituencies, from three different provinces (Ontario, Prince Edward Island and Saskatchewan), a more diverse electoral record than any other prime minister. He served in the House of Commons for a total of 32 years and 7 days.^[2]

Canada had nine provinces and two territories throughout King's time in office.

Federal general elections, 1921 to 1945

King led the Liberal Party in seven general elections, winning six (three majority governments and three minority governments) and was defeated once.

Canadian federal election, 1921

The 1921 election resulted in the a razor-thin majority government for King. King was able to maintain his government for four years, with the support of the Progressives in the Commons.

Canadian federal election, 1921 – parties, seaders, seats won and popular vote
Party		Leaders	Seats won	Popular vote
	Liberal	W. L. Mackenzie King¹	118	41.2%
	Progressive	T. A. Crerar	58	21.1%
	Conservative	Arthur Meighen²	49	30.0%
	Labour	J. S. Woodsworth	3	2.7%
	Independents	–	2	3.0%
	United Farmers of Alberta	–	2	0.7%
	Independent Conservative	–	1	0.4%
	United Farmers of Ontario	–	1	0.1%
	Independent Progressive	–	1	0.1%
Total			235	99.3%³
Sources: Library of Parliament – History of Federal Ridings since 1867

¹ Leader of the Opposition when election was called; Prime Minister after the election.
² Prime Minister when election was called; Leader of the Opposition after the election.
³ Table does not include parties which received votes but did not elect any members.

Canadian federal election, 1925

Although Arthur Meighen and the Liberal-Conservatives won more seats than King and the Liberals, King was able to form a minority government with the support of the Progressives. King was also defeated in his own seat of York North, Ontario and had to seek election in a safe seat, Prince Albert, Saskatchewan. However, he was forced to resign over a federal procurement scandal less than a year into office, leading to his replacement as prime minister by Arthur Meighen, leader of the Liberal-Conservatives. These events triggered a constitutional crisis, the King–Byng Affair, and the general election of 1926.

Canadian federal election, 1925 – parties, leaders, seats won and popular vote
Party		Leaders	Seats won	Popular vote
	Liberal-Conservative	Arthur Meighen¹	115	46.1%
	Liberal	W. L. Mackenzie King²	100	39.7%
	Progressive	Robert Forke	22	8.5%
	Labour	J. S. Woodsworth	2	1.8%
	Independents	–	2	0.5%
	United Farmers of Alberta	–	2	0.3%
	Independent Liberal	–	1	1.0%
	Independent Conservative	–	1	0.5%
Total			245	98.4%⁴
Sources: Library of Parliament – History of Federal Ridings since 1867

¹ Leader of the Opposition when election was called; Leader of the Opposition after the election.
² Prime Minister when election was called; Prime Minister after the election.
³ Less than 0.05% of the popular vote.
⁴ Table does not include parties which received votes but did not elect any members.

Canadian federal election, 1926

This general election was called on the advice of Prime Minister Meighen, appointed prime minister by the Governor-General, Viscount Byng, after King resigned as prime minister. King's resignation triggered a constitutional crisis, the King–Byng Affair. King and the Liberals won the greatest number of seats in the election, but were short of a majority. King formed a minority government with support from some Progressives, particularly the Liberal-Progressives. His minority government lasted for four years.

Canadian federal election, 1926 – parties, leaders, seats won and popular vote
Party		Leaders	Seats won	Popular vote
	Liberal	W. L. Mackenzie King¹	116	42.9%
	Liberal-Conservative	Arthur Meighen²	91	45.4%
	Progressive	–	11	3.9%
	United Farmers of Alberta	–	11	1.9%
	Liberal–Progressive	Robert Forke	8	1.9%
	Labour	–	4	1.7%
	Independents	–	2	0.8%
	Independent Liberal	–	1	0.6%
	United Farmers of Ontario	–	1	0.2%
Total			245	99.3%³
Sources: Library of Parliament – History of Federal Ridings since 1867

¹ Leader of the Opposition when election was called; Prime Minister after the election.
² Prime Minister when election was called; Leader of the Opposition after the election.
³ Less than 0.05% of the popular vote.
³ Table does not include parties which received votes but did not elect any members.

Canadian federal election, 1930

The 1930 election was King's only election loss at the national level. The Liberal-Conservatives formed a majority government, with R.B. Bennett as prime minister. King remained as leader of the Liberal Party and became Leader of the Opposition.

Election poster showing Mackenzie King in 1930 general election.

Canadian federal election, 1930 – parties, leaders, seats won and popular vote
Party		Leaders	Seats won	Popular vote
	Liberal-Conservative	R. B. Bennett¹	135	47.8%
	Liberal	W. L. Mackenzie King²	89	44.0%
	United Farmers of Alberta	–	9	1.5%
	Progressive	–	3	1.8%
	Liberal–Progressive	–	3	1.2%
	Labour	J. S. Woodsworth	2	0.7%
	Independents	–	2	0.6%
	Progressive-Conservative	–	1	0.4%
	Independent Labour	–	1	0.4%
Total			245	98.4%⁴
Sources: Library of Parliament – History of Federal Ridings since 1867

¹ Leader of the Opposition when election was called; Prime Minister after election.
² Prime Minister when election was called; Leader of the Opposition after the election.
³ Less than 0.5% of the popular vote.
⁴ Table does not include parties which received votes but did not elect any members.

1935 Canadian federal election

In the 1935 election, King and the Liberals decisively defeated the Liberal-Conservatives, giving King his first outright majority government.

Canadian federal election, 1935 – parties, leaders, seats won and popular vote
Party		Leaders	Seats won	Popular vote
	Liberal	W. L. Mackenzie King¹	173	44.7%
	Liberal-Conservative	R. B. Bennett²	39	29.8%
	Social Credit	J. H. Blackmore	17	4.1%
	Co-operative Commonwealth Federation	J. S. Woodsworth	7	9.3%
	Liberal–Progressive	–	4	0.7%
	Reconstruction	H. H. Stevens	1	8.7%
	Independent Liberal	–	1	1.2%
	Independent	–	1	0.4%
	United Farmers of Ontario-Labour	–	1	0.4%
	Independent Conservative	–	1	0.0%³
Total			245	99.3%⁴
Sources: Library of Parliament – History of Federal Ridings since 1867

¹ Leader of the Opposition when election was called; Prime Minister after election.
² Prime Minister when election was called; Leader of the Opposition after the election.
³ Less than 0.04% of national vote.
⁴ Table does not include parties which received votes but did not elect any members.

1940 Canadian federal election

In the 1940 election, King and the Liberals were re-elected, with another majority government.

Canadian federal election, 1940 – parties, leaders, seats won and popular vote
Party		Leaders	Seats won	Popular vote
	Liberal	W. L. Mackenzie King¹	179	51.3%
	National Government	Robert Manion ²	36	29.2%
	Conservative	Robert Manion ²	3	1.2%
	Co-operative Commonwealth Federation	J. S. Woodsworth	8	8.4%
	Social Credit	J. H. Blackmore	7	1.0%
	New Democracy	W. D. Herridge	3	1.6%
	Liberal–Progressive	–	3	0.6%
	Independent Liberal	–	2	3.2%
	Independent	–	1	1.2%
	Independent Conservative	–	1	0.2%
	Unity	–	1	0.3%
	United Reform	–	1	0.3%
Total			245	98.5%³
Sources: Library of Parliament – History of Federal Ridings since 1867

¹ Prime Minister when election was called; Prime Minister after election.
² Leader of the Opposition when election was called; Leader of the Opposition after the election.
³ Table does not include parties which received votes but did not elect any members.

1945 Canadian federal election

In the 1945 election, King and the Liberals were re-elected, but with another minority government. King managed to stay in power by a working alliance with a group of Independent Liberals, who had opposed his position on conscription. King was defeated in his own seat of Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, and had to seek election in another safe seat, Glengarry, Ontario.

Canadian federal election, 1945 – parties, leaders, seats won and popular vote
Party		Leaders	Seats won	Popular vote
	Liberal	W. L. Mackenzie King¹	118	39.8%
	Progressive Conservative	John Bracken²	66	27.6%
	Co-operative Commonwealth Federation	M. J. Coldwell	28	15.6%
	Social Credit	Solon Earl Low	13	4.1%
	Independent Liberal	–	8	1.8%
	Independent	–	6	4.9%
	Bloc populaire	Maxime Raymond	2	3.3%
	Labor–Progressive³	Tim Buck	1	2.1%
	Independent Progressive Conservative	–	1	0.3%
	Independent Co-operative Commonwealth Federation	–	1	0.1%
	Liberal–Progressive	–	1	0.1%
Total			245	99.7%³
Sources: Library of Parliament – History of Federal Ridings since 1867

¹ Prime Minister when election was called; Prime Minister after election.
² Leader of the Opposition when election was called; Leader of the Opposition after the election.
³ Table does not include parties which received votes but did not elect any members.

Federal constituency elections, 1908 to 1945

King stood for election to the House of Commons sixteen times, in three different provinces (Ontario, Prince Edward Island and Saskatchewan).

1908 Federal election: Waterloo North

v t e 1908 Canadian federal election: Waterloo North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	3,469	51.58	Y
	Conservative	Richard Reid	3,206	47.67
	Independent	Allen Hubur	50	0.74
Total valid votes			6,725	100.00
Source(s) "Waterloo North, Ontario (1867-08-06 - 1968-04-22)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1909 Federal ministerial by-election: Waterloo North

At this time, newly appointed Cabinet ministers had to stand for re-election, but it was customary for the other political party not to oppose the election.

v t e Canadian federal by-election, June 6, 1909: Waterloo North Federal Ministerial by-election for King's appointment as Minister of Labour on June 21, 1909
Party	Candidate	Votes	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	acclaimed	Y
Total valid votes			-	-
Source(s) "Waterloo North, Ontario (1867-08-06 - 1968-04-22)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1911 Federal election: Waterloo North

This was the first of King's four defeats at the constituency level.

v t e 1911 Canadian federal election: Waterloo North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Elected
	Conservative	William George Weichel	3,774	52.18	Y
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	3,459	47.82
Total valid votes			7,223	100.00
Source(s) "Waterloo North, Ontario (1867-08-06 - 1968-04-22)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1917 Federal election: York North

This was the second of King's four defeats at the constituency level.

v t e 1917 Canadian federal election: York North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Elected
	Government (Unionist)	John Alexander Macdonald Armstrong	3,948	57.91	Y
	Opposition (Laurier Liberals)	William Lyon Mackenzie King	2,870	42.09
Total valid votes			6,818	100.00
Source(s) "York North, Ontario (1867-08-06 - 2004-05-22)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1919 Federal by-election: Prince

This by-election was triggered by the death of the incumbent, Joseph Read. King had recently been elected leader of the Liberal Party, and stood for election in Prince Edward Island to obtain a seat in the Commons as quickly as possible.

v t e Canadian federal by-election, October 20, 1919 (1919-10-20): Prince Federal by-election following Joseph Reed's death on April 6, 1919 (1919-04-06)
Party	Candidate	Votes	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	acclaimed	Y
Total valid votes			-	-
Source(s) "Prince, Prince Edward Island (1904-09-20 - 1968-04-22)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1921 Federal election: York North

v t e 1921 Canadian federal election: York North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	5,167	42.17	Y
	Conservative	John Alexander Macdonald Armstrong	4,112	33.56
	Progressive	Ralph Waldo Emerson Burnaby	2,973	24.27
Total valid votes			12,252	100.00
Source(s) "York North, Ontario (1867-08-06 - 2004-05-22)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1922 Federal ministerial by-election: York North

At this time, newly appointed Cabinet ministers, including a new prime minister, had to stand for re-election, but it was customary for the other political party not to oppose the election.

v t e Canadian federal by-election, January 19, 1922 (1922-01-19): York North Federal Ministerial by-election for King's appointment as Prime Minister
Party	Candidate	Votes	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	acclaimed	Y
Total valid votes			-	-
Source(s) "York North, Ontario (1867-08-06 - 2004-05-22)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1925 Federal election: York North

This was the third of King's four defeats at the constituency level.

v t e 1925 Canadian federal election: York North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Elected
	Conservative	Thomas Herbert Lennox	10,028	51.26	Y
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	9,534	48.74
Total valid votes			19,562	100.00
Source(s) "York North, Ontario (1867-08-06 - 2004-05-22)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1926 Federal by-election: Prince Albert

The incumbent, Charles McDonald, who had just won the Prince Albert seat in the 1925 general election, was persuaded to resign to allow King to stand for election and re-enter the House of Commons. Although the custom at the time was that the other parties would not contest a by-election to allow a party leader to obtain a seat, the defeated Conservative candidate from the general election, future prime minister John Diefenbaker, encouraged David Burgess to contest the seat as an independent.

v t e Canadian federal by-election, February 15, 1926 (1926-02-15): Prince Albert Charles McDonald's resignation on January 15, 1926 (1926-01-15).
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	7,920	77.50	+26.3	Y
	Independent	David Luther Burgess	2,299	22.50
Total valid votes			10,219	100.0
History of Federal Ridings Since 1867^[3]

1926 Federal election: Prince Albert

Diefenbaker campaign poster in the 1926 election.

This is the only case where two future prime ministers faced each other as candidates for the same riding.

v t e 1926 Canadian federal election: Prince Albert
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	8,933	64.87	−12.6	Y
	Conservative	John Diefenbaker	4,838	35.13
Total valid votes			13,771	100.0
Source(s) "Prince Albert, Saskatchewan (1908-09-17 - 1988-09-30)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1926 Federal ministerial by-election: Prince Albert

Due to a federal procurement scandal, King had resigned as prime minister in mid-1926 and been replaced by Arthur Meighen, who shortly afterwards called the 1926 general election. Having won the general election and been appointed prime minister, King was required to stand for re-election, but it was customary for the other political party not to oppose the election.

v t e Canadian federal by-election, November 2, 1926 (1926-11-02): Prince Albert On Mr. King's acceptance of an office of emolument under the Crown, October 11, 1926 (1926-10-11).
Party	Candidate	Votes	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	acclaimed	Y
Total valid votes			-	-
Source(s) "Prince Albert, Saskatchewan (1908-09-17 - 1988-09-30)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1930 Federal election: Prince Albert

v t e 1930 Canadian federal election: Prince Albert
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	9,283	53.43		Y
	Conservative	George Braden	8,091	46.57
Total valid votes			17,374	100.0
Source(s) "Prince Albert, Saskatchewan (1908-09-17 - 1988-09-30)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1935 Federal election: Prince Albert

v t e 1935 Canadian federal election: Prince Albert
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	9,087	54.67	+1.2	Y
	Social Credit	Alexander Rupert Bedard	3,185	19.16
	Conservative	Tom Francis Graves	2,880	17.33	−29.2
	Co-operative Commonwealth	Tom Johnston	1,469	8.84
Total valid votes			16,621	100.0
Source(s) "Prince Albert, Saskatchewan (1908-09-17 - 1988-09-30)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1940 Federal election: Prince Albert

v t e 1940 Canadian federal election: Prince Albert
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Elected
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	8,310	45.96	−8.7	Y
	National-Unity	Robert Rae Manville	7,534	41.67
	Co-operative Commonwealth	Peter William Strelive	1,993	11.02	+2.2
	Communist	Alfred Cowie Campbell	243	1.34
Total valid votes			18,080	100.0
Source(s) "Prince Albert, Saskatchewan (1908-09-17 - 1988-09-30)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1945 Federal election: Prince Albert

This was the fourth of King's four defeats at the constituency level.

v t e 1945 Canadian federal election: Prince Albert
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Elected
	Co-operative Commonwealth	Edward LeRoy Bowerman	7,928	40.99	+30.0	Y
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	7,799	40.32	−5.6
	Progressive Conservative	Walter Hemming Nelson	2,768	14.31
	Social Credit	Joshua Norman Haldeman	847	4.38
Total valid votes			19,342	100.0
Source(s) "Prince Albert, Saskatchewan (1908-09-17 - 1988-09-30)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

1945 Federal by-election: Glengarry

In the 1945 general election, William MacDiarmid won the seat for the Liberals. He resigned the seat to allow King an opportunity to re-enter the House of Commons.

v t e Canadian federal by-election, August 6, 1945 (1945-08-06): Glengarry On William MacDiarmid's acceptance of an office of emolument under the Crown, June 22, 1945 (1945-06-22)
Party	Candidate	Votes	%
	Liberal	William Lyon Mackenzie King	4,551	93.33
	Independent	Richard Monahan	325	6.67
Total valid votes			4,876	100.0
Source(s) "Glengarry, Ontario (1925-09-05 - 1953-06-12)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

Liberal Party leadership convention, 1919

King won the leadership after three completed ballots. His primary opposition was William Stevens Fielding, former premier of Nova Scotia and former Finance Minister in Laurier's governments.

Liberal Leadership Convention, August 7, 1919
Voting results by ballot
Candidate		First ballot		Second ballot		Third ballot		Fourth ballot		Fifth ballot
Candidate		Votes cast	%	Votes cast	%	Votes cast	%	Votes cast	%	Votes cast	%
	Mackenzie King	344	36.3%	411	43.8%	–	–	–	–	476	52.1%
	William Stevens Fielding	297	31.4%	344	36.6%	–	–	–	–	438	47.9%
	George Perry Graham	153	16.2%	124	13.2%	Withdrew on third ballot, which was then cancelled.		–	–	–	–
	Daniel Duncan McKenzie	153	16.2%	60	6.4%	–	–	Withdrew on fourth ballot, which was then cancelled.		–	–
Total		947	100.1%¹	939	100.0%	–	–	–	–	914	100.0%
Source: CPAC – 1919 Liberal Convention

¹ Rounding error.

References

^ ^a ^b PARLINFO: Prime Ministers of Canada.
^ PARLINFO: The Right Hon. William Lyon Mackenzie King, P.C.
^ "Prince Albert, Saskatchewan (1908-09-17 – 1988-09-30)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

External links

[PMs-1] PARLINFO: Prime Ministers of Canada.

[2] PARLINFO: The Right Hon. William Lyon Mackenzie King, P.C.

[3] "Prince Albert, Saskatchewan (1908-09-17 – 1988-09-30)". History of Federal Ridings Since 1867. Library of Parliament. Retrieved March 24, 2020.

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