Pembina (Alberta provincial electoral district)

Pembina was a provincial electoral district in Alberta mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1909 to 1971.

History

The Pembina electoral district was formed prior to the 1909 Alberta general election from the western portion of the St. Albert electoral district. The district would be abolished prior to the 1971 Alberta general election, and be incorporated into Barrhead and Athabasca.

Members of the Legislative Assembly (MLAs)

Election results

1909

1913

1917

1921

1926

1930

1935

1940

1944

1948

1952

1955

1959

1963

1967

Plebiscite results

1957 liquor plebiscite

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.

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.

Province wide Question A of the plebiscite passed in 33 of the 50 districts while Question B passed in all five districts. Pembina voted in favour of the proposal by a narrow margin. Voter turnout in the district was poor, as it fell significantly below the province wide average of 46%.

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

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.

See also

• List of Alberta provincial electoral districts
• Pembina, the Alberta federal electoral district from 1968 to 1988

References

Further reading

• Office of the Chief Electoral Officer; Legislative Assembly Office (2006). A Century of Democracy: Elections of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, 1905-2005. The Centennial Series. Edmonton, AB: Legislative Assembly of Alberta. ISBN 0-9689217-8-7. Retrieved May 25, 2020.

External links

• Elections Alberta
• The Legislative Assembly of Alberta

1. List of Alberta provincial electoral districts
2. St. Albert (provincial electoral district)
3. Pembina
4. Pembina (Alberta federal electoral district)
5. Clearwater (provincial electoral district)
6. Barrhead (electoral district)
7. Entwistle, Alberta
8. Barrhead, Alberta
9. Lesser Slave Lake (electoral district)
10. 2022 Canadian federal electoral redistribution
11. Athabasca (Alberta provincial electoral district)
12. Darwell, Alberta
13. Edmonton South
14. Stony Plain (electoral district)
15. Valleyview, Alberta
16. Alberta separatism
17. Barrhead-Morinville-Westlock
18. Whitecourt-Ste. Anne
19. 1930 Alberta general election
20. 1955 Alberta general election