November 9, 1905 was
an historic day in the political life of Alberta. On this day the
voters in the newly-created province headed to the polling stations
to elect 25 members to form the Provincial Parliament of Alberta.
Only men were eligible to vote at this time; enfranchisement of
women would not occur until eleven years later in 1916.
Voting
in the 25 Alberta constituencies was conducted in secret but no
names of candidates were printed on the official ballots. Instead,
voters used coloured pencils to mark a red "X" for the
Liberal candidate or a blue "X" for the Conservative. In
constituencies where three candidates ran, a yellow pencil was
provided. Voting procedures were further complicated in the
constituencies of Peace River and St. Albert where two candidates,
both Liberal, were the only candidates contesting the election. How
the secret vote was conducted in such ridings is a matter of
conjecture.
Results of
the first election saw 23 Liberals headed by Premier
A.C. Rutherford
and two Conservatives elected to form the new Provincial Parliament
of Alberta.