# Taber-Warner

Taber-Warner is a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. The district is mandated to return a single member to the for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. The district has existed twice: the first iteration was represented in the Assembly from 1963 until 1997, and the district will be contested again in the next Alberta general election.

## History
### Boundary history

The district was created in 1963 from Taber and Warner, although not including the section of Taber to the north of the Old Man River. Its boundaries saw minor adjustments over the years, but always contained the communities of Taber, Warner, and Coaldale, stretching east from the City of Lethbridge and south to the Montana border.
The district became a flashpoint of controversy in 1994, when the Alberta Court of Appeal heavily criticized the new map of electoral boundaries drawn up by a committee of PC MLAs led by Bob Bogle. The Court noted that “one of the smallest divisions in the province...was that for which [Bogle] was then the sitting member.” A new system for appointing boundaries commissions was introduced in 1995, and Taber-Warner was subsequently abolished. Most of its territory was transferred to Cardston-Taber-Warner in 1997, with the Coaldale area transferred to Little Bow.
The second iteration of the district took sections of Cardston-Taber-Warner, Little Bow and Cypress-Medicine Hat. It is significantly larger in area than the first, now stretching east to the border of Cypress County, but still entirely south of the Old Man and South Saskatchewan rivers.

### Representation history

Members of the Legislative Assembly for Taber-Warner :
| Assembly | Years | Member | Party |
| See Taber and Warner 1913-1963 |||||
| 15th | 1963–1967 | Leonard Halmrast | Social Credit |
| 16th | 1967–1971 | Douglas Miller | Social Credit |
| 17th | 1971–1975 | Douglas Miller | Social Credit |
| 18th | 1975–1979 | Robert Bogle | Progressive Conservative |
| 19th | 1979–1982 | Robert Bogle | Progressive Conservative |
| 20th | 1982–1986 | Robert Bogle | Progressive Conservative |
| 21st | 1986–1989 | Robert Bogle | Progressive Conservative |
| 22nd | 1989–1993 | Robert Bogle | Progressive Conservative |
| 23rd | 1993–1997 | Ron Hierath | Progressive Conservative |
| See Cardston-Taber-Warner and Little Bow 1997-2019 |||||
| 30th | 2019–2023 | Grant Hunter | United Conservative |
| 31st | 2023– | Grant Hunter | United Conservative |
Taber-Warner's first representative was the incumbent Warner MLA and Social Credit Minister for Public Welfare Leonard Halmrast, who had already served five terms in the Legislature. As no other candidates stood against him in the 1963 election, Taber-Warner holds the distinction of being the last district to elect an MLA by acclamation in Alberta. Halmrast retired at the end of that term.
Social Credit easily kept the seat in 1967, with Douglas Miller becoming MLA. In 1971, the party lost the general election to Peter Lougheed's Progressive Conservatives (PCs), but Miller was able to hang on to Taber-Warner by a small margin. He retired from politics in 1975.
The 1975 election in Taber-Warner was hotly contested, with second-time PC candidate Robert Bogle facing Social Credit leader and future Reform MP Werner Schmidt. Bogle defeated Schmidt by a wide margin, cementing the demise of Social Credit as a force in Alberta politics. He would go on to serve five terms as MLA, holding the position of Minister of Utilities and Telecommunications between 1982 and 1986, and briefly of PC caucus chair and Whip before his retirement from politics in 1993.
The district's last representative was Ron Hierath, who was elected comfortably in 1993 despite the Liberals' best showing in the otherwise conservative district. The riding was merged into Cardston-Taber-Warner in 1997, and Hierath would serve one more term as its first MLA.

## Election results
### 2023

vte2023 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | United Conservative | Grant Hunter | 12,379 | 75.29 | -2.83 |
| | New Democratic | Jazminn Hintz | 2,817 | 17.13 | +4.24 |
| | Wildrose Loyalty Coalition | Paul Hinman | 754 | 4.59 | – |
| | Green | Joel Hunt | 239 | 1.45 | – |
| | Alberta Independence | Frank Kast | 129 | 0.78 | – |
| | Solidarity Movement | Brent Ginther | 124 | 0.75 | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 16,442 | 99.52 | – |
| Rejected and declined | Rejected and declined | Rejected and declined | 79 | 0.48 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 16,521 | 56.30 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 29,344 |
| | United Conservative hold | United Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | -3.54 |
| Source(s) Source: Elections Alberta |||||||

### 2010s

vte2019 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | United Conservative | Grant R. Hunter | 14,321 | 78.12% | 1.22% |
| | New Democratic | Laura Ross-Giroux | 2,363 | 12.89% | -6.41% |
| | Alberta Party | Jason Beekman | 1,443 | 7.87% | – |
| | Liberal | Amy Yates | 205 | 1.12% | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 18,332 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 62 | 48 | 13 |
| Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | 28,269 | 65.11% | – |
| | United Conservative pickup new district. | United Conservative pickup new district. | United Conservative pickup new district. | United Conservative pickup new district. | United Conservative pickup new district. | United Conservative pickup new district. | United Conservative pickup new district. |
| Source(s) Source: "85 - Taber-Warner, 2019 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved May 21, 2020. Alberta. Chief Electoral Officer (2019). 2019 General Election. A Report of the Chief Electoral Officer. Volume II (PDF) (Report). Vol. 2. Edmonton, Alta.: Elections Alberta. pp. 413–419. ISBN 978-1-988620-12-1. Retrieved April 7, 2021. |||||||
Redistributed results, 2015 Alberta general election :
| Party | Votes | % |
| Wildrose | 5,617 | 40.70 |
| Progressive Conservative | 4,998 | 36.20 |
| New Democratic | 2,669 | 19.30 |
| Others | 522 | 3.8 |

### 1990s

1993 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Ron Hierath | 5,544 | 59.84 | -13.82 |
| | Liberal | Doug Blatter | 2,723 | 29.39 | +14.74 |
| | Social Credit | Ken Rose | 564 | 6.09 |
| | New Democratic | Charlie Bryant | 433 | 4.67 | -7.01 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 9,264 | 100.00 |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 20 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 15,572 | 59.62 | +10.49 |
| | Progressive Conservative hold | Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | -14.28 |
| Source(s) Alberta Heritage Foundation. "Election Results, Taber-Warner". Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2017. |||||||

### 1980s

1989 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robert Bogle | 4,932 | 73.67 | +6.57 |
| | Liberal | Patrick Flanagan | 981 | 14.65 |
| | New Democratic | Charlene Vickers | 782 | 11.68 | +0.36 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 6,695 | 100.00 |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 21 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 13,670 | 49.13 | -1.24 |
| | Progressive Conservative hold | Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | -4.04 |
| Source(s) Alberta Heritage Foundation. "Election Results, Taber-Warner". Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2017. |||||||
1986 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robert Bogle | 4,483 | 67.10 | -4.04 |
| | Representative | John Voorhorst | 1,442 | 21.58 |
| | New Democratic | Jim Renfrow | 756 | 11.32 | +6.23 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 6,681 | 100.00 |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 35 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 13,334 | 50.37 | -22.08 |
| | Progressive Conservative hold | Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | -12.81 |
| Source(s) Alberta Heritage Foundation. "Election Results, Taber-Warner". Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2017. |||||||
1982 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robert Bogle | 6,800 | 71.14 | +5.80 |
| | Western Canada Concept | Ronald Johnson | 1,811 | 18.95 |
| | New Democratic | Catherine R. McCreary | 486 | 5.08 | +2.29 |
| | Alberta Reform Movement | Emil D. Gundlock | 461 | 4.82 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 9,558 | 100.00 |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 24 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 13,227 | 72.44 | +9.91 |
| | Progressive Conservative hold | Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | -6.57 |
| Source(s) Alberta Heritage Foundation. "Election Results, Taber-Warner". Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2017. |||||||

### 1970s

1979 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robert Bogle | 5,010 | 65.34 | +1.56 |
| | Social Credit | Paul Primeau | 2,108 | 27.49 | -5.93 |
| | Liberal | Jessie Snow | 335 | 4.37 |
| | New Democratic | Larry Schowalter | 214 | 2.79 | 0.00 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 7,667 | 100.00 |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 43 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 12,330 | 62.53 | -6.04 |
| | Progressive Conservative hold | Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | Swing | +3.75 |
| Source(s) Alberta Heritage Foundation. "Election Results, Taber-Warner". Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2017. |||||||
1975 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robert Bogle | 4,614 | 63.78 | +18.55 |
| | Social Credit | Werner Schmidt | 2,418 | 33.43 | -21.34 |
| | New Democratic | Brian Aman | 202 | 2.79 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 7,234 | 100.00 |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 22 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 10,582 | 68.57 | -5.73 |
| | Progressive Conservative gain from Social Credit | Progressive Conservative gain from Social Credit | Swing | Swing | +19.95 |
| Source(s) Alberta Heritage Foundation. "Election Results, Taber-Warner". Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2017. |||||||
1971 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Social Credit | Douglas Miller | 4,077 | 54.77 | -6.90 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Robert Bogle | 3,367 | 45.23 | +24.32 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 7,444 | 100.00 |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 39 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 10,071 | 74.30 | +14.37 |
| | Social Credit hold | Social Credit hold | Swing | Swing | -15.61 |
| Source(s) Alberta Heritage Foundation. "Election Results, Taber-Warner". Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2017. |||||||

### 1960s

1967 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Social Credit | Douglas Miller | 3,451 | 61.67 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Emil D. Gundlock | 1,170 | 20.91 |
| | Liberal | Theodore Rudd | 683 | 12.21 |
| | New Democratic | Dick Verwoerd | 292 | 5.22 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 5,596 | 100.00 |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 39 |
| Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | Eligible electors / Turnout | 9,402 | 59.93 |
| | Social Credit hold | Social Credit hold | Social Credit hold | Social Credit hold |
| Source(s) Alberta Heritage Foundation. "Election Results, Taber-Warner". Archived from the original on December 8, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2017. |||||||
1963 Alberta general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes |
| | Social Credit | Leonard Halmrast | Acclaimed |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 0 |
| | Social Credit pickup new district. | Social Credit pickup new district. | Social Credit pickup new district. | Social Credit pickup new district. | Social Credit pickup new district. | Social Credit pickup new district. | Social Credit pickup new district. |
| Source(s) Alberta Heritage Foundation. "Election Results, Taber-Warner". Archived from the original on December 8, 2010.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) |||||||