# Riverdale (provincial electoral district)

Riverdale was a provincial riding in Ontario, Canada that existed from 1914 to 1999. It occupied an area east of the Don River from the city limits just north of Danforth Avenue south to Lake Ontario. It was named after the neighbourhood of Riverdale. In 1999 a major reduction in Ontario seats resulted in Riverdale being merged with part of East York into a larger riding called Broadview-Greenwood.
The 1964 by-election in this riding is well known for being among the first elections in Canadian history where a party (the NDP) used door to door canvassing and a get out the vote effort.

## Boundaries

In 1914 the riding was created out of the Toronto East riding. Its initial borders were Logan Avenue from Ashbridges Bay to the city limits just north of the Danforth. The northern boundary followed the city limits with East York east to Woodbine Avenue. The eastern boundary followed this road south to the lake.
In 1926 five ridings were added to Toronto. Three new ridings were created to the east of Riverdale called Greenwood, Woodbine and Beaches. The borders of Riverdale were altered to accommodate the new ridings. The western boundary was moved west to the Don River and this encompassed parts of the old Toronto Southeast and Toronto Northeast ridings. The eastern boundary was moved to Carlaw Avenue which bordered Greenwood riding.
Prior to the 1934 election, the riding of Greenwood was dissolved and split between Beaches riding to the east and Riverdale to the west. The new western boundary became Jones Avenue from Queen Street East to Danforth Avenue. North of Danforth Avenue the boundary continued along Dewhurst Avenue and south of Queen Street the boundary continued along Berkshire Avenue and south to the lake.
In 1966 the boundaries on the east and west sides were altered. To the west it was moved east from the banks of the Don River. Instead it started on the south where Carlaw Avenue met Toronto Harbour. It went north along Carlaw to Queen Street East, then west along Queen to DeGrassi St. It went north along DeGrassi until Gerrard, west along Gerrard until Broadview Avenue, north along Broadview until Sparkhall Avenue, east along Sparkhall until Hampton Avenue and north along Hampton until it reached Danforth Avenue. North of Danforth it continued along Jackman Avenue until it reached the city limits. On the east side, next to the neighbouring riding of Beaches-Woodbine, the border started at the lake and went north along Coxwell Avenue to Queen Street East. A one block jog west and then it went north along Rhodes Avenue to the Danforth. At Danforth it jogged back east to Coxwell and then followed this street north to the city limits.
In 1974 the eastern boundary with Beaches-Woodbine was altered. The new border consisted of Coxwell Avenue from Lake Ontario north to the railway right-of-way just south of Hanson Street. The boundary followed the right-of-way west until Greenwood Avenue. It then went north along Greenwood until it met the city limits.
The boundaries were further altered in 1987. The western boundary was moved back to the Don River. This was followed north to the Toronto city limits. Going east it followed the city limits to Coxwell Avenue. It turned south following Coxwell to the Canadian National Railway right-of-way. It went west along the right-of-way turning south following Greenwood Avenue to Queen Street East, then west to Leslie Street, and then south to Lake Ontario.
It was merged into the riding of merged into the Toronto-Danforth in 1996 prior to the election in 1999.

## Members of Provincial Parliament

Riverdale :
| Assembly | Years | Member | Party |
| prior to 1914 part of the Toronto East riding |||||
| 14th | 1914–1919 | Joseph Russell | Conservative |
| 15th | 1919–1923 | Joseph McNamara | Soldier |
| 16th | 1923–1926 | George Oakley | Conservative |
| 17th | 1926–1929 | George Oakley | Conservative |
| 18th | 1929–1934 | George Oakley | Conservative |
| 19th | 1934–1937 | Robert Allen | Liberal |
| 20th | 1937–1943 | William Summerville | Progressive Conservative |
| 21st | 1943–1945 | Leslie Wismer | Co-operative Commonwealth |
| 22nd | 1945–1948 | Gordon Millen | Progressive Conservative |
| 23rd | 1948–1951 | Leslie Wismer | Co-operative Commonwealth |
| 24th | 1951–1955 | Robert Macaulay | Progressive Conservative |
| 25th | 1955–1959 | Robert Macaulay | Progressive Conservative |
| 26th | 1959–1963 | Robert Macaulay | Progressive Conservative |
| 27th | 1963–1964 | Robert Macaulay | Progressive Conservative |
| 27th | 1964–1967 | Jim Renwick | New Democratic |
| 28th | 1967–1971 | Jim Renwick | New Democratic |
| 29th | 1971–1975 | Jim Renwick | New Democratic |
| 30th | 1975–1977 | Jim Renwick | New Democratic |
| 31st | 1977–1981 | Jim Renwick | New Democratic |
| 32nd | 1981–1984 | Jim Renwick | New Democratic |
| 33rd | 1985–1987 | David Reville | New Democratic |
| 34th | 1987–1990 | David Reville | New Democratic |
| 35th | 1990–1995 | Marilyn Churley | New Democratic |
| 36th | 1995–1999 | Marilyn Churley | New Democratic |
| Sourced from the Ontario Legislative Assembly |||||
| Merged into the Broadview-Greenwood after 1999 |||||

## Election results
### 1914 boundaries

1914 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Conservative | Joseph Russell | 3,310 | 68.9 |
| Temperance | W.W. Hiltz | 1,337 | 27.8 |
| Socialist | T.E. Black | 135 | 3.3 |
| | Total | 4,782 | |
vte1919 Ontario general election: Riverdale :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Soldier–Labour | Joseph McNamara | 7,404 | 38.7 |
| | Labour | John T. Vick | 5,882 | 30.7 |
| | Conservative | W.D. Robbins | 5,673 | 29.6 |
| | Socialist Labour | George Lockhart | 192 | 1.0 |
| Total | Total | Total | 19,151 |
| 1919 was the first election to allow women to vote, more than doubling the vote counts in each riding. |||||||
| 2 polls unreported. |||||||
| "Tory stronghold routed, five Liberals in Toronto". The Globe. Toronto. 1919-10-21. p. 8. |||||||
1923 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Conservative | George Oakley | 11,250 | 78.7 |
| Independent Liberal | H.G. Farrell | 1,831 | 12.8 |
| Labour | Alexander Lyon | 1,208 | 8.5 |
| | Total | 14,289 | |

### 1926 boundaries

1926 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Conservative | George Oakley | 8,755 | 61.3 |
| Conservative-Prohibitionist | A.R. Hansard | 4,022 | 38.7 |
| | Total | 14,265 | |
1929 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Conservative | George Oakley | 5,435 | 79.4 |
| Liberal | James McLauchlin | 2,130 | 20.6 |
| | Total | 8,668 | |

### 1934 boundaries

1934 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Liberal | Robert Allen | 10,909 | 49.0 |
| Conservative | George Oakley | 10,325 | 46.4 |
| Socialist-Labour | Edward Farrell | 1,010 | 4.5 |
| | Total | 22,244 | |
1937 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Conservative | William Summerville | 10,865 | 43.7 |
| Liberal | Robert Allen | 8,211 | 33.3 |
| Co-operative Commonwealth | J.W. Buckley | 4,407 | 22.9 |
| Socialist-Labour | Edward Farrell | 95 | 26.0 |
| | Total | 22,343 | |
1943 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Co-operative Commonwealth | Leslie Wismer | 7,091 | 47.7 |
| Progressive Conservative | W.A. Summerville | 6,959 | 39.3 |
| Liberal | W.R. Allen | 2,068 | 13.0 |
| | Total | 17,685 | |
vte1945 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Progressive Conservative | Gordon Millen | 11,769 | 39.8 |
| | Co-operative Commonwealth | Leslie Wismer | 7,851 | 31.2 |
| | Liberal | Capt. W.R. Allen | 3,722 | 27.4 |
| | Labor–Progressive | Harry Bell | 611 | 1.3 |
| | Socialist Labour | Richard Dunk | 186 | 0.3 |
| Total | Total | Total | 28,501 |
| Canadian Press (1945-06-05). "How Ontario Electors Voted in all 90 Ridings". The Toronto Daily Star. Toronto. p. 5. Retrieved 2012-03-03. |||||||
1948 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Co-operative Commonwealth | Leslie Wismer | 12,419 | 46.8 |
| Progressive Conservative | Charles Walton | 10,259 | 39.8 |
| Liberal | Joseph McNamara | 3,194 | 12.5 |
| Socialist Labour | W.B. Hendry | 245 | 0.9 |
| | Total | 27,308 | |
1951 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Progressive Conservative | Robert Macaulay | 10,705 | 45.5 |
| Co-operative Commonwealth | Carroll Coburn | 7,150 | 30.4 |
| Liberal | A. Roy Cadwell | 5,264 | 22.4 |
| Socialist Labour | Alan Sanderson | 387 | 1.6 |
| | Total | 23,506 | |
1955 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Progressive Conservative | Robert Macaulay | 8,655 | 44.2 |
| Co-operative Commonwealth | H. Hargrave | 5,128 | 37.6 |
| Liberal | Fred Beavis | 4,195 | 16.9 |
| Labor–Progressive | Hector MacArthur | 329 | 1.3 |
| Socialist Labour | Alan Sanderson | 125 | 0.3 |
| | | Total | 19,332 |
1959 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Progressive Conservative | Robert Macaulay | 7,707 | 44.2 |
| Co-operative Commonwealth | Charles Daly | 3,880 | 41.8 |
| Liberal | Carl Lewis | 3,486 | 17.6 |
| | Total | 18,845 | |
1963 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| Progressive Conservative | Robert Macaulay | 7,994 | 49.3 |
| Liberal | Barry Allen | 4,302 | 26.5 |
| New Democrat | Gerry Gallagher | 3,671 | 22.7 |
| Independent | Fred Graham | 137 | 0.8 |
| Independent | Alan Sanderson | 103 | 0.6 |
| | Total | 16,207 | |
By-election September 10, 1964 :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| New Democrat | Jim Renwick | 7,326 | 38.7 |
| Progressive Conservative | Kenneth Waters | 5,782 | 30.5 |
| Liberal | Charles Templeton | 5,738 | 30.3 |
| Independent | Fred Graham | 92 | 0.5 |
| | Total | 18,938 | |

### 1966 boundaries

1967 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| New Democrat | Jim Renwick | 10,722 | 54.1 |
| Progressive Conservative | Ying Hope | 6,136 | 30.9 |
| Liberal | Joseph Breglia | 2,689 | 13.6 |
| Independent | William Hendry | 289 | 1.5 |
| | Total | 19,836 | |
1971 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| New Democratic | Jim Renwick | 9,919 | 46.8 |
| Progressive Conservative | J.J. Richards | 8,344 | 39.3 |
| Liberal | Gordon Potts | 2,635 | 12.4 |
| Social Credit | Vicki Andrens | 315 | 1.5 |
| | Total | 21,213 | |

### 1974 boundaries

1975 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| New Democratic | Jim Renwick | 9,133 | 50.3 |
| Progressive Conservative | Dick Perdue | 4,865 | 26.8 |
| Liberal | Nick Kapelos | 3,754 | 20.7 |
| Communist | Ed McDonald | 389 | 2.2 |
| Independent | Walter Belej | 60 | 0.3 |
| Independent | George Shand | 34 | 0.2 |
| Social Credit | Armand Siksna | 31 | 0.2 |
| | Total | 18,167 | |
1977 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| New Democrat | Jim Renwick | 9,639 | 56.45 |
| Progressive Conservative | Nola Crewe | 4,088 | 23.9 |
| Liberal | Dennis Drainville | 2,821 | 16.5 |
| Communist | Gordon Massie | 214 | 1.3 |
| Libertarian | Walter Belej | 196 | 1.2 |
| Independent | Barry Weisleder | 117 | 0.7 |
| | Total | 17,075 | |
1981 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| New Democrat | Jim Renwick | 6,770 | 46.7 |
| Progressive Conservative | Peter Hesky | 4,088 | 28.2 |
| Liberal | Ed Schofield | 3,237 | 22.4 |
| Independent | Thelma Forsyth | 233 | 1.6 |
| Communist | Anna Sidens | 158 | 1.1 |
| | Total | 14,486 | |
vte1985 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | New Democratic | David Reville | 9,869 | 52.2 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Bret Snider | 4,590 | 24.3 |
| | Liberal | Doug DeMille | 3,949 | 20.9 |
| | Communist | Maggie Bizzell | 322 | 1.7 |
| | Green | Michael Tegtmeyer | 192 | 1.0 |
| Total | Total | Total | 18,922 |
| Canadian Press. |||||||

### 1987 boundaries

vte1987 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | New Democratic | David Reville | 10,321 | 44.9 |
| | Liberal | Jim Karygiannis | 8,552 | 37.2 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Bob Dodd | 3,285 | 14.3 |
| | Green | Debora Hojman | 330 | 1.4 |
| | Libertarian | Byron Garby | 292 | 1.3 |
| | Communist | Maggie Bizzell | 210 | 0.9 |
| Total | Total | Total | 22,990 |
| Toronto Star. |||||||
1990 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| New Democrat | Marilyn Churley | 14,086 | 62.0 |
| Liberal | Pat Marquis | 5,572 | 24.5 |
| Progressive Conservative | John Ruffolo | 1,578 | 6.9 |
| Green | Leanne Haze | 811 | 3.6 |
| Libertarian | Daniel Hunt | 682 | 3.0 |
| | Total | 22,729 | |
1995 Ontario general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | Vote % |
| New Democrat | Marilyn Churley | 10,948 | 46.9 |
| Progressive Conservative | John Gamble | 6,348 | 27.2 |
| Liberal | Frank Lowery | 5,443 | 23.3 |
| Independent | Pat Marquis | 273 | 1.2 |
| Green | Marianna Tzabiras | 217 | 0.9 |
| Natural Law | Loucas Café | 124 | 0.5 |
| | Total | 23,353 | |