# Atlin (electoral district)

Atlin was a provincial electoral district in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It made its first appearance on the hustings in the 10th provincial general election in 1903 and last appeared in the 34th provincial general election in 1986, after which it was merged with the Skeena riding and was succeeded by Bulkley Valley-Stikine.

## Demographics

* Population, 1986
* Population change, 1903-1986
* Area (km$^2$)
* Population density

## Political geography

Always one of the province's largest ridings by area, it was always among the smallest in population, and is often cited as an example of a lack of proper representation-by-population in the BC political system. From the perspective of riding residents, who are spread out in a handful of small settlements from the Nass River to the Yukon border, a riding incorporating larger population centres was unfair to them. Ultimately the pressure to redress lack of equality in voting-weight among BC ridings saw the Atlin riding being merged with Skeena riding.

## Notable elections

Because of its small electorate, battles over spoiled ballots were critical in Atlin's electoral history:
* The 1928 election saw a 567/542/32 three-way split in favour of Herbert Frederick Kergin of the BC Liberal Party, with 22 rejected ballots
* The 1945 election saw a 297/292 split in favour of William Duncan Smith of the Liberal-Conservative Coalition, with no rejected ballots
* The 1949 election saw a 376/370 split in favour of Frank Calder, then a candidate for the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) - with 190 rejected ballots.
* The 1956 election saw a 450/360/131 split in favour of William James Asselstine of the Social Credit, with 59 rejected ballots.
* the 1979 election saw a 750/749 split in favour of Al Passarell of the New Democratic Party over Frank Calder, who had switched sides to Social Credit in the 1975 British Columbia general election - with 39 rejected ballots

## First Nations

Another important factor in the Atlin riding was the dominance of its First Nations population, including the whole of the Nisga'a Nation (Frank Calder and Larry Guno were both Nisga'a). Also in the riding in its entirety was the Tahltan Nation, centred on the isolated towns of Telegraph Creek and Dease Lake. The area of the town of Atlin is part of the Inland Tlingit Nation.

## Towns and industry

Another factor in the riding was the dominance of working men in its handful of industrial towns (principally mining).
The main towns in the riding were:
* Atlin
* Teslin
* Dease Lake
* Telegraph Creek
* Anyox (now a ghost town, formerly a large smelter town)
* Stewart

## Notable MLAs

The most notable Member of the Legislative Assembly from Atlin was Frank Calder. A Nisga'a, he originally ran for the CCF, and then the NDP, but in the 1975 election he switched sides to Social Credit, but went down to defeat under that party's banner in 1979 and retired from electoral politics.

## Electoral history

Note: Winners of each election are in bold.
10th British Columbia election, 1903 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | John Kirkland | 202 | 46.12% | – | unknown |
| | Conservative | Henry Essen Young | 236 | 53.88% | | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 438 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
11th British Columbia election, 1907 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | John Irving | 46 | 37.10% | – | unknown |
| | Conservative | Henry Essen Young | 78 | 62.90% | | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 124 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
12th British Columbia election, 1909 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | John Irving | 65 | 37.79% | – | unknown |
| | Conservative | Henry Essen Young | 107 | 62.21% | | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 172 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
13th British Columbia election, 1912 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures |
| | Conservative | Henry Essen Young (acclamation) | n/a | % | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | - | --.--% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | |
14th British Columbia election, 1916 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures |
| | Conservative | William X. McDonald | 277 | 45.71% | unknown |
| | Liberal | Frank Harry Mobley | 329 | 54.29% | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 606 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | |
vte1920 British Columbia general election :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Liberal | Herbert Frederick Kergin | 390 | 36.69 |
| | Federated Labour | George Bernard Casey | 300 | 28.22 |
| | Conservative | William Cameron Ross | 229 | 21.542 |
| | Independent | Harold Randolph King | 86 | 8.09 |
| | Independent Labour | Patrick Daly | 30 | 2.8 |
| | Independent | Oakley Beauport Bush | 28 | 2.63 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,063 | 100.00 |
16th British Columbia election, 1924 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Provincial | Robert Armour | 380 | 31.77% | – | unknown |
| | Conservative | Edmund John Conway | 353 | 29.52% | | unknown |
| | Liberal | Herbert Frederick Kergin | 463 | 38.71% | | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,196 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
17th British Columbia election, 1928 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures |
| | Conservative | Thomas Wilbert Falconer | 542 | 46.68% | unknown |
| | Liberal | Herbert Frederick Kergin | 567 | 50.56% | unknown |
| | Independent | William Herbert Moult | 32 | 2.76% | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,161 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 22 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | |
18th British Columbia election, 1933 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | William James Asselstine | 419 | 32.63% | unknown |
| | Independent Conservative | Thomas Wilbert Falconer | 136 | 10.59% |
| | Independent | Herbert Frederick Kergin | 267 | 20.79% | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,284 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 34 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | |
19th British Columbia election, 1937 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | William James Asselstine | 562 | 54.46% | unknown |
| | Co-operative Commonwealth | Charles H. Lake | 263 | 25.53% | unknown |
| | Conservative | Ernest Love | 205 | 19.90% | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,030 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 31 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | |
20th British Columbia election, 1941 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | William James Asselstine | 454 | 54.83% | unknown |
| | Labour | John Scott | 374 | 45.17% | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 828 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 24 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | |
21st British Columbia election, 1945 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. | Norman Cunningham | 292 | 49.58% |
| | Coalition | William Duncan Smith | 297 | 50.42% |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 589 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 0 |
22nd British Columbia election, 1949 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. | Frank Arthur Calder | 376 | 50.40% |
| | Coalition | William Duncan Smith | 370 | 49.60% |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 746 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 190 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | |
23rd British Columbia election, 1952$^1$ :
| Party | Candidate | Votes 1st count | % | Votes final count | % | ±% |
| | Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. | Frank Arthur Calder | 595 | 56.61% | 595 | 56.61% | unknown |
| | Progressive Conservative | Thomas Sutherland MacKay | 164 | 15.60% | 164 | 15.60% | unknown |
| | Liberal | William Duncan Smith | 292 | 27.78% | 292 | 27.78% | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,051 | 100.00% | 1,051 | % | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 44 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
| $^1$ preferential ballot - only 1 count needed |||||||
24th British Columbia election, 1953 $^2$ :
| Party | Candidate | Votes 1st count | % | Votes final count | % | ±% |
| | Social Credit | Frank Assu | 108 | 11.54% | 108 | 11.54% |
| | Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. | Frank Arthur Calder | 553 | 59.08% | 553 | 59.08% | unknown |
| | Liberal | William Duncan Smith | 275 | 29.38% | 275 | 29.38% | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 936 | 100.00% | 936 | % | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 125 | | | | |
| Total Registered Voters | Total Registered Voters | 5,933 (1952 list) | | | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | % | | | | |
| Preferential ballot; only one count needed |||||||
25th British Columbia election, 1956 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Social Credit | William James Asselstine | 454 | 48.04% | – | unknown |
| | Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. | Frank Arthur Calder | 360 | 38.10% | | unknown |
| | Liberal | George Douglas Frizzell | 131 | 13.86% | – | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 945 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 59 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
26th British Columbia election, 1960 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Social Credit | William James Asselstine | 267 | 32.05% | – | unknown |
| | Conservative | Charles Jewell Brown | 122 | 14.65% | | unknown |
| | Co-operative Commonwealth Fed. | Frank Arthur Calder | 444 | 53.30% | | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 833 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 85 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
27th British Columbia election, 1963 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Social Credit | William James Asselstine | 308 | 30.56% | – | unknown |
| | New Democratic | Frank Arthur Calder | 549 | 54.46% | | unknown |
| | Liberal | Cyril Felix Dopson | 444 | 53.30% | – | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,008 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 19 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
28th British Columbia election, 1966 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | New Democratic | Frank Arthur Calder | 572 | 59.71% | | unknown |
| | Liberal | Robin Roy Datziel | 125 | 13.05% | – | unknown |
| | Social Credit | Kirkwood, Thomas James | 271 | 27.24% | – | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 958 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 10 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
29th British Columbia election, 1969 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | New Democratic | Frank Arthur Calder | 639 | 53.12% | | unknown |
| | Social Credit | Peter John Curran | 230 | 19.12% | – | unknown |
| | Liberal | Basil Edward Studer | 334 | 27.76% | – | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,203 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 13 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
30th British Columbia election, 1972 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Social Credit | John Norman Anderson | 245 | 14.88% | – | unknown |
| | New Democratic | Frank Arthur Calder | 675 | 40.98% | | unknown |
| | Progressive Conservative | Glen Leslie Clayton | 65 | 3.95% | | unknown |
| | Independent | Peter John Curran | 242 | 14.69% | | unknown |
| | Liberal | Basil Edward Studer | 242 | 14.69% | – | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,467 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 27 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
31st British Columbia election, 1975 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Social Credit | Frank Arthur Calder | 984 | 55.50% | – | unknown |
| | Liberal | Peter John Curran | 292 | 16.47% | – | unknown |
| | New Democratic | Gordon Steidl | 497 | 28.03% | | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,773 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 22 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
32nd British Columbia election, 1979 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Social Credit | Frank Arthur Calder | 749 | 49.97% | – | unknown |
| | New Democratic | Al Passarell | 750 | 50.03% | | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 1,499 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 39 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
33rd British Columbia election, 1983 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Social Credit | Robert Edmund Allen (Bobby) Ball | 1,208 | 40.48% | – | unknown |
| | Independent | Paul Danny Brohman | 84 | 2.82% | | unknown |
| | Independent | Burgess A. Longson | 105 | 3.52% | | unknown |
| | New Democratic | Al Passarell | 1,587 | 53.18% | | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 2,984 | 70.76% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 393 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |
34th British Columbia election, 1986 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | Expenditures |
| | Social Credit | Andrew (Andy) Burton | 858 | 37.29% | – | unknown |
| | New Democratic | Larry Guno | 1,443 | 62.71% | | unknown |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 2,301 | 100.00% | |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 31 | | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | % | | |