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Alberta Social Credit Party
Alberta Social Credit was a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada, that was founded on social credit monetary policy put forward by Clifford Hugh Douglas and on conservative Christian social values. The Canadian social credit movement was largely an out-growth of Alberta Social Credit. The Social Credit Party of Canada was strongest in Alberta, before developing a base in Quebec when Réal Caouette agreed to merge his Ralliement créditiste movement into the federal party. The British Columbia Social Credit Party formed the government for many years in neighbouring British Columbia, although this was effectively a coalition of centre-right forces in the province that had no interest in social credit monetary policies.
The Alberta Social Credit party won a majority government in 1935, in the first election it contested, barely months after its formation. During its first years, when led by William Aberhart, it was a radical monetary reform party, at least in theory if not in effect. It encouraged credit unions, printed its own money (Prosperity certificates) and established a government-owned bank (ATB).
After Aberhart's death in 1943 and the rise to leadership of Ernest Manning, followed quickly by the discovery of oil in north-central Alberta and its accompanying wealth for many, Social Credit took on a more conservative hue. Its policies were pro-business and anti-union, and largely opposed to government intervention in the economy. It dropped Alberta's use of proportional representation in 1956. Partly with that help, it stayed in power until 1971, one of the longest unbroken runs in government at the provincial level in Canada. After its defeat, it quickly dropped from prominence at all. It held no seats after 1982, and finished a distant seventh in the 2012 and 2015 general elections, before the party's name change.
In May 2017, the party changed its name to Pro-Life Alberta Political Association (or Prolife Alberta, for short) following the election of anti-abortion activist Jeremy Fraser as leader. The change in name reflected the change in direction from the comprehensive political platform of Social Credit with aims of forming government, to the Party's new, and sole, focus of promoting pro-life public policy.
William Aberhart, a Baptist lay-preacher and evangelist in Calgary, was attracted to social credit theory while Alberta (and much of the western world) was in the depths of the Great Depression. He soon began promoting it through his radio program on CFCN in Calgary, adding a heavy dose of fundamentalist Christianity to the Social Credit theories of C.H. Douglas. The basic premise of social credit is that all citizens should be paid a dividend as capital and technology replace labour in production; this was especially attractive to farmers sinking under the weight of the Depression. Many study groups devoted to the theory sprang up across the province, which united into the Social Credit League of Alberta. Discussion of banking and monetary reform and social credit was not new to many Albertans. Alberta MP William Irvine (with Manitoba MP J.S. Woodsworth) had successfully pushed for an official inquiry into the subject in the early 1920s to which Edmonton-area self-taught expert George Bevington had presented evidence. Pamphleteers, such as Edmonton's R.C. Owens and Saskatoon's H.C. Pierce, had prepared the waters. James East, a long-serving Edmonton city councillor in the 1912-1936 period, had been proponent of monetary reform as well.
From 1932 to 1935, Aberhart tried to get the governing United Farmers of Alberta (UFA) to adopt social credit. However, the 1935 UFA convention voted against adopting social credit and UFA Premier Richard Reid rejected the proposals as being outside the province's constitutional powers, so Aberhart entered Social Credit candidates in that year's provincial election.[citation needed] There was widespread discontent with the overly cautious behaviour of the UFA government, and in some cases, local UFA chapters openly supported Social Credit candidates.[citation needed] The UFA government was also reeling from a scandal that had forced Reid's predecessor, John Brownlee, to resign a year earlier.[citation needed] This, in particular, caused some socially conservative UFA members to transfer their allegiance to the Christian-based Social Credit movement.[citation needed] The Social Credit Party campaigned on price controls, and social dividends of $25 a month to Albertan adults.
In the 22 August 1935 election, much to its own surprise, Social Credit won a landslide victory, taking 54% of the vote and winning 56 of the 63 seats in the Legislative Assembly. The only elected opposition was five Liberals and two Conservatives. The UFA lost all of its seats in the worst defeat for a sitting provincial government in Canadian history.[citation needed] Alberta thus elected the first Social Credit government in the world.[citation needed] The Social Credit Party's success is largely attributed to the charisma of Aberhart, who brought together a broad coalition ranging from social credit supporters to moderate socialists.
Not even the Socreds had expected to win the election.[citation needed] Indeed, they hadn't even named a leader during the campaign.[citation needed] The Socreds now found themselves having to choose a formal leader who would become the province's new premier.[citation needed] Aberhart was the obvious choice, having been the party's driving force from the beginning.[citation needed] He didn't want the office, but was persuaded to take power.[citation needed] He was elected as leader and premier-designate at the party's first caucus meeting, and was sworn in on 3 September.[citation needed] He became a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) a year later in a by-election.[citation needed]
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Alberta Social Credit Party
Alberta Social Credit was a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada, that was founded on social credit monetary policy put forward by Clifford Hugh Douglas and on conservative Christian social values. The Canadian social credit movement was largely an out-growth of Alberta Social Credit. The Social Credit Party of Canada was strongest in Alberta, before developing a base in Quebec when Réal Caouette agreed to merge his Ralliement créditiste movement into the federal party. The British Columbia Social Credit Party formed the government for many years in neighbouring British Columbia, although this was effectively a coalition of centre-right forces in the province that had no interest in social credit monetary policies.
The Alberta Social Credit party won a majority government in 1935, in the first election it contested, barely months after its formation. During its first years, when led by William Aberhart, it was a radical monetary reform party, at least in theory if not in effect. It encouraged credit unions, printed its own money (Prosperity certificates) and established a government-owned bank (ATB).
After Aberhart's death in 1943 and the rise to leadership of Ernest Manning, followed quickly by the discovery of oil in north-central Alberta and its accompanying wealth for many, Social Credit took on a more conservative hue. Its policies were pro-business and anti-union, and largely opposed to government intervention in the economy. It dropped Alberta's use of proportional representation in 1956. Partly with that help, it stayed in power until 1971, one of the longest unbroken runs in government at the provincial level in Canada. After its defeat, it quickly dropped from prominence at all. It held no seats after 1982, and finished a distant seventh in the 2012 and 2015 general elections, before the party's name change.
In May 2017, the party changed its name to Pro-Life Alberta Political Association (or Prolife Alberta, for short) following the election of anti-abortion activist Jeremy Fraser as leader. The change in name reflected the change in direction from the comprehensive political platform of Social Credit with aims of forming government, to the Party's new, and sole, focus of promoting pro-life public policy.
William Aberhart, a Baptist lay-preacher and evangelist in Calgary, was attracted to social credit theory while Alberta (and much of the western world) was in the depths of the Great Depression. He soon began promoting it through his radio program on CFCN in Calgary, adding a heavy dose of fundamentalist Christianity to the Social Credit theories of C.H. Douglas. The basic premise of social credit is that all citizens should be paid a dividend as capital and technology replace labour in production; this was especially attractive to farmers sinking under the weight of the Depression. Many study groups devoted to the theory sprang up across the province, which united into the Social Credit League of Alberta. Discussion of banking and monetary reform and social credit was not new to many Albertans. Alberta MP William Irvine (with Manitoba MP J.S. Woodsworth) had successfully pushed for an official inquiry into the subject in the early 1920s to which Edmonton-area self-taught expert George Bevington had presented evidence. Pamphleteers, such as Edmonton's R.C. Owens and Saskatoon's H.C. Pierce, had prepared the waters. James East, a long-serving Edmonton city councillor in the 1912-1936 period, had been proponent of monetary reform as well.
From 1932 to 1935, Aberhart tried to get the governing United Farmers of Alberta (UFA) to adopt social credit. However, the 1935 UFA convention voted against adopting social credit and UFA Premier Richard Reid rejected the proposals as being outside the province's constitutional powers, so Aberhart entered Social Credit candidates in that year's provincial election.[citation needed] There was widespread discontent with the overly cautious behaviour of the UFA government, and in some cases, local UFA chapters openly supported Social Credit candidates.[citation needed] The UFA government was also reeling from a scandal that had forced Reid's predecessor, John Brownlee, to resign a year earlier.[citation needed] This, in particular, caused some socially conservative UFA members to transfer their allegiance to the Christian-based Social Credit movement.[citation needed] The Social Credit Party campaigned on price controls, and social dividends of $25 a month to Albertan adults.
In the 22 August 1935 election, much to its own surprise, Social Credit won a landslide victory, taking 54% of the vote and winning 56 of the 63 seats in the Legislative Assembly. The only elected opposition was five Liberals and two Conservatives. The UFA lost all of its seats in the worst defeat for a sitting provincial government in Canadian history.[citation needed] Alberta thus elected the first Social Credit government in the world.[citation needed] The Social Credit Party's success is largely attributed to the charisma of Aberhart, who brought together a broad coalition ranging from social credit supporters to moderate socialists.
Not even the Socreds had expected to win the election.[citation needed] Indeed, they hadn't even named a leader during the campaign.[citation needed] The Socreds now found themselves having to choose a formal leader who would become the province's new premier.[citation needed] Aberhart was the obvious choice, having been the party's driving force from the beginning.[citation needed] He didn't want the office, but was persuaded to take power.[citation needed] He was elected as leader and premier-designate at the party's first caucus meeting, and was sworn in on 3 September.[citation needed] He became a Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) a year later in a by-election.[citation needed]