Clarence H. Tade (March 15, 1883 – January 5, 1961) was a Canadian provincial politician from

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. He briefly served as a member of the

Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is the deliberative assembly of the province of Alberta, Canada. It sits in the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton. The Legislative Assembly currently has 87 members, elected first past the post from sing ...

twice. The first time briefly in 1935 and the second time from 1938 to 1940 sitting with the Social Credit caucus in government both times.

Political career

Tade ran for a seat to the Alberta Legislature in the

1935 Alberta general election The 1935 Alberta general election was held on August 22, 1935, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. The newly founded Social Credit Party of Alberta won a sweeping victory, unseating the 14-year government of the United Farme ...

. He stood as a Social Credit candidate in the electoral district of Athabasca. Tade defeated incumbent

Frank Falconer Frank Robert Falconer (January 25, 1883 – August 1970) was a provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1930 to 1935 sitting with the Liberal caucus in opposition. Political c ...

and another candidate with a solid majority to pick up the seat for his party, the election saw Social Credit sweep to power to form government. Shortly after the election Premier

William Aberhart William Aberhart (December 30, 1878 – May 23, 1943), also known as "Bible Bill" for his outspoken Baptist views, was a Canadian politician and the seventh premier of Alberta from 1935 to his death in 1943. He was the founder and first leader o ...

appointed his cabinet. He needed a seat for himself and the new Minister of Lands and Mines Charles Ross. Tade decided to resign his seat on October 8, 1935 along with William Morrison. Aberhart wanted Ross to hold a northern seat to deal quell complaints about lack of cabinet representation in the northern part of the province despite the fact that Ross was from

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, maki ...

. The decision to resign became a controversy after allegations were made that Tade was forced to resign his seat. After resigning his seat Tade was made President of the Social Credit Party. Charles Ross died a few years after being elected forcing a by-election again in Athabasca. Social Credit had asked prominent Liberal

James Cornwall Lieutenant-Colonel James Kennedy "Peace River Jim" Cornwall (October 29, 1869 – November 20, 1955) was a provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1909 to 1913 sitting with t ...

to run under the Social Credit banner to which he refused. Tade also sought out the nomination but his candidacy was initially refused because the government believed that he would not be able to command any support. A hotly contested nomination race ensued between Tade and Reed Dorry whom the Social Credit party felt to be a Communist and had the backing of 150 supporters. Tade was chosen as the candidate by members of the selection committee on October 18, 1938 at a meeting held in his home town of

Colinton Colinton ( gd, Baile Cholgain) is a suburb of Edinburgh, Scotland situated south-west of the city centre. Up until the late 18th century it appears on maps as Collington. It is bordered by Dreghorn to the south and Craiglockhart to the nort ...

. In the by-election campaign Tade won the two race with a solid margin of victory on November 7, 1938 to return to the Legislature. The early results from the northern part of the riding in the race initially had Liberal candidate Whitley leading by a very close margin. The southern results put Tade in the lead and allowed him to win. Tade ran for the nomination to run as the Social Credit candidate again in the

1940 Alberta general election The 1940 Alberta general election was held on March 21, 1940, to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Despite its failure to implement its key policy, providing prosperity certificates to all Albertans, the Social Credit Party ...

. He was defeated by Gordon Lee who was the returning officer in the 1938 by-election. Tade retired from the legislature at dissolution of the assembly in 1940 rather than seeking re-election as an Independent. Upon declining health, Tade and his wife moved to

Penticton, British Columbia Penticton ( ) is a city in the Okanagan Valley of the Southern Interior of British Columbia, Canada, situated between Okanagan and Skaha lakes. In the 2016 Canadian Census, its population was 33,761, while its census agglomeration populatio ...

in the early 1950s. His wife, Edna Tade died there late in the 1950s and Clarence moved to live with his daughter in

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the ...

, dying there in 1961.

References

External links

Legislative Assembly of Alberta Members Listing
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tade, Clarence Alberta Social Credit Party MLAs 1883 births 1961 deaths People from Olney, Illinois