When the

Social Democratic Party of Canada The Social Democratic Party was a social democratic political party in Canada founded in 1911 by members of the right wing of the Socialist Party of Canada, many of whom had left the organisation in May 1907 to form the Social Democratic Party of ...

broke away from the

Socialist Party of Canada The Socialist Party of Canada (SPC) was a political party that existed from 1904 to 1925, led by E. T. Kingsley. It published the newspaper, '' Western Clarion''. History Establishment The Socialist Party of Canada was founded at the Sociali ...

in 1911, many

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

SPC members joined the new organization. The new party's platform was written by three residents of the city (Richard Rigg, Herman Saltzman and

Jacob Penner Jacob Penner (August 12, 1880 – August 28, 1965) was a popular international socialist politician in Canada. A founder of the Social Democratic Party of Canada and the Communist Party of Canada, Penner was elected to the Winnipeg city counci ...

), and it has been estimated that nearly 20% of the SDPC's total membership lived in Winnipeg during the early 1910s. The party was more pragmatic than the SPC, and cooperated with reformist labour groups. It benefited from the relative weakness of the SPC in Winnipeg following the provincial election of 1910. The SPC had contributed to reformist Fred Dixon's defeat in this election, and was shunned by many in the city's trade union movement as such. In the provincial election of 1914, the SDPC ran Arthur Beech and Herman Saltzman as candidate's for Winnipeg North's two ridings. Both candidates were defeated, due in part to the SDPC's insistence that further immigration to the city be curtailed in a time of high unemployment (Winnipeg North was home to many recent immigrants). The party fared better in the election of 1915, when Richard Rigg was elected for Winnipeg North's second seat. Rigg had defended the city's immigrant population in the past, and was elected despite strong SPC opposition. Beech finished a close second in the other Winnipeg North seat. Both of the SDPC's candidates were also endorsed by the Labour Representation Committee, a reformist organization. Rigg did not remain in parliament long, resigning in 1917 to contest Winnipeg North at the federal level. This time, he was endorsed by reformist labourites and Liberal supporters of

Wilfrid Laurier Sir Henri Charles Wilfrid Laurier (November 20, 1841 – February 17, 1919) was a Canadian lawyer, statesman, and Liberal politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Canada from 1896 to 1911. The first French Canadians, French ...

because of his opposition to conscription. Support for the war was strong in western Canada, however, and Rigg was defeated by a supporter of

Robert Borden Sir Robert Laird Borden (June 26, 1854 – June 10, 1937) was a Canadian lawyer and Conservative Party of Canada (1867–1942), Conservative politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Canada from 1911 to 1920. He is best known ...

's Union government. Labour radicalism in

increased after the

General Strike A general strike is a strike action in which participants cease all economic activity, such as working, to strengthen the bargaining position of a trade union or achieve a common social or political goal. They are organised by large coalitions ...

in 1919. In the following year's provincial election, the Dominion Labour Party, SPC and SDPC were able to present a united slate of candidates in

, running a combined total of ten candidates for the city's ten seats (which were determined by preferential balloting).

John Queen John Queen (February 11, 1882 – July 15, 1946) was a labour activist and Manitoba politician who was a leader of the Winnipeg General Strike, for which he served a year in prison. He was a Labour city councillor in Winnipeg from 1916 to 192 ...

was the sole Social Democrat on the ballot, and was declared elected to the legislature. The SPDC joined the Federated Labour Party in 1920. Queen was re-elected as an "Independent Workers" candidate in 1922, and became leader of the province's

Independent Labour Party The Independent Labour Party (ILP) was a British political party of the left, established in 1893 at a conference in Bradford, after local and national dissatisfaction with the Liberal Party (UK), Liberals' apparent reluctance to endorse work ...

caucus the following year.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Social Democratic Party Of Canada (In Manitoba) Provincial political parties in Manitoba Socialism in Manitoba