Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (Ontario Section)
|
|
---|---|
Leader |
Ted Jolliffe, Donald C. MacDonald |
President |
Agnes Macphail, John Mitchell, Charles Millard, Samuel Lawrence, G.M.A. Grube, Andrew Brewin, Miller Stewart, Theodore Isley |
Founded | 1932 |
Dissolved | 8 October 1961 |
Preceded by |
United Farmers of Ontario, Independent Labour Party |
Succeeded by | Ontario New Democratic Party |
Headquarters | Toronto, Ontario |
Ideology | Social democracy, Democratic socialism, Agrarianism |
Political position | Left |
International affiliation | Socialist International |
Colours | Green and Yellow |
The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (Ontario Section) – The Farmer-Labor Party of Ontario, or more commonly known as the Ontario CCF, was a democratic socialist political party that existed from 1932 to 1961. It was the provincial wing of the national CCF. The party had no leader in the beginning, and was governed by a provincial council and executive. The party first Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) was elected by voters in the 1934 Ontario general election. In the 1937 general election, no CCF members were elected to the Ontario Legislature. In 1942, the party elected Toronto lawyer Ted Jolliffe as its first leader. He led the party to within a few seats of forming the government in the 1943 general election; instead, it formed the Official Opposition. In that election, the first two women were elected as CCFers to the Ontario Legislature, Agnes Macphail and Rae Luckock. The 1945 election was a setback, as the party lost most of its seats in the Legislature, including Jolliffe's seat. The party again became the Official Opposition after the 1948 general election, and defeated the Conservative premier George Drew in hisseat, when Bill Temple unexpectedly won in the High Park constituency. The middle and late 1940s were the peak years for the Ontario CCF. After that time, its electoral performances were dismal, as it was reduced to a rump of two seats in the 1951 election, three seats in the 1955 election, and five seats in the 1959 election. Jolliffe stepped down as leader in 1953, and was replaced by Donald C. MacDonald.