*** Welcome to piglix ***

Progressive Conservative leadership convention, 1956

Progressive Conservative Party leadership election, 1956
Canada
← 1948 December 13–14, 1956 1967 →
  John G. Diefenbaker.jpg Donald Fleming.jpg EdmundDavieFulton-1916.jpg
Candidate John Diefenbaker Donald Fleming Edmund Davie Fulton
Party Progressive Conservative Progressive Conservative Progressive Conservative
Delegate count 774 393 117
Percentage 60.3% 30.6% 9.1%

Leader before election

George A. Drew

Elected Leader

John Diefenbaker

Progressive Conservative leadership election, 1956
Date December 13–14, 1956
Convention Ottawa Coliseum,
Lansdowne Park,
Ottawa, Ontario
Resigning leader George A. Drew
Won by John Diefenbaker
Ballots 1
Candidates 3
Entrance Fee C$?
Spending limit None
Progressive Conservative leadership conventions
1927 · 1938 · 1942 · 1948 · 1956 · 1967 · 1976 · 1983 · 1993 · 1995 · 1998 · 2003

George A. Drew

John Diefenbaker

The 1956 Progressive Conservative leadership election was held to choose a leader for the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. The convention was held at the Ottawa Coliseum in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The convention began on December 13, 1956 with voting occurring on December 14 when John Diefenbaker was elected the new leader.

The ailing George A. Drew had taken a leave of absence from his duties as Leader of the Opposition for much of 1956 due to a nearly fatal attack of meningitis. After eight years as party leader, he announced his resignation in the fall of 1956 and a leadership convention was announced for December in Ottawa.

MP John Borden Hamilton, 43, who had represented the Toronto-area riding of York West since a 1954 by-election, considered running but decided against it.

The convention was opened by Ottawa mayor Charlotte Whitton with Nova Scotia Premier Robert Stanfield, a future party leader, giving the keynote address.

Diefenbaker was nominated by New Brunswick Premier Hugh John Flemming and British Columbia MP George Pearkes. Diefenbaker's failure to have a French speaker as one of his nominees reportedly hurt him with Quebec delegates. They held a meeting and considered supporting one of Diefenbaker's opponents en masse, of which Fleming hoped to be the beneficiary.


...
Wikipedia

...