The 1953 Winnipeg municipal election was held on October 28, 1953 to elect councillors and school trustees in the Manitoba

Manitoba

Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...

 city of Winnipeg

Winnipeg

Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...

. There was no mayoral election; mayors were elected for two-year terms in this period, and 1953 was an off year.

The councillors and trustees were elected by the single transferable ballot, with three members elected for each position in three wards. Electors were allowed to vote for three candidates for each position. There were a total of 18 councillors and 15 trustees in this period, with members elected in alternate years.

A total of three political parties contested this election. The Civic Election Committee (CEC) was a pro-business alliance of Progressive Conservatives

Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba

The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba is the only right wing political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is also the official opposition party in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba.-Origins and early years:...

 and Liberals, and was the dominant party in Winnipeg's predominantly middle-class first ward. The CEC claimed not to be a political party as such, but held nomination meetings and ran organized campaigns in a partisan manner. The socialist Cooperative Commonwealth Federation (CCF) and the communist Labour Progressive Party (LLP) also contested the election. Both parties were strongest in Ward Three, covering the city's working-class north end.

The CEC won five of the nine contested council seats, down two from their pre-election total. The CCF gained one council seat for a total of three, while the LPP regained a foothold on council by winning a seat in Ward Three. The CEC won six trustee seats, the CCF two, and the LPP one.

Ward One

The CCF attempted to break the CEC's hold over Ward One by fielding only one candidate, in an effort to avoid vote-splitting among supporters. This tactic had proven successful the previous year, when CCF candidate David Mulligan was elected to the second position. Ernest Draffin

Ernest Draffin

Ernest R. Draffin was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1945 to 1949 as a member of the social-democratic Cooperative Commonwealth Federation....

 was not able to repeat this success, however, and all three CEC incumbents were re-elected. The quota for election was 5,322 votes (25%).

Party Totals

Party		Votes	%	Elected	Citizen's Election Committee	16,703	78.47	3	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	4,582	21.53

First Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)C.E. Simonite	6,616	31.08	1	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Gordon Chown Gordon Chown Gordon Campbell Chown was a Progressive Conservative party member of the Canadian House of Commons. He was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and became a barrister and lawyer by career....	5,505	25.86	2	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Ernest Draffin Ernest Draffin Ernest R. Draffin was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1945 to 1949 as a member of the social-democratic Cooperative Commonwealth Federation....	4,582	21.53		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Maude McCreery	4,582	21.53

Simonite and Chown were declared elected, and Simonite's surplus 1,294 votes were distributed as follows: McCreery 1177, Draffin 117. McCreery was declared elected on the second count.

Second Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)C.E. Simonite	5,322	25.00	1	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Gordon Chown Gordon Chown Gordon Campbell Chown was a Progressive Conservative party member of the Canadian House of Commons. He was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba and became a barrister and lawyer by career....	5,505	25.86	2	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Maude McCreery	5,759	27.06	3	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Ernest Draffin Ernest Draffin Ernest R. Draffin was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1945 to 1949 as a member of the social-democratic Cooperative Commonwealth Federation....	4,699	22.08

Ward Two

Veteran CCF alderman V.B. Anderson was the only incumbent seeking re-election in this ward, as the two CEC incumbents had both announced their retirement. The CEC and CCF both ran two candidates, effectively giving each party a bye for one of the positions. Former Member of the Legislative Assembly

Member of the Legislative Assembly

A Member of the Legislative Assembly or a Member of the Legislature , is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to the legislature or legislative assembly of a sub-national jurisdiction....

 (MLA) Gordon Fines

Gordon Fines

Gordon Richard Fines was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1949 to 1953, as a member of the social-democratic Cooperative Commonwealth Federation.Fines came from a family that had resided in Manitoba since 1876, shortly after the province's...

 finished second, and gave the CCF a second seat in the ward. LPP candidate William Cecil Ross

William Cecil Ross

William Cecil Ross was a politician in Manitoba, Canada, and the leader of that province's Communist Party from 1948 until his retirement in 1981....

, the leader of the provincial party, fared poorly outside of his party's north-end base. The quota for election was 3,783 votes (25%).

Party Totals

Party		Votes	%	Elected	Citizen's Election Committee	7,408	48.96	1	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	7,087	46.84	2	Labour Progressive Party	635	4.20

First Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Citizen's Election Committee	Paul Goodman Paul Goodman (ice hockey) Paul Goodman was a Canadian ice hockey goaltender who played three seasons in the NHL with the Chicago Black Hawks. Mike Karakas, the regular goaltender was injured and unable to play game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Chicago used substitution goalie Alfie Moore. Moore won the game 3-1 over Toronto...	3,968	26.23	1	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Gordon Fines Gordon Fines Gordon Richard Fines was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1949 to 1953, as a member of the social-democratic Cooperative Commonwealth Federation.Fines came from a family that had resided in Manitoba since 1876, shortly after the province's...	3,567	23.58		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	(x)V.B. Anderson	3,520	23.27		Citizen's Election Committee	Albert E. Bennett	3,440	22.74		Labour Progressive Party	William Cecil Ross William Cecil Ross William Cecil Ross was a politician in Manitoba, Canada, and the leader of that province's Communist Party from 1948 until his retirement in 1981....	635	4.20

Goodman was declared elected to the first position. Ross was eliminated, and his 635 votes were distributed as follows: Fines 134, Anderson 134, Bennett 88. 279 votes were non-transferable.

Second Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Citizen's Election Committee	Paul Goodman Paul Goodman (ice hockey) Paul Goodman was a Canadian ice hockey goaltender who played three seasons in the NHL with the Chicago Black Hawks. Mike Karakas, the regular goaltender was injured and unable to play game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Chicago used substitution goalie Alfie Moore. Moore won the game 3-1 over Toronto...	3,968	26.23	1	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Gordon Fines Gordon Fines Gordon Richard Fines was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1949 to 1953, as a member of the social-democratic Cooperative Commonwealth Federation.Fines came from a family that had resided in Manitoba since 1876, shortly after the province's...	3,701	24.46		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	(x)V.B. Anderson	3,654	24.15		Citizen's Election Committee	Albert E. Bennett	3,528	23.32		Votes not transferred		279	1.84

Goodman's surplus 185 votes were distributed as follows: Bennett 121, Anderson 41, Fines 23. This was not enough to give Bennett the third position, and both Fines and Anderson were declared elected on the third count.

Third Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Citizen's Election Committee	Paul Goodman Paul Goodman (ice hockey) Paul Goodman was a Canadian ice hockey goaltender who played three seasons in the NHL with the Chicago Black Hawks. Mike Karakas, the regular goaltender was injured and unable to play game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals. Chicago used substitution goalie Alfie Moore. Moore won the game 3-1 over Toronto...	3,783	25.00	1	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Gordon Fines Gordon Fines Gordon Richard Fines was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1949 to 1953, as a member of the social-democratic Cooperative Commonwealth Federation.Fines came from a family that had resided in Manitoba since 1876, shortly after the province's...	3,724	24.61	2	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	(x)V.B. Anderson	3,695	24.42	3	Citizen's Election Committee	Albert E. Bennett	3,649	24.12		Votes not transferred		279	1.84

Ward Three

The CEC fielded a full slate of three candidates in this ward, with the intention of re-electing both of their incumbents. They succeeded in with Slaw Rebchuk

Slaw Rebchuk

Slaw Rebchuk was a longtime municipal politician in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, popularly known as the "Mayor of the North End"....

, but lost their other seat to longtime LPP politician Jacob Penner

Jacob Penner

Jacob Penner was a popular socialist politician in Canada. Penner was born and raised in a Mennonite family in Russia and emigrated to Winnipeg in 1904. In 1908, he met his wife Rose Shapack, a Jewish Russian immigrant, during an address by Emma Goldman at the Winnipeg Radical Club...

. Penner, himself a veteran member of the council, had been defeated by CEC candidate Stan Carrick in the 1952 election; his victory in 1953 returned the LPP to council representation after a year's absence. The CCF retained their seat without difficulty, as council incumbent Jack Blumberg finished in first place. The CCF's decision to field only two candidates likely benefited Penner's campaign. The quota for election was 4,715 votes (25%).

Party Totals

Party		Votes	%	Elected	Citizen's Election Committee	8,206	43.52	1	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	6,547	34.72	1	Labour Progressive Party	4,103	21.76	1

First Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	(x)Jack Blumberg	5,106	27.08	1	Labour Progressive Party	Jacob Penner Jacob Penner Jacob Penner was a popular socialist politician in Canada. Penner was born and raised in a Mennonite family in Russia and emigrated to Winnipeg in 1904. In 1908, he met his wife Rose Shapack, a Jewish Russian immigrant, during an address by Emma Goldman at the Winnipeg Radical Club...	4,103	21.76		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Slaw Rebchuk Slaw Rebchuk Slaw Rebchuk was a longtime municipal politician in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, popularly known as the "Mayor of the North End"....	3,697	19.61		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Frank Wagner Frank Wagner Frank W. Wagner is an American politician. A Republican, he served in the Virginia House of Delegates 1992–2001, and was elected to the Senate of Virginia in a special election on December 19, 2000. He the 7th district in Virginia Beach.-Personal life:Wagner was born at a United States Air...	2,683	14.23		Citizen's Election Committee	Walter Mazapa	1,826	9.68		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	H.L. Stevens	1,441	7.64

Blumberg was declared elected to the first position, and his 391 surplus votes were distributed as follows: Stevens 184, Penner 80, Wagner 75, Rebchuk 36, Mazapa 16.

Second Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	(x)Jack Blumberg	4,715	25.00	1	Labour Progressive Party	Jacob Penner Jacob Penner Jacob Penner was a popular socialist politician in Canada. Penner was born and raised in a Mennonite family in Russia and emigrated to Winnipeg in 1904. In 1908, he met his wife Rose Shapack, a Jewish Russian immigrant, during an address by Emma Goldman at the Winnipeg Radical Club...	4,183	22.18		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Slaw Rebchuk Slaw Rebchuk Slaw Rebchuk was a longtime municipal politician in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, popularly known as the "Mayor of the North End"....	3,733	19.80		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Frank Wagner Frank Wagner Frank W. Wagner is an American politician. A Republican, he served in the Virginia House of Delegates 1992–2001, and was elected to the Senate of Virginia in a special election on December 19, 2000. He the 7th district in Virginia Beach.-Personal life:Wagner was born at a United States Air...	2,758	14.63		Citizen's Election Committee	Walter Mazapa	1,842	9.77		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	H.L. Stevens	1,625	8.62

Stevens was eliminated, and his 1,625 votes were distributed as follows: Wagner 441, Penner 238, Rebchuk 158, Mazapa 91. 697 votes were non-transferable.

Third Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	(x)Jack Blumberg	4,715	25.00	1	Labour Progressive Party	Jacob Penner Jacob Penner Jacob Penner was a popular socialist politician in Canada. Penner was born and raised in a Mennonite family in Russia and emigrated to Winnipeg in 1904. In 1908, he met his wife Rose Shapack, a Jewish Russian immigrant, during an address by Emma Goldman at the Winnipeg Radical Club...	4,421	23.45		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Slaw Rebchuk Slaw Rebchuk Slaw Rebchuk was a longtime municipal politician in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, popularly known as the "Mayor of the North End"....	3,891	20.64		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Frank Wagner Frank Wagner Frank W. Wagner is an American politician. A Republican, he served in the Virginia House of Delegates 1992–2001, and was elected to the Senate of Virginia in a special election on December 19, 2000. He the 7th district in Virginia Beach.-Personal life:Wagner was born at a United States Air...	3,199	16.97		Citizen's Election Committee	Walter Mazapa	1,933	10.25		Votes not transferred		697	3.70

Mazapa was eliminated, and his 1,933 votes were transferred as follows: Rebchuk 938, Wagner 285, Penner 125. 585 votes were non-transferable. Penner and Rebchuk were declared elected after the fourth count. Rebchuk's surplus was not transferred, as it would not have made a difference as to the end result.

Fourth Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	(x)Jack Blumberg	4,715	25.00	1	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Slaw Rebchuk Slaw Rebchuk Slaw Rebchuk was a longtime municipal politician in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, popularly known as the "Mayor of the North End"....	4,829	25.61	2	Labour Progressive Party	Jacob Penner Jacob Penner Jacob Penner was a popular socialist politician in Canada. Penner was born and raised in a Mennonite family in Russia and emigrated to Winnipeg in 1904. In 1908, he met his wife Rose Shapack, a Jewish Russian immigrant, during an address by Emma Goldman at the Winnipeg Radical Club...	4,546	24.11	3	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Frank Wagner Frank Wagner Frank W. Wagner is an American politician. A Republican, he served in the Virginia House of Delegates 1992–2001, and was elected to the Senate of Virginia in a special election on December 19, 2000. He the 7th district in Virginia Beach.-Personal life:Wagner was born at a United States Air...	3,484	18.48		Votes not transferred		1,282	6.80

Ward One

The school trustee election in Ward One yielded essentially the same result as the council election. The CCF ran a single candidate to prevent vote splitting, but the CEC nevertheless retained all three positions. The quota for election was 5,278 votes (25%).

Party Totals

Party		Votes	%	Elected	Citizen's Election Committee	17,379	82.33	3	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	3,729	17.67

First Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Edith I. Tennant	7,277	34.48	1	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Hugh B. Parker	5,799	27.47	2	Citizen's Election Committee	Ken E. McAskill	4,303	20.39		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	J.B. Gladstone	3,729	17.67

Tennant's surplus 1,999 votes were distributed as follows: McAskill 1483, Gladstone 516. McAskill was declared elected to the third position.

First Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Edith I. Tennant	5,278	25.00	1	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Hugh B. Parker	5,799	27.47	2	Citizen's Election Committee	Ken E. McAskill	5,786	27.41	3	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	J.B. Gladstone	4,245	20.11

Ward Two

The CEC and CCF each fielded two candidates, effectively giving both parties a bye for one of the seats. The CEC's two incumbents were re-elected without difficulty, while CCF candidate Walter Seaberg finally won a seat after a number of failed attempts. The LPP again fared poorly outside of their Ward Three base. It is notable that the LPP candidate was Roland Penner

Roland Penner

Roland Penner was Dean of Law at the University of Manitoba and a is a former politician and Manitoba Cabinet minister.Penner was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the son of Winnipeg alderman Jacob Penner...

, who later left the Communist movement and served as Manitoba's Attorney-General in the 1980s. The quota for election was 3,752 votes (25%).

Party Totals

Party		Votes	%	Elected	Citizen's Election Committee	9,588	63.90	2	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	4,662	31.07	1	Labour Progressive Party	754	5.03

First Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Nan Murphy	5,871	39.13	1	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Campbell Malcolm	3,717	24.77		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Walter Seaberg	3,685	24.56		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	A.E. Frank Vandurme	977	6.51		Labour Progressive Party	Roland Penner Roland Penner Roland Penner was Dean of Law at the University of Manitoba and a is a former politician and Manitoba Cabinet minister.Penner was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the son of Winnipeg alderman Jacob Penner...	754	5.03

Murphy's surplus 2,119 votes were distributed as follows: Malcolm 1745, Seaberg 192, Vandurme 99, Penner 83. Malcolm and Seaberg were both declared elected.

Second Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Nan Murphy	3,752	25.00	1	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Campbell Malcolm	5,462	36.40	2	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Walter Seaberg	3,877	25.84	3	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	A.E. Frank Vandurme	1,076	7.17		Labour Progressive Party	Roland Penner Roland Penner Roland Penner was Dean of Law at the University of Manitoba and a is a former politician and Manitoba Cabinet minister.Penner was born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, the son of Winnipeg alderman Jacob Penner...	837	5.58

Ward Three

LPP candidate Joseph Zuken

Joseph Zuken

Joseph Zuken was a popular Communist politician in Winnipeg and the longest serving elected Communist party politician in North America....

 topped the polls to win the first trustee position in north-end Winnipeg. The CEC and CCF both fielded two candidates, and won one seat apiece. Zuken's victory may be credited to his personal popularity and reputation as a diligent worker, as well as to the LPP's general base of support. The quota for election was 4,658 votes (25%).

Party Totals

Party		Votes	%	Elected	Citizen's Election Committee	7,850	42.14	1	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	5,743	30.83	1	Labour Progressive Party	5,035	27.03	1

First Count

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Labour Progressive Party	(x)Joseph Zuken Joseph Zuken Joseph Zuken was a popular Communist politician in Winnipeg and the longest serving elected Communist party politician in North America....	5,035	27.03	1	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Andrew Zaharychuk	4,464	23.96		Citizen's Election Committee	Edward Bachynski	3,386	18.18		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Walter Hatcher	3,082	16.54		Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Sam Luginsky	2,661	14.28

Luginsky was eliminated, and his 2661 votes were distributed as follows: Hatcher 1198, Zaharychuk 262, Bachynski 240. 961 votes were not transferred. Zaharychuk and Hatcher were declared elected. Zuken's surplus was not transferred, as it would not have made a difference to the outcome.

Party		Candidate	Votes	%		Labour Progressive Party	(x)Joseph Zuken Joseph Zuken Joseph Zuken was a popular Communist politician in Winnipeg and the longest serving elected Communist party politician in North America....	5,035	27.03	1	Citizen's Election Committee	(x)Andrew Zaharychuk	4,726	25.37	2	Cooperative Commonwealth Federation	Walter Hatcher	4,280	22.98	3	Citizen's Election Committee	Edward Bachynski	3,626	19.47		Votes not transferred		961	5.16