The 1883 Manitoba general election was held on January 23, 1883, to elect 31 members to the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba. Incumbent premier John Norquay and his allies won re-election. This was the first partisan election in Manitoba, though the political parties were still unofficial. Norquay himself was officially independent, but he aligned with the Conservative Party, and his MLAs were considered to be the province's de facto Conservative Party. Norquay was opposed by the Liberals, led by Thomas Greenway, who had previously founded the Provincial Rights Party before merging with the Liberals.
Background One of the main issues in the election was the CPR monopoly of railways in Manitoba. Business leaders and farmers wanted increased competition to lower costs, but Canadian prime minister John A. Macdonald refused to allow competition with the CPR. Thomas Greenway and the Liberals blamed Norquay for this, arguing that as a political ally of the Conservative prime minister, Norquay agreed to the CPR monopoly in exchange for federal financial aid to the province. Norquay hoped to break the monopoly too, but was uncertain about whether constructing railways was legally in provincial jurisdiction, and was wary of ruining relations with the federal government.
Results by riding +Electoral districtCandidatesIncumbentConservativeLiberalAssiniboiaAlexander Murray 95 - 72.0%James Cunningham 37 - 28%Alexander MurrayBaie St. PaulEdward Fairbanks AcclaimedMarc Amable GirardBirtleEdward Leacock 251 - 50.9%Robert Nelson 242 - 49.1%Edward LeacockBrandonJoseph Woodworth 859 - 55.8%John Sifton 681 - 44.2%John SiftonBurnsideIsaiah Mawhinney 185 - 60.0%John Smith 124 - 40.0%John SmithCartierJoseph Lecomte 153 - 65.1% John Hargrave 67 - 28.5%J Parker 15 - 6.4%Gilbert McMickenDauphinJohn Davidson AcclaimedJohn DavidsonDufferin NorthDavid Wilson 304 - 60.2%H Landerkin 201 - 39.8%David WilsonDufferin SouthJohn Stewart 112 - 41.9%William Winram 155 - 58.1%William WinramEmersonR Chalmers 168 - 48.6%Frederick Burnham 178 - 51.4%Thomas CarneyHigh Bluff-Poplar PointWilliam Crawford 68 - 50.7%H Rose 49.3%John DrummondKildonan and St. PaulAlexander Sutherland 100 - 57.1%John Sutherland 75 - 42.9%Alexander SutherlandLa VerendryeMaxime Goulet 181 - 51.1% Louis Prud'homme 173 - 48.9%Louis Prud'hommeMinnedosaDavid Harrison 495 - 53.6%David Glass 428 - 46.4%John CrerarMorris WestHenry Tennant 204 - 42.9% G Wilde 134 - 28.2%Alphonse Martin 138 - 30.0%Joseph TailleferMountainJohn Norquay 244 - 42.5%Thomas Greenway 330 - 57.5%Thomas GreenwayNorfolkW Ross 37.1%Charles Hay 62.9%New ridingPortage la PrairieW Black 304 - 49.0%Joseph Martin 315 - 50.7% Edward Hay 2 - 0.3%James CowanRockwoodJames Miller 74 - 22.8%Samuel Jackson 250 - 77.2%John AikinsSpringfieldCharles Edie 162 - 48.9%John Bell 169 - 51.1%Charles EdieSt. AgatheAlexander Kittson AcclaimedAlexander KittsonSt. AndrewsJohn Norquay AcclaimedJohn NorquaySt. BonifaceAlphonse Larivière 97 - 68.8%Edouard Richard 44 - 31.2%Alphonse LarivièreSt. ClementsJohn Allan 94 - 54.7%John Gunn 78 - 45.3%Edward HaySt. Francois XavierEdward Gigot 66.7%Daniel Carey 36 - 33.3%Patrice BrelandTurtle MountainJames Alexander 145 - 38.5%Findlay Young 232 - 61.5%James AlexanderWestbourneCorydon Brown AcclaimedDavid Marr WalkerWinnipeg NorthA Monkman 218 - 42.2%Elias Conklin 299 - 57.8%New ridingWinnipeg SouthC Tuttle 196 - 43.1%Albert Killam 259 - 56.9%New ridingWoodlandsWilliam Wagner 136 - 78.6% Francis Lipsett 37 - 21.4%Francis Lipsett
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