1977 Ontario general election

June 9, 1977

125 seats in the 31st Legislative Assembly of Ontario
63 seats needed for a majority
  First party Second party
  LIB
Leader Bill Davis Stuart Smith
Party Progressive Conservative Liberal
Leader since February 12, 1971 January 25, 1976
Leader's seat Brampton Hamilton West
Last election 51 35
Seats won 58 33
Seat change Increase7 Decrease2
Popular vote 1,322,723 1,042,474
Percentage 39.58% 31.19%
Swing Increase3.5pp Decrease3.2pp

  Third party Fourth party
 
Leader Stephen Lewis
Party New Democratic Liberal–Labour
Leader since October 4, 1970
Leader's seat Scarborough West
Last election 38 0
Seats won 33 1
Seat change Decrease5 Increase1
Popular vote 940,961 8,242
Percentage 28.16% 0.25%
Swing Decrease0.7pp

Seating in chamber after the election

Premier before election

Bill Davis
Progressive Conservative

Premier after election

Bill Davis
Progressive Conservative

The 1977 Ontario general election was held on June 9, 1977, to elect the 125 members of the 31st Legislative Assembly of Ontario.

The Progressive Conservative Party, led by Premier Bill Davis, was re-elected for an eleventh consecutive term in office, again with a minority in the legislature. The PCs won an additional seven seats, but were not able to win a majority. The Liberal Party, led by Dr. Stuart Smith, lost one seat compared to its result in the previous election, but formed the Official Opposition because the NDP lost more seats. The New Democratic Party, led by Stephen Lewis, lost five seats, losing the status of Official Opposition to the Liberals.

Sheila Copps, future federal cabinet minister and Deputy Prime Minister of Canada, made her political debut in this election, finishing second in the riding of Hamilton Centre. This was the first election in which Jim Bradley, the second-longest serving MPP in Ontario history, was elected.

Renaming of ridings

A 1976 Act[1] made changes to the names of two ridings:

Renaming of ridings
OldNew


Campaign


Riding contests, by number of candidates (1976)[2]
Candidates PC Lib LL NDP Comm Ltn Ind SC D Total
3 6462264192
4 373737161074148
5 1414148136170
6 888778248
7 222214114
Total 125123212533312571472

A number of unregistered parties also contested this election. The North American Labour Party, consisting of Lyndon LaRouche supporters, ran three candidates in Toronto and three elsewhere in the province. The Revolutionary Marxist Group and League for Socialist Action fielded one candidate apiece; soon after the election, both groups merged into the Revolutionary Workers League.

Some members of the Social Credit Party also ran in the election, although it is not clear if they were formally endorsed by the party.


Results

[2]

Elections to the 31st Parliament of Ontario (1975)
Political party Party leader MPPs Votes
Candidates 1975 1977 ± # ± % ± (pp)
Progressive Conservative Bill Davis 12551587Increase1,322,723129,771Increase39.58%3.51Increase
Liberal Stuart Smith 12335332Decrease1,042,46483,151Decrease31.19%2.85Decrease
Liberal–Labour 211Steady8,242824Decrease0.25%0.02Decrease
New Democratic Stephen Lewis 12538335Decrease940,96115,943Decrease28.16%0.78Decrease
Libertarian Paul Mollon 319,9615,524Increase0.30%0.17Increase
Communist William Stewart 338,137983Decrease0.24%0.04Decrease
Independent 257,4143,321Increase0.22%0.10Increase
Social Credit 71,6982,448Decrease0.05%0.08Decrease
Democrat 12332330.01%New
Total 472125 125 3,341,833 100.00%
Rejected ballots 19,600 1,663Increase
Voter turnout 3,361,433 50,657Increase 65.60 2.22Decrease
Registered electors 5,123,768 620,626Increase
    Seats and popular vote by party
    PartySeatsVotesChange (pp)
     Progressive Conservative
    58 / 125
    39.58%
    3.51 3.51
     
     Liberal/Liberal-Labour
    34 / 125
    31.44%
    -2.87
     
     New Democratic
    33 / 125
    28.16%
    -0.78
     
     Independent
    0 / 125
    0.22%
    0.10 0.1
     
     Other
    0 / 125
    0.60%
    0.04 0.04
     

    Synopsis of results

    Results by riding - 1977 Ontario general election[2]
    Riding Winning party Turnout
    [a 1]
    Votes
    Name[a 2] 1975 Party Votes Share Margin
    #
    Margin
    %
    PC Lib/LL NDP Ind Other Total
     
    Algoma NDP NDP 6,91748.70%1,1668.21%77.64%5,7511,5346,91714,202
    Algoma—Manitoulin PC PC 7,38156.64%3,89529.89%64.79%7,3812,1653,48613,032
    Brampton PC PC 19,64151.92%9,74425.76%64.25%19,6417,9489,89713021637,832
    Brantford NDP NDP 13,37646.79%4,29515.02%64.87%9,0816,13013,37628,587
    Brant—Oxford—Norfolk Lib Lib 14,25657.42%8,44434.01%65.07%5,81214,2564,76024,828
    Brock PC PC 11,94451.78%6,03426.16%65.73%11,9445,9105,21523,069
    Burlington South PC PC 18,89251.06%8,41822.75%65.74%18,89210,4747,01561536,996
    Cambridge NDP NDP 11,12037.31%5541.86%65.02%10,5667,87011,12025229,808
    Carleton PC PC 14,84746.51%4,60614.43%62.96%14,84710,2416,83731,925
    Carleton East NDP NDP 12,73334.77%6811.86%65.09%12,05211,83712,73336,622
    Carleton-Grenville PC PC 14,00259.61%8,50936.22%63.39%14,0025,4933,99523,490
    Chatham—Kent PC PC 10,76946.48%4,28718.50%59.34%10,7695,9196,48223,170
    Cochrane North PC PC 10,41261.44%6,36537.56%67.02%10,4122,4884,04716,947
    Cochrane South NDP PC 12,53351.26%2,2779.31%69.89%12,5331,44210,25621924,450
    Cornwall NDP NDP 9,97846.08%4862.24%63.95%9,4922,0899,9789421,653
    Dufferin—Simcoe PC PC 15,52848.81%6,04819.01%65.30%15,5289,4806,36943831,815
    Durham East NDP PC 12,86241.66%1220.40%65.38%12,8625,12112,74015330,876
    Durham West NDP PC 12,68841.30%5931.93%65.89%12,6885,07512,09586530,723
    Durham—York PC PC 14,13451.44%7,13425.96%66.17%14,1346,3457,00027,479
    Elgin PC PC 12,65547.48%3,48113.06%68.91%12,6559,1744,65417226,655
    Erie Lib Lib 10,00848.71%4,17520.32%65.53%5,83310,0084,70420,545
    Essex North Lib Lib 9,80151.19%4,83725.26%56.75%4,3839,8014,96419,148
    Essex South Lib Lib 11,21545.69%3,22413.13%68.48%7,99111,2155,34024,546
    Fort William NDP PC 12,23046.28%2,2568.54%66.03%12,2304,0809,97414226,426
    Frontenac—Addington Lib Lib 10,50544.63%9403.99%67.46%9,56510,5053,15731223,539
    Grey Lib Lib 14,65155.39%7,06226.70%72.77%7,58914,6514,21026,450
    Grey—Bruce Lib Lib 14,82855.47%5,40320.21%75.53%9,42514,8282,47726,730
    Haldimand—Norfolk Lib Lib 15,49649.37%3,86412.31%71.38%11,63215,4964,25731,385
    Halton—Burlington Lib Lib 13,98546.82%3,69812.38%69.13%10,28713,9855,59829,870
    Hamilton Centre NDP NDP 8,21637.86%140.06%58.29%5,0928,2028,21618921,699
    Hamilton East NDP NDP 14,46147.09%5,19516.92%63.63%6,6059,26614,46137630,708
    Hamilton Mountain PC NDP 12,68138.26%3731.13%72.12%12,3087,91012,68124733,146
    Hamilton West Lib Lib 12,23943.05%3,86013.58%69.78%8,37912,2397,66814428,430
    Hastings—Peterborough PC PC 11,44247.22%1,8587.67%73.02%11,4429,5842,80824714924,230
    Huron—Bruce Lib Lib 17,35665.17%9,83336.92%74.18%7,52317,3561,75426,633
    Huron—Middlesex Lib Lib 12,74955.35%3,87116.81%76.72%8,87812,7491,40523,032
    Kenora PC PC 10,88257.14%5,62629.54%67.29%10,8822,9075,25619,045
    Kent—Elgin Lib Lib 10,03845.72%6412.92%66.86%9,39710,0382,52121,956
    Kingston and the Islands PC PC 12,24652.32%5,75624.59%61.57%12,2466,4904,51015823,404
    Kitchener Lib Lib 14,42552.06%7,51527.12%59.47%6,91014,4256,26411127,710
    Kitchener—Wilmot Lib Lib 12,45051.07%5,98024.53%58.08%6,47012,4505,45624,376
    Lake Nipigon NDP NDP 7,74767.01%5,33046.10%58.91%2,4171,3977,74711,561
    Lambton PC PC 11,60452.63%2,86312.99%70.48%11,6048,7411,70222,047
    Lanark PC PC 11,08655.42%6,08930.44%67.67%11,0863,9194,99720,002
    Leeds PC PC 14,85367.65%11,15150.79%62.33%14,8533,7023,40021,955
    Lincoln Lib Lib 9,96944.98%5822.63%70.96%9,3879,9692,80622,162
    London Centre Lib Lib 12,80845.42%3,89313.80%59.52%6,27912,8088,91520028,202
    London North Lib Lib 15,03346.99%4,40213.76%66.11%10,63115,0336,13020131,995
    London South Lib PC 16,01142.39%2,2115.85%63.70%16,01113,8007,96437,775
    Middlesex PC PC 10,42742.88%1,5386.33%75.29%10,4278,8894,99824,314
    Mississauga East PC PC 11,94545.25%3,48913.22%60.17%11,9458,4565,99426,395
    Mississauga North PC PC 16,15146.56%3,75010.81%63.04%16,1515,68412,40145134,687
    Mississauga South PC PC 13,62247.91%6,00621.12%67.08%13,6227,6167,19628,434
    Muskoka PC PC 8,86549.23%2,49713.87%73.00%8,8652,7746,36818,007
    Niagara Falls Lib Lib 13,28043.42%3,92812.84%68.11%9,35213,2807,95230,584
    Nickel Belt NDP NDP 9,41057.45%5,48733.50%67.45%3,9233,0469,41016,379
    Nipissing Lib Lib 12,89843.13%1,6665.57%71.28%11,23212,8985,77729,907
    Northumberland PC PC 14,06148.30%3,72712.80%68.07%14,06110,3344,71629,111
    Oakville PC PC 14,45650.97%6,50822.95%70.88%14,4567,9485,95528,359
    Oshawa NDP NDP 12,22653.23%5,71424.88%56.08%6,5124,03212,22619922,969
    Ottawa Centre NDP NDP 10,62641.56%2,4039.40%56.75%8,2236,35810,62636025,567
    Ottawa East Lib Lib 15,86467.44%11,80950.20%52.10%4,05515,8643,60523,524
    Ottawa South PC PC 16,66249.37%7,90323.42%66.95%16,6627,7548,75957433,749
    Ottawa West PC PC 15,72945.79%5,82316.95%66.08%15,7299,9068,71834,353
    Oxford PC PC 17,75850.98%5,10114.64%69.24%17,75812,6574,42034,835
    Parry Sound PC PC 9,92949.66%2,41912.10%70.52%9,9297,5102,55319,992
    Perth Lib Lib 18,20168.88%12,14545.96%60.70%6,05618,2012,16726,424
    Peterborough NDP PC 16,92340.66%2,6486.36%70.97%16,92310,08314,27534141,622
    Port Arthur NDP NDP 9,62940.14%3391.41%61.46%9,2904,8189,62925423,991
    Prescott and Russell PC PC 11,86348.74%2,98612.27%62.54%11,8638,8773,59724,337
    Prince Edward—Lennox PC PC 11,41155.22%5,65227.35%68.00%11,4115,7593,49420,664
    Quinte Lib Lib 17,26456.34%7,25523.68%68.31%10,00917,2643,37130,644
    Rainy River LL LL 5,33545.90%2,06717.79%63.80%3,2685,335[a 3]3,01911,622
    Renfrew North Lib Lib 9,54945.80%2,73213.10%73.96%6,8179,5494,48320,849
    Renfrew South PC PC 12,66646.56%1,0813.97%77.62%12,66611,5852,95227,203
    St. Catharines PC Lib 12,39238.89%7232.27%60.91%11,66912,3927,55624731,864
    Sarnia Lib Lib 11,50038.97%2570.87%63.42%11,24311,5006,77029,513
    Sault Ste. Marie PC PC 19,20955.28%7,54921.73%69.64%19,2093,71511,66016234,746
    Simcoe Centre PC PC 15,87644.25%5,43415.15%68.40%15,8769,55610,44235,874
    Simcoe East PC PC 13,79344.74%3,53911.48%69.47%13,7936,78310,25430,830
    Stormont—Dundas—Glengarry PC PC 10,53349.15%2,42211.30%68.28%10,5338,1112,78821,432
    Sudbury NDP NDP 11,11741.62%2,6329.85%62.39%8,4856,77811,11733026,710
    Sudbury East NDP NDP 15,99155.19%8,99031.03%63.84%7,0015,98415,99128,976
    Temiskaming NDP PC 9,57847.95%6643.32%69.48%9,5781,4818,91419,973
    Victoria—Haliburton Lib Lib 15,21853.27%4,67916.38%75.15%10,53915,2182,80928,566
    Waterloo North Lib Lib 13,55649.43%5,54020.20%62.16%8,01613,5565,85127,423
    Welland-Thorold NDP NDP 12,70446.32%2,3158.44%69.58%10,3894,33512,70427,428
    Wellington—Dufferin—Peel PC PC 14,27245.83%4,64114.90%67.42%14,2729,6317,23531,138
    Wellington South Lib Lib 16,21250.52%8,32625.95%67.27%7,66716,2127,88632532,090
    Wentworth NDP NDP 15,33259.80%9,82638.33%65.29%5,5064,80015,33225,638
    Wentworth North Lib Lib 18,32253.98%9,85829.04%71.18%8,46418,3227,15733,943
    Windsor—Riverside NDP NDP 12,94745.59%2,3758.36%60.71%4,87810,57212,94728,397
    Windsor—Sandwich NDP NDP 9,71151.36%3,68719.50%50.98%2,8386,0249,71133418,907
    Windsor—Walkerville Lib Lib 11,23353.09%6,39130.20%57.03%4,84211,2334,56516235721,159
    York Centre Lib Lib 17,73545.53%2,7687.11%66.52%14,96717,7356,24738,949
    York North PC PC 15,63948.05%5,97918.37%64.38%15,6397,2479,66032,546
    Armourdale Lib PC 14,08242.67%2,4337.37%68.16%14,08211,6496,73625828033,005
    Beaches—Woodbine NDP NDP 11,49146.51%2,2749.20%64.90%9,2173,57911,49142024,707
    Bellwoods NDP NDP 6,17747.77%2,84522.00%62.80%2,9253,3326,17715134612,931
    Don Mills PC PC 17,00555.20%8,88028.82%61.14%17,0054,9068,12577230,808
    Dovercourt NDP NDP 7,34048.30%3,15720.77%64.62%4,1833,1627,34051315,198
    Downsview NDP NDP 10,19445.10%4,04217.88%65.26%6,1525,81410,19419325122,604
    Eglinton PC PC 19,21359.60%11,74236.42%68.38%19,2137,4714,85731538232,238
    Etobicoke NDP NDP 11,63745.99%4,84819.16%64.36%6,7896,36311,63751725,306
    High Park—Swansea NDP NDP 10,40940.86%7793.06%66.53%9,6304,89710,40953725,473
    Humber PC PC 19,88850.95%9,31623.87%69.10%19,88810,5727,78179339,034
    Lakeshore NDP NDP 13,25249.76%5,29519.88%62.39%7,9574,78113,25264326,633
    Oakwood NDP NDP 9,21443.48%2,83513.38%64.98%6,3795,0469,21417038221,191
    Oriole PC PC 14,19444.32%4,48714.01%64.42%14,1949,7076,7371,10928232,029
    Parkdale NDP NDP 7,57444.12%2,44014.21%61.81%4,1165,1347,57434317,167
    Riverdale NDP NDP 9,63955.79%5,35030.97%56.51%4,2892,8219,63911741017,276
    St. Andrew—St. Patrick PC PC 11,12849.38%2,97713.21%64.40%11,1282,8958,15136022,534
    St. David PC PC 11,89444.14%8363.10%69.76%11,8943,79411,05820226,948
    St. George Lib Lib 10,11636.71%4281.55%60.90%9,68810,1166,28797549427,560
    Scarborough Centre PC PC 11,58344.76%2,79910.82%64.00%11,5835,2748,78423825,879
    Scarborough East PC PC 14,79250.91%7,52425.89%63.01%14,7926,5087,26848929,057
    Scarborough—Ellesmere NDP NDP 10,62540.52%1,5515.92%63.77%9,0746,32010,62520126,220
    Scarborough North PC PC 20,98850.11%10,68525.51%64.21%20,98810,3039,86872141,880
    Scarborough West NDP NDP 13,35054.03%6,44426.08%63.81%6,9063,83713,35017244224,707
    Wilson Heights Lib PC 11,43041.97%2,99310.99%62.93%11,4307,1958,43717427,236
    York East PC PC 14,13146.72%5,79719.17%67.55%14,1317,1268,33465430,245
    York Mills PC PC 21,79558.45%12,18332.67%66.55%21,7959,6125,05146536837,291
    York South NDP NDP 14,17850.56%6,51223.22%65.86%7,6665,33214,17886428,040
    York West PC PC 16,53846.25%6,08817.03%67.89%16,53810,4508,51026035,758
    Yorkview NDP NDP 13,32652.49%6,82326.87%58.59%4,1056,50313,32660884625,388
    1. including spoilt ballots
    2. order is as given in EO reports
    3. T. Patrick Reid was the incumbent
      = open seat
      = turnout is above provincial average
      = winning candidate was in previous Legislature
      = not incumbent; was previously elected to the Legislature
      = incumbent had switched allegiance
      = incumbency arose from byelection gain
      = previously incumbent in another riding
      = Liberal-Labour candidate
      = other incumbents renominated
      = multiple candidates


    Analysis

    Party candidates in 2nd place[2]
    Party in 1st placeParty in 2nd placeTotal
    PCLibNDP
    Progressive Conservative 312758
    Liberal 30333
    Liberal–Labour 11
    New Democratic 26733
    Total 573830125
    Candidates ranked 1st to 5th place, by party[2]
    Parties1st2nd3rd4th5th
     Progressive Conservative 585710
     Liberal 333852
     New Democratic 333068
     Liberal–Labour 11
     Communist 238
     Libertarian 199
     Independent 136
     Social Credit 61
     Democrat 1
    Resulting composition of the 28th Legislative Assembly[2]
    SourceParty
    PC Lib LL NDP Total
    Seats retainedIncumbents returned 4527131104
    Open seats held 4419
    Ouster of incumbent changing allegiance 11
    Seats changing handsIncumbents defeated 718
    Open seats gained 213
    Total 5833133125


    Seats changing hands

    Eleven seats changed allegiance in this election:

    MPPs elected by region and riding

    Party designations are as follows:

      PC
      Liberal
      NDP
      Liberal-Labour


    See also

    References

    1. The Representation Amendment Act, 1976, S.O. 1976 (2nd Session), c. 6
    2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "1975 general election results". Elections Ontario. Retrieved November 1, 2023.

    Further reading

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