Don Getty
Encyclopedia
Donald Ross Getty, OC
, AOE
(born August 30, 1933) is a retired Canadian politician who served as the 11th Premier of Alberta
between 1985 and 1992. A member of the Progressive Conservatives
, he served as Energy Minister and Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister in the government of Peter Lougheed
before leaving politics for the private sector in 1979. He returned to politics six years later to contest the leadership contest resulting from Lougheed's retirement. He defeated two other candidates, and became Premier November 1, 1985.
As Premier, Getty was faced with an economic slowdown and falling energy prices, which hit Alberta
's petroleum
-dominated economy hard. Faced with mounting government deficits and increasing unemployment, he cut social spending and intervened with government money to prevent businesses from failing. Several of these interventions backfired in high profile fashion, failing at their intended objective and costing scarce public funds as well. While some analysts argue that Getty's fiscal program laid the groundwork for Ralph Klein's later balancing of the provincial budget, on Getty's departure from office the government's debt had reached $11 billion, setting the stage for his successor to characterize the Getty years as an era of wasteful and excessive spending.
His efforts at strengthening Alberta's presence in Canada initially appeared more successful, as he won the agreement of Canada's other first ministers in including elements of Senate
reform in the Meech Lake
and Charlottetown Accord
s, but these efforts came to naught when both accords were rejected—the second by the Canadian public, including a majority of Albertans. Getty was also facing political problems within Alberta, including a defeat in his home riding
of Edmonton-Whitemud
in the 1989 election
(leading to a successful by-election in Stettler
, vacated by a P.C. MLA) and leadership machinations from some of his own ministers. In light of this, he resigned the Premiership in 1992.
Before entering politics, Getty had been a quarterback
for the Edmonton Eskimos
of the Canadian Football League
. He passed for more than eight thousand yards over his ten year career, and was put on the team's Wall of Fame in 1992.
, Quebec
on August 30, 1933 to Charles Ross Getty (1909–1974) and Beatrice Hampton Getty (1910–1973). His father had dropped out of McGill University
's medical school due to the Great Depression
and worked a variety of jobs—sometimes more than one at a time—to support his wife, three sons, and two daughters. Getty's childhood was spent in Verdun, Toronto
, Ottawa
, London
, and Agincourt, sharing a three room apartment with his seven member family in the last. Returning for London in time for high school, he became an accomplished athlete (drinking eggnog
to gain enough weight to play football) and was elected students' council president. Sports were his passion, and he was an especially great fan of the Montreal Canadiens
and Toronto Argonauts
running back Royal Copeland
. After graduating, he enrolled to study business administration at the University of Western Ontario
, where he became a football
star and a member of The Kappa Alpha Society
. He quarterbacked the Western Ontario Mustangs
to Eastern Collegiate Union Championships in 1954 and 1955, and was awarded the Claude Brown Memorial Trophy as the outstanding athlete at UWO in 1955. He also played basketball
, and was part of championship teams in that sport in 1952, 1953, and 1954. A week after his 1955 graduation, he married Margaret Mitchell, his high school sweetheart. The Edmonton Eskimos
had offered Getty a professional contract, so the newlyweds drove out west in an old blue Buick
.
While still playing football, Getty was hired by Imperial Oil
in 1955. He worked for Midwestern Industrial Gas Limited, beginning in 1961 as Lands and Contracts Manager with a promotion to Assistant General Manager following in 1963. In 1964 he founded his own company, Baldonnel Oil and Gas Company, before entering the world of finance as a partner with Doherty, Roadhouse, and McCuaig investments in 1967.
leader Peter Lougheed
to run in the 1967 provincial election
. Getty agreed to run in Strathcona West
, and defeated incumbent Social Crediter
Randolph McKinnon
by more than one thousand votes. He entered the Legislative Assembly of Alberta
as one of six newly-elected P.C.s. Four years later, in the 1971 election
, Getty was re-elected by more than 3,500 votes in the new riding of Edmonton-Whitemud
and was appointed Minister of Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs in the new Lougheed majority government. With Getty and the government both re-elected by increasing margins in the 1975 election
, Lougheed appointed him Minister of Energy. In this capacity Getty partially continued his responsibility for relations with the federal government
, as energy policy was a major sticking point between the two governments (at one point, federal Energy Minister Donald Macdonald
called Getty "dripping with venom"). Getty did not seek re-election in the 1979 election
.
and Celanese
Canada. However, when Lougheed stepped down from the Progressive Conservative leadership in 1985, Getty entered the contest to replace him and immediately became the favourite. At an October convention, Getty won a second ballot victory against Minister of Municipal Affairs Julian Koziak
and former legislator Ron Ghitter
.
just over a month later in an Edmonton-Whitemud
by-election. As Premier for nearly seven years, Getty presided over some of Alberta's toughest economic times. His government was re-elected twice with reduced majorities, in the 1986
and 1989 elections
, though Getty lost his own Edmonton-Whitemud seat in 1989 and had to run in a by-election in Stettler
, which was vacated by Progressive Conservative victor Brian C. Downey
. Getty's time in office was characterized by attempts to reduce the government's budget deficit and interventions calculated to stabilize the economy during the recession
of the 1980s. When Getty became Premier he left his predecessor's cabinet completely intact.
, reacted by raising taxes by $1 billion and cutting program spending by 6.3%, including decreases of 3% in grants to schools, universities, municipalities, and hospitals. In 1990, due to these measures, Johnston predicted that the government would be in surplus by the 1995 fiscal year. By 1992, program spending was growing at a rate of 2.3% annually, among the lowest rates in Canada. In fact, when adjusted for population growth and inflation
, government spending fell over Getty's term in office, with non-health care program spending 40% lower in 1993 than it had been in 1986 (health spending had remained approximately constant over the same period). Even so, Getty entered the premiership with no public debt and left with the public debt at $11 billion.
prices and hurt financial institutions; two Albertan banks, the Canadian Commercial Bank and the Northlands Bank, failed in September 1985. Credit unions were facing similar troubles, and the Lougheed government had, in its last days, injected $100 million into the industry.
Getty's response to these issues was interventionist. During his first budget, he targeted spending at the province's struggling agricultural sector, including a $2 billion loan program meant to address high interest rates. His government tried to stimulate the energy sector by making loan guarantees to Husky Oil ($380 million) and Syncrude
($200 million) for new and expanded capital projects. The government also provided a $55 million guarantee—in addition to a $20 million loan—to Peter Pocklington
's Gainers meat-packing plant; when Pocklington defaulted on the loan, the government seized, and eventually closed, the plant. This incident and others contributed to a perception that Getty's administration was willing to spend public money to support large businesses, but that it was indifferent to the struggles of labour (the Gainers loan had initially been made after the government brokered a labour settlement favourable to the plant's management).
Most damaging to the government's reputation was the failure of the Principal Group, an Edmonton-based trust company. Its investment subsidiaries were ordered shut down June 30, 1987, by court orders obtained at the instigation of Provincial Treasurer Dick Johnston. The parent company went bankrupt August 10 amid accusations of fraud. A court-ordered investigation led by Bill Code
found that the company was in trouble as early as 1980 and, though subsequent economic downturns hurt it, "it would not have been profitable in any event". It also found that Consumer and Corporate Affairs Minister Connie Osterman
had disregarded 1984 warnings from a regulator in her department that the company was likely insolvent. Though Osterman was fired shortly after the report's release, Getty's immediate offer of an $85 million settlement to investors further hurt the government's reputation in areas of business.
A similar incident stemmed from the 1992 privatization of Alberta Government Telephones
(AGT). NovaTel, a cellular subsidiary of AGT, had made a number of financing deals with local companies in the late 1980s, and many of these deals were collapsing just as the government was prepared to sell AGT. At the last moment, the government removed NovaTel from the AGT share
offering. NovaTel's liabilities eventually cost the government more than $600 million.
reform in particular. He made the cause the centrepiece of Alberta's constitutional policy going into the Meech Lake Accord
discussions. The Accord's final version included a provision whereby the Prime Minister
would continue to recommend senatorial appointments to the Governor-General, but would have to make their recommendations from lists provided by the provincial governments. Once it became apparent that the Meech Lake Accord would fail, Getty's government introduced the Senatorial Selection Act, which provided for an election process whenever there was a vacant Senate seat for Alberta. However, Getty's favoured candidate, Progressive Conservative Bert Brown
, was soundly defeated by Stan Waters of the upstart Reform Party of Canada
, which opposed Meech Lake and favoured aggressive senate reform. Though Prime Minister Brian Mulroney
opposed the legislation, he eventually recommended Waters for appointment to the Senate. Getty was still more successful at pursuing senate reform during the negotiations for the Charlottetown Accord
, when he won the addition of a Triple-E Senate
to the package, against Mulroney's opposition. However, the Charlottetown Accord failed after a national referendum in which a majority of Canadians, including 60.2% of Albertans, rejected it.
In 1991, Getty's Progressive Conservatives formally severed ties with the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
, which was becoming increasingly unpopular under Mulroney. Getty also broke with Mulroney on a number of issues other than Senate reform, including the new federal Goods and Services Tax
, which he fought unsuccessfully against implementing. His government also implemented legislation, against Mulroney's express wishes, that made English the only official language of Alberta. Despite these steps, Getty remained a supporter of the federal Conservatives (and not the Reform Party, to which many provincial P.C.s were defecting), whose unpopularity rubbed off on him.
Getty's government also made progress on aboriginal
land claims in the northern part of the province. In addition to creating Canada's first Métis
land base in 1989, Getty took the lead in an ultimately unsuccessful effort to negotiate a settlement between the federal government and the Lubicon Cree.
, who served in two different portfolios under Getty, described this approach in his memoirs as "you make the decisions, you run your department, but make mistakes and you're gone". Lisac credits him for knowing when to intervene and when not to, but Adair felt that his approach led to ministers working too much in isolation.
Getty was a private, reserved person, which, combined with his tendency to delegate to ministers, sometimes gave the impression of an uncaring aloofness. During the Principal Group affair, which he left primarily in the hands of Treasurer Dick Johnston
and Consumer and Corporate Affairs Minister Elaine McCoy
, a photographer captured a shot of Getty playing golf while his press secretary had said that he was "working out of the office". This was typical of his strained relationship with the media, which Adair attributed to the Premier's awkwardness and the media's unfairness.
less than three years into his 1986 mandate to take advantage of the economic optimism prevalent in the province, partly as a result of the Canada-U.S. free trade agreement
. While the P.C.s made spending promises including paving all of the province's secondary highways, the Liberals
—who had returned to the legislature in the 1986 election
after fifteen years in the political wilderness—under new leader Laurence Decore
stressed dealing with the deficit. While the end result was respectable for the government, as it lost only two net seats against its 1986 results, Getty was defeated in Edmonton-Whitemud
by Liberal Percy Wickman
. Brian C. Downey
resigned his Stettler
seat to allow Getty to run in a by-election, which he won handily. He built a home in the riding on Buffalo Lake
, and was later accused of arranging for the lake to be risen so it would be better-suited for fishing (though Adair claimed that the arrangements had been in place since 1979, when he had been Minister of Recreation, Parks and Wildlife).
Getty's relationship with his own party was often stormy. Shortly after he lost his riding in 1989, a group of Calgary Conservatives, including party budget director Jack Major
and Getty's old leadership rival Ron Ghitter
, began making plans to force party renewal, with or without Getty. They felt that the party was perceived as being tired, directionless, arrogant, and deaf to urban concerns, and that it was in political trouble in the crucial battleground of Calgary. At the 1989 party convention, recently-retired cabinet minister Marvin Moore
, who had organized Ghitter's 1985 leadership campaign, advocated for a leadership review; after a speech by Getty, the convention voted to refer the recommendation to a committee for months of study. Cabinet ministers, including Treasurer Dick Johnston
and Education Minister Jim Dinning
, began to consider leadership bids in the event that Getty retired or was pushed out.
In 1992, as the national referendum on the Charlottetown Accord
and the release of a report on the NovaTel incident loomed, Getty decided to leave politics. In his last months, he deliberately refrained from taking measures that he knew would be popular, such as shrinking cabinet, in order to leave them for his successor. After a party leadership election chose Ralph Klein to succeed him, Getty resigned as party leader December 5 and as Premier nine days later.
, writing four years before entering politics, challenged this view, asserting that Getty was running "the tightest government in Canada". Besides its management of the deficit, Getty's government is remembered for the creation of Family Day
. For the most part, however, Getty dropped quickly from the public view and public memory. Lisac suggests that this is because, unlike his predecessor and successor, he lacked a central message:
as a quarterback
. For the first part of his career, he backed up Jackie Parker
and filled in for him when he was moved to running back
. Eskimos coach Pop Ivy
surprised many observers when he started Getty at quarterback in the third game of the 1956 western final (which was a three game series at the time) during the 44th Grey Cup
, with Parker at running back. It bore results, however, as Parker tied the record for most touchdowns scored in a Grey Cup game, at three. Getty also handed the ball to Johnny Bright
for two touchdowns and scored two himself on quarterback keeps from the one yard line, as the Eskimos won their third consecutive championship over the Montreal Alouettes
by a score of 50–27. He continued with Eskimos until 1963, and also made three appearances in the 1965 season.
Getty was one of the most successful Canadian-born quarterbacks in the history of the Canadian Football League
, and sits at third on the all-time passing yardage list of Canadian quarterbacks, behind Russ Jackson
and Gerry Dattilio
, with nearly nine thousand yards. He was declared the outstanding Canadian player in the Western Interprovincial Football Union in 1959, and was the runner up (to Jackson) for the Schenley Award
as the league's most outstanding Canadian player the same year. He was placed on the Eskimos' Wall of Honour in 1992.
1Until and including the 1958 season, a tackle for a loss on a passing play was registered as a rushing attempt.
in 1998.
In July 2008, after Premier Ed Stelmach
announced $2 billion in funding to industry to develop carbon capture technology, Getty's company sought some of the funding to bury carbon dioxide
in salt caverns near Two Hills
.
* Party did not nominate candidates in the previous election.
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
, AOE
Alberta Order of Excellence
The Alberta Order of Excellence is a civilian honour for merit in the Canadian province of Alberta. Instituted in 1979 when Lieutenant Governor Frank C...
(born August 30, 1933) is a retired Canadian politician who served as the 11th Premier of Alberta
Premier of Alberta
The Premier of Alberta is the first minister for the Canadian province of Alberta. He or she is the province's head of government and de facto chief executive. The current Premier of Alberta is Alison Redford. She became Premier by winning the Progressive Conservative leadership elections on...
between 1985 and 1992. A member of the Progressive Conservatives
Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta
The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta...
, he served as Energy Minister and Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs Minister in the government of Peter Lougheed
Peter Lougheed
Edgar Peter Lougheed, PC, CC, AOE, QC, is a Canadian lawyer, and a former politician and Canadian Football League player. He served as the tenth Premier of Alberta from 1971 to 1985....
before leaving politics for the private sector in 1979. He returned to politics six years later to contest the leadership contest resulting from Lougheed's retirement. He defeated two other candidates, and became Premier November 1, 1985.
As Premier, Getty was faced with an economic slowdown and falling energy prices, which hit Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...
's petroleum
Petroleum
Petroleum or crude oil is a naturally occurring, flammable liquid consisting of a complex mixture of hydrocarbons of various molecular weights and other liquid organic compounds, that are found in geologic formations beneath the Earth's surface. Petroleum is recovered mostly through oil drilling...
-dominated economy hard. Faced with mounting government deficits and increasing unemployment, he cut social spending and intervened with government money to prevent businesses from failing. Several of these interventions backfired in high profile fashion, failing at their intended objective and costing scarce public funds as well. While some analysts argue that Getty's fiscal program laid the groundwork for Ralph Klein's later balancing of the provincial budget, on Getty's departure from office the government's debt had reached $11 billion, setting the stage for his successor to characterize the Getty years as an era of wasteful and excessive spending.
His efforts at strengthening Alberta's presence in Canada initially appeared more successful, as he won the agreement of Canada's other first ministers in including elements of Senate
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
reform in the Meech Lake
Meech Lake Accord
The Meech Lake Accord was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and ten provincial premiers. It was intended to persuade the government of the Province of Quebec to endorse the 1982 Canadian Constitution and increase...
and Charlottetown Accord
Charlottetown Accord
The Charlottetown Accord was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada, proposed by the Canadian federal and provincial governments in 1992. It was submitted to a public referendum on October 26 of that year, and was defeated.-Background:...
s, but these efforts came to naught when both accords were rejected—the second by the Canadian public, including a majority of Albertans. Getty was also facing political problems within Alberta, including a defeat in his home riding
Electoral district (Canada)
An electoral district in Canada, also known as a constituency or a riding, is a geographical constituency upon which Canada's representative democracy is based...
of Edmonton-Whitemud
Edmonton-Whitemud
Edmonton-Whitemud is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. In 1989, its constituents unseated the Premier of the day, Donald Getty, by voting for Liberal candidate, Percy Wickman....
in the 1989 election
Alberta general election, 1989
The Alberta general election of 1989 was the twenty-second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 20, 1989 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
(leading to a successful by-election in Stettler
Stettler (provincial electoral district)
Stettler was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. It was mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1909 to 1993.-1957 liquor plebiscite:...
, vacated by a P.C. MLA) and leadership machinations from some of his own ministers. In light of this, he resigned the Premiership in 1992.
Before entering politics, Getty had been a quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
for the Edmonton Eskimos
Edmonton Eskimos
The Edmonton Eskimos are a Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. They currently play in the West Division of the Canadian Football League . Edmonton is currently the third-youngest franchise in the CFL, although there were clubs with the name Edmonton Eskimos as early as 1895...
of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
. He passed for more than eight thousand yards over his ten year career, and was put on the team's Wall of Fame in 1992.
Early life
Don Getty was born in WestmountWestmount, Quebec
Westmount is a city on the Island of Montreal, an enclave of the city of Montreal, in southwestern Quebec, Canada; pop. 20,494; area 4.02 km²; population density of 5,092.56 inhabitants/km²....
, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
on August 30, 1933 to Charles Ross Getty (1909–1974) and Beatrice Hampton Getty (1910–1973). His father had dropped out of McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
's medical school due to the Great Depression
Great Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
and worked a variety of jobs—sometimes more than one at a time—to support his wife, three sons, and two daughters. Getty's childhood was spent in Verdun, Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, London
London, Ontario
London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
, and Agincourt, sharing a three room apartment with his seven member family in the last. Returning for London in time for high school, he became an accomplished athlete (drinking eggnog
Eggnog
Eggnog, or egg nog, is a sweetened dairy-based beverage traditionally made with milk and/or cream, sugar, beaten eggs , and liquor...
to gain enough weight to play football) and was elected students' council president. Sports were his passion, and he was an especially great fan of the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
and Toronto Argonauts
Toronto Argonauts
The Toronto Argonauts are a professional Canadian football team competing in the East Division of the Canadian Football League. The Toronto, Ontario based team was founded in 1873 and is one of the oldest existing professional sports teams in North America, after the Chicago Cubs and the Atlanta...
running back Royal Copeland
Royal Copeland (football player)
Royal Copeland was a Canadian Football League running back from 1945-1956.Copeland won four Grey Cups with the Toronto Argonauts. He became a member of the Canadian Football Hall of Fame in 1988. Along with Joe Krol they were known as the Gold Dust Twins...
. After graduating, he enrolled to study business administration at the University of Western Ontario
University of Western Ontario
The University of Western Ontario is a public research university located in London, Ontario, Canada. The university's main campus covers of land, with the Thames River cutting through the eastern portion of the main campus. Western administers its programs through 12 different faculties and...
, where he became a football
Canadian football
Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played exclusively in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area...
star and a member of The Kappa Alpha Society
Kappa Alpha Society
The Kappa Alpha Society , founded in 1825, was the progenitor of the modern fraternity system in North America. It was the first of the fraternities which would eventually become known as the Union Triad...
. He quarterbacked the Western Ontario Mustangs
Western Ontario Mustangs
The Western Ontario Mustangs are the athletic teams that represent the University of Western Ontario in London, Ontario, Canada...
to Eastern Collegiate Union Championships in 1954 and 1955, and was awarded the Claude Brown Memorial Trophy as the outstanding athlete at UWO in 1955. He also played basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, and was part of championship teams in that sport in 1952, 1953, and 1954. A week after his 1955 graduation, he married Margaret Mitchell, his high school sweetheart. The Edmonton Eskimos
Edmonton Eskimos
The Edmonton Eskimos are a Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. They currently play in the West Division of the Canadian Football League . Edmonton is currently the third-youngest franchise in the CFL, although there were clubs with the name Edmonton Eskimos as early as 1895...
had offered Getty a professional contract, so the newlyweds drove out west in an old blue Buick
Buick
Buick is a premium brand of General Motors . Buick models are sold in the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, Taiwan, and Israel, with China being its largest market. Buick holds the distinction as the oldest active American make...
.
While still playing football, Getty was hired by Imperial Oil
Imperial Oil
Imperial Oil Limited is Canada's largest petroleum company. The company is engaged in the exploration, production and sale of crude oil and natural gas. It is controlled by US based ExxonMobil, which owns 69.6% of its stock...
in 1955. He worked for Midwestern Industrial Gas Limited, beginning in 1961 as Lands and Contracts Manager with a promotion to Assistant General Manager following in 1963. In 1964 he founded his own company, Baldonnel Oil and Gas Company, before entering the world of finance as a partner with Doherty, Roadhouse, and McCuaig investments in 1967.
MLA and cabinet minister
In 1965, Getty was approached by fellow Eskimos veteran and Progressive ConservativeProgressive Conservative Association of Alberta
The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta...
leader Peter Lougheed
Peter Lougheed
Edgar Peter Lougheed, PC, CC, AOE, QC, is a Canadian lawyer, and a former politician and Canadian Football League player. He served as the tenth Premier of Alberta from 1971 to 1985....
to run in the 1967 provincial election
Alberta general election, 1967
The Alberta general election of 1967 was the sixteenth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on May 23, 1967 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
. Getty agreed to run in Strathcona West
Strathcona West
Strathcona West was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. It was created in 1959 when Edmonton broke up into nine ridings.In 1971 the riding was split between Edmonton-Whitemud and Edmonton-Parkallen.-1959 Redistribution:...
, and defeated incumbent Social Crediter
Social Credit Party of Alberta
The Alberta Social Credit Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada, that was founded on the social credit monetary policy and conservative Christian social values....
Randolph McKinnon
Randolph McKinnon
Randolph Hugh McKinnon was a provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1959 to 1967 sitting with the Social Credit caucus in government...
by more than one thousand votes. He entered the Legislative Assembly of Alberta
Legislative Assembly of Alberta
The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is one of two components of the Legislature of Alberta, the other being the Queen, represented by the Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta. The Alberta legislature meets in the Alberta Legislature Building in the provincial capital, Edmonton...
as one of six newly-elected P.C.s. Four years later, in the 1971 election
Alberta general election, 1971
The Alberta general election of 1971 was the seventeenth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on August 30, 1971 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
, Getty was re-elected by more than 3,500 votes in the new riding of Edmonton-Whitemud
Edmonton-Whitemud
Edmonton-Whitemud is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. In 1989, its constituents unseated the Premier of the day, Donald Getty, by voting for Liberal candidate, Percy Wickman....
and was appointed Minister of Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs in the new Lougheed majority government. With Getty and the government both re-elected by increasing margins in the 1975 election
Alberta general election, 1975
The Alberta general election of 1975 was the eighteenth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 25, 1975 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
, Lougheed appointed him Minister of Energy. In this capacity Getty partially continued his responsibility for relations with the federal government
Government of Canada
The Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...
, as energy policy was a major sticking point between the two governments (at one point, federal Energy Minister Donald Macdonald
Donald Stovel Macdonald
Donald Stovel Macdonald, PC, CC is a former Canadian Liberal politician and Cabinet minister.Macdonald graduated from the University of Trinity College in the University of Toronto in 1952. He was first elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 1962 election as the Liberal Member of...
called Getty "dripping with venom"). Getty did not seek re-election in the 1979 election
Alberta general election, 1979
The Alberta general election of 1979 was the nineteenth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 14, 1979 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
.
Hiatus from politics and leadership fight
While out of politics, Getty became the head of an investment firm and sat on the boards of a number of corporations, including the Royal Bank of CanadaRoyal Bank of Canada
The Royal Bank of Canada or RBC Financial Group is the largest financial institution in Canada, as measured by deposits, revenues, and market capitalization. The bank serves seventeen million clients and has 80,100 employees worldwide. The company corporate headquarters are located in Toronto,...
and Celanese
Celanese
Celanese Corporation is a Fortune 500 global technology and specialty materials company with its headquarters in Dallas, Texas. The company is a leading producer of acetyl products, which are intermediate chemicals for nearly all major industries, and is the world's largest producer of vinyl...
Canada. However, when Lougheed stepped down from the Progressive Conservative leadership in 1985, Getty entered the contest to replace him and immediately became the favourite. At an October convention, Getty won a second ballot victory against Minister of Municipal Affairs Julian Koziak
Julian Koziak
Julian Koziak is a former provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1971 until 1986.-Political career:...
and former legislator Ron Ghitter
Ron Ghitter
Ronald D. Ghitter is a Canadian lawyer and former Senator.Born in Calgary, Alberta, he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1956 and his Bachelor of Law degree in 1959 from the University of Alberta. He practised real estate law in Calgary...
.
Premier
Getty was appointed Premier November 1, 1985 and returned to the legislatureLegislative Assembly of Alberta
The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is one of two components of the Legislature of Alberta, the other being the Queen, represented by the Lieutenant-Governor of Alberta. The Alberta legislature meets in the Alberta Legislature Building in the provincial capital, Edmonton...
just over a month later in an Edmonton-Whitemud
Edmonton-Whitemud
Edmonton-Whitemud is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. In 1989, its constituents unseated the Premier of the day, Donald Getty, by voting for Liberal candidate, Percy Wickman....
by-election. As Premier for nearly seven years, Getty presided over some of Alberta's toughest economic times. His government was re-elected twice with reduced majorities, in the 1986
Alberta general election, 1986
The Alberta general election of 1986 was the twenty-first general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on May 8, 1986 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
and 1989 elections
Alberta general election, 1989
The Alberta general election of 1989 was the twenty-second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 20, 1989 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
, though Getty lost his own Edmonton-Whitemud seat in 1989 and had to run in a by-election in Stettler
Stettler (provincial electoral district)
Stettler was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. It was mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1909 to 1993.-1957 liquor plebiscite:...
, which was vacated by Progressive Conservative victor Brian C. Downey
Brian C. Downey
Brian C. Downey is a former politician from Alberta, Canada.Downey was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta for the riding of Stettler as a Progressive Conservative member during the 1986 Alberta general election. He served his first term as a backbencher in the Don Getty government...
. Getty's time in office was characterized by attempts to reduce the government's budget deficit and interventions calculated to stabilize the economy during the recession
Recession
In economics, a recession is a business cycle contraction, a general slowdown in economic activity. During recessions, many macroeconomic indicators vary in a similar way...
of the 1980s. When Getty became Premier he left his predecessor's cabinet completely intact.
Budget deficit
After Getty won the party leadership, Lougheed told him to expect a budget deficit of $2.5 billion in his first year in office, though the figure turned out to be $2.1 billion. Things got worse the next year as a drop in energy prices led to the oil-rich province running a deficit of $3.4 billion, as energy revenues fell by $3 billion. Getty's Treasurer, Dick JohnstonArchibald D. Johnston
Archibald Dick Johnston is a former provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1975 to 1993.-Political career:...
, reacted by raising taxes by $1 billion and cutting program spending by 6.3%, including decreases of 3% in grants to schools, universities, municipalities, and hospitals. In 1990, due to these measures, Johnston predicted that the government would be in surplus by the 1995 fiscal year. By 1992, program spending was growing at a rate of 2.3% annually, among the lowest rates in Canada. In fact, when adjusted for population growth and inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...
, government spending fell over Getty's term in office, with non-health care program spending 40% lower in 1993 than it had been in 1986 (health spending had remained approximately constant over the same period). Even so, Getty entered the premiership with no public debt and left with the public debt at $11 billion.
Economic intervention
Getty's government was faced with a combination of a general economic malaise and falling oil prices. The slowdown in the energy sector contributed to a decrease in capital spending, which reduced demand for labour in the construction industry by 50% between 1980 and 1985. Many workers left the province, which suppressed real estateReal estate
In general use, esp. North American, 'real estate' is taken to mean "Property consisting of land and the buildings on it, along with its natural resources such as crops, minerals, or water; immovable property of this nature; an interest vested in this; an item of real property; buildings or...
prices and hurt financial institutions; two Albertan banks, the Canadian Commercial Bank and the Northlands Bank, failed in September 1985. Credit unions were facing similar troubles, and the Lougheed government had, in its last days, injected $100 million into the industry.
Getty's response to these issues was interventionist. During his first budget, he targeted spending at the province's struggling agricultural sector, including a $2 billion loan program meant to address high interest rates. His government tried to stimulate the energy sector by making loan guarantees to Husky Oil ($380 million) and Syncrude
Syncrude
Syncrude Canada Ltd. is the world's largest producer of synthetic crude oil from oil sands and the largest single source producer in Canada. It is located just outside Fort McMurray in the Athabasca Oil Sands, and has a nameplate capacity of of oil, equivalent to about 13% of Canada's consumption...
($200 million) for new and expanded capital projects. The government also provided a $55 million guarantee—in addition to a $20 million loan—to Peter Pocklington
Peter Pocklington
Peter Hugh Pocklington is a Canadian entrepreneur.He made his initial fortune as the owner of one of the largest auto dealerships in Canada, and later took over a meat packing company involved in a high-profile labour strike....
's Gainers meat-packing plant; when Pocklington defaulted on the loan, the government seized, and eventually closed, the plant. This incident and others contributed to a perception that Getty's administration was willing to spend public money to support large businesses, but that it was indifferent to the struggles of labour (the Gainers loan had initially been made after the government brokered a labour settlement favourable to the plant's management).
Most damaging to the government's reputation was the failure of the Principal Group, an Edmonton-based trust company. Its investment subsidiaries were ordered shut down June 30, 1987, by court orders obtained at the instigation of Provincial Treasurer Dick Johnston. The parent company went bankrupt August 10 amid accusations of fraud. A court-ordered investigation led by Bill Code
Bill Code
-Political career:Bill Code made his first attempt at public office when he ran as a candidate for the Canadian House of Commons under the Liberal Party of Canada banner in the 1984 Canadian federal election in the riding of Calgary West. In that election he finished second, in a field of seven...
found that the company was in trouble as early as 1980 and, though subsequent economic downturns hurt it, "it would not have been profitable in any event". It also found that Consumer and Corporate Affairs Minister Connie Osterman
Connie Osterman
Constance "Connie" Elaine Osterman is a former provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. She served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1979 to 1992 sitting with the Progressive Conservative caucus in government...
had disregarded 1984 warnings from a regulator in her department that the company was likely insolvent. Though Osterman was fired shortly after the report's release, Getty's immediate offer of an $85 million settlement to investors further hurt the government's reputation in areas of business.
A similar incident stemmed from the 1992 privatization of Alberta Government Telephones
Alberta Government Telephones
Alberta Government Telephones was formed by the Liberal government of Alexander Cameron Rutherford in 1906 following the acquisitions by the government of several independent telephone companies...
(AGT). NovaTel, a cellular subsidiary of AGT, had made a number of financing deals with local companies in the late 1980s, and many of these deals were collapsing just as the government was prepared to sell AGT. At the last moment, the government removed NovaTel from the AGT share
Share (finance)
A joint stock company divides its capital into units of equal denomination. Each unit is called a share. These units are offered for sale to raise capital. This is termed as issuing shares. A person who buys share/shares of the company is called a shareholder, and by acquiring share or shares in...
offering. NovaTel's liabilities eventually cost the government more than $600 million.
Intergovernmental and constitutional affairs
As a former Minister of Federal and Intergovernmental Affairs, Getty had strong views about constitutional matters, and about SenateCanadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
reform in particular. He made the cause the centrepiece of Alberta's constitutional policy going into the Meech Lake Accord
Meech Lake Accord
The Meech Lake Accord was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and ten provincial premiers. It was intended to persuade the government of the Province of Quebec to endorse the 1982 Canadian Constitution and increase...
discussions. The Accord's final version included a provision whereby the Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
would continue to recommend senatorial appointments to the Governor-General, but would have to make their recommendations from lists provided by the provincial governments. Once it became apparent that the Meech Lake Accord would fail, Getty's government introduced the Senatorial Selection Act, which provided for an election process whenever there was a vacant Senate seat for Alberta. However, Getty's favoured candidate, Progressive Conservative Bert Brown
Bert Brown
For the English footballer Bert Brown, see Sailor BrownBert Brown is a Canadian Senator and retired farmer and development consultant currently residing in Balzac, Alberta.-Early life:...
, was soundly defeated by Stan Waters of the upstart Reform Party of Canada
Reform Party of Canada
The Reform Party of Canada was a Canadian federal political party that existed from 1987 to 2000. It was originally founded as a Western Canada-based protest party, but attempted to expand eastward in the 1990s. It viewed itself as a populist party....
, which opposed Meech Lake and favoured aggressive senate reform. Though Prime Minister Brian Mulroney
Brian Mulroney
Martin Brian Mulroney, was the 18th Prime Minister of Canada from September 17, 1984, to June 25, 1993 and was leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada from 1983 to 1993. His tenure as Prime Minister was marked by the introduction of major economic reforms, such as the Canada-U.S...
opposed the legislation, he eventually recommended Waters for appointment to the Senate. Getty was still more successful at pursuing senate reform during the negotiations for the Charlottetown Accord
Charlottetown Accord
The Charlottetown Accord was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada, proposed by the Canadian federal and provincial governments in 1992. It was submitted to a public referendum on October 26 of that year, and was defeated.-Background:...
, when he won the addition of a Triple-E Senate
Triple-E Senate
The Triple-E Senate is a proposed variation of reform to the current Canadian Senate, calling for senators to be elected to exercise effective powers in numbers equally representative of each province; this is in contrast to the present arrangement wherein individuals are appointed to the Senate...
to the package, against Mulroney's opposition. However, the Charlottetown Accord failed after a national referendum in which a majority of Canadians, including 60.2% of Albertans, rejected it.
In 1991, Getty's Progressive Conservatives formally severed ties with the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
, which was becoming increasingly unpopular under Mulroney. Getty also broke with Mulroney on a number of issues other than Senate reform, including the new federal Goods and Services Tax
Goods and Services Tax (Canada)
The Goods and Services Tax is a multi-level value added tax introduced in Canada on January 1, 1991, by then Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and his finance minister Michael Wilson. The GST replaced a hidden 13.5% Manufacturers' Sales Tax ; Mulroney claimed the GST was implemented because the MST...
, which he fought unsuccessfully against implementing. His government also implemented legislation, against Mulroney's express wishes, that made English the only official language of Alberta. Despite these steps, Getty remained a supporter of the federal Conservatives (and not the Reform Party, to which many provincial P.C.s were defecting), whose unpopularity rubbed off on him.
Getty's government also made progress on aboriginal
Aboriginal peoples in Canada
Aboriginal peoples in Canada comprise the First Nations, Inuit and Métis. The descriptors "Indian" and "Eskimo" have fallen into disuse in Canada and are commonly considered pejorative....
land claims in the northern part of the province. In addition to creating Canada's first Métis
Métis people (Canada)
The Métis are one of the Aboriginal peoples in Canada who trace their descent to mixed First Nations parentage. The term was historically a catch-all describing the offspring of any such union, but within generations the culture syncretised into what is today a distinct aboriginal group, with...
land base in 1989, Getty took the lead in an ultimately unsuccessful effort to negotiate a settlement between the federal government and the Lubicon Cree.
Political style
In contrast to his predecessor, who was actively involved in most elements of his government, Getty preferred to set the government's broad direction and leave lower-level details to his ministers. Ralph Klein, while serving as Environment Minister under Getty, commented that "If you are a minister, you run that portfolio yourself" and expressed an appreciation for the freedom that the Premier gave his cabinet. Al AdairAl Adair
James Allen "Al" "Boomer" Adair was a minor league baseball player, radio broadcaster, published author and provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1971 to 1993.-Early life:Adair played minor league Baseball for the Peace...
, who served in two different portfolios under Getty, described this approach in his memoirs as "you make the decisions, you run your department, but make mistakes and you're gone". Lisac credits him for knowing when to intervene and when not to, but Adair felt that his approach led to ministers working too much in isolation.
Getty was a private, reserved person, which, combined with his tendency to delegate to ministers, sometimes gave the impression of an uncaring aloofness. During the Principal Group affair, which he left primarily in the hands of Treasurer Dick Johnston
Archibald D. Johnston
Archibald Dick Johnston is a former provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1975 to 1993.-Political career:...
and Consumer and Corporate Affairs Minister Elaine McCoy
Elaine McCoy
Elaine McCoy, QC, BA, LL.B is a Canadian senator from Alberta. She has been the last remaining member of the Canadian Senate to sit as a Progressive Conservative since the retirement of Senator Lowell Murray on September 26, 2011.-Senate of Canada:Senator McCoy was appointed to the Senate by...
, a photographer captured a shot of Getty playing golf while his press secretary had said that he was "working out of the office". This was typical of his strained relationship with the media, which Adair attributed to the Premier's awkwardness and the media's unfairness.
Decline and retirement
Getty called the 1989 electionAlberta general election, 1989
The Alberta general election of 1989 was the twenty-second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 20, 1989 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
less than three years into his 1986 mandate to take advantage of the economic optimism prevalent in the province, partly as a result of the Canada-U.S. free trade agreement
North American Free Trade Agreement
The North American Free Trade Agreement or NAFTA is an agreement signed by the governments of Canada, Mexico, and the United States, creating a trilateral trade bloc in North America. The agreement came into force on January 1, 1994. It superseded the Canada – United States Free Trade Agreement...
. While the P.C.s made spending promises including paving all of the province's secondary highways, the Liberals
Alberta Liberal Party
The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time...
—who had returned to the legislature in the 1986 election
Alberta general election, 1986
The Alberta general election of 1986 was the twenty-first general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on May 8, 1986 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta....
after fifteen years in the political wilderness—under new leader Laurence Decore
Laurence Decore
Laurence G. Decore, CM was a Ukrainian-Canadian lawyer and politician from Alberta. He was mayor of Edmonton, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, and leader of the Alberta Liberal Party.- Early life :...
stressed dealing with the deficit. While the end result was respectable for the government, as it lost only two net seats against its 1986 results, Getty was defeated in Edmonton-Whitemud
Edmonton-Whitemud
Edmonton-Whitemud is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. In 1989, its constituents unseated the Premier of the day, Donald Getty, by voting for Liberal candidate, Percy Wickman....
by Liberal Percy Wickman
Percy Wickman
Percy Dwight Wickman was a Canadian politician and well-known activist for people with disabilities. He was born in Thunder Bay, Ontario.Wickman served as an alderman on Edmonton City Council from 1977 to 1986...
. Brian C. Downey
Brian C. Downey
Brian C. Downey is a former politician from Alberta, Canada.Downey was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta for the riding of Stettler as a Progressive Conservative member during the 1986 Alberta general election. He served his first term as a backbencher in the Don Getty government...
resigned his Stettler
Stettler (provincial electoral district)
Stettler was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. It was mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1909 to 1993.-1957 liquor plebiscite:...
seat to allow Getty to run in a by-election, which he won handily. He built a home in the riding on Buffalo Lake
Buffalo Lake (Alberta)
Buffalo Lake is a large lake in central Alberta. It is located in at the limit between Camrose County, Stettler County and Lacombe County, 40 km east of Red Deer....
, and was later accused of arranging for the lake to be risen so it would be better-suited for fishing (though Adair claimed that the arrangements had been in place since 1979, when he had been Minister of Recreation, Parks and Wildlife).
Getty's relationship with his own party was often stormy. Shortly after he lost his riding in 1989, a group of Calgary Conservatives, including party budget director Jack Major
John C. Major
John Charles "Jack" Major, CC, QC is a Canadian jurist and was a puisne justice on the Supreme Court of Canada from 1992 to 2005....
and Getty's old leadership rival Ron Ghitter
Ron Ghitter
Ronald D. Ghitter is a Canadian lawyer and former Senator.Born in Calgary, Alberta, he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1956 and his Bachelor of Law degree in 1959 from the University of Alberta. He practised real estate law in Calgary...
, began making plans to force party renewal, with or without Getty. They felt that the party was perceived as being tired, directionless, arrogant, and deaf to urban concerns, and that it was in political trouble in the crucial battleground of Calgary. At the 1989 party convention, recently-retired cabinet minister Marvin Moore
Marvin Moore
Marvin Everard Moore was a former provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1971 to 1989...
, who had organized Ghitter's 1985 leadership campaign, advocated for a leadership review; after a speech by Getty, the convention voted to refer the recommendation to a committee for months of study. Cabinet ministers, including Treasurer Dick Johnston
Archibald D. Johnston
Archibald Dick Johnston is a former provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1975 to 1993.-Political career:...
and Education Minister Jim Dinning
Jim Dinning
Jim Dinning is a Canadian Progressive Conservative politician and businessman. He was a Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta , and now serves on the board of directors of a variety of Canadian companies. Dinning ran for the leadership of the Alberta Progressive Conservatives to replace...
, began to consider leadership bids in the event that Getty retired or was pushed out.
In 1992, as the national referendum on the Charlottetown Accord
Charlottetown Accord
The Charlottetown Accord was a package of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada, proposed by the Canadian federal and provincial governments in 1992. It was submitted to a public referendum on October 26 of that year, and was defeated.-Background:...
and the release of a report on the NovaTel incident loomed, Getty decided to leave politics. In his last months, he deliberately refrained from taking measures that he knew would be popular, such as shrinking cabinet, in order to leave them for his successor. After a party leadership election chose Ralph Klein to succeed him, Getty resigned as party leader December 5 and as Premier nine days later.
Political legacy
As Premier, Klein positioned himself in contrast to Getty, asserting that the government had "a spending problem", and stating that he had become Premier at a time of "uncontrolled spending". Given Klein's aggressive spending cuts, which shaped the political climate of Alberta for much of the 1990s, Getty's legacy with respect to public finances has been criticized. However, Kevin TaftKevin Taft
Kevin Taft is a Liberal politician in Alberta, Canada. He was the leader of the Alberta Liberal Party and Leader of the Opposition in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, from 2004 to 2008...
, writing four years before entering politics, challenged this view, asserting that Getty was running "the tightest government in Canada". Besides its management of the deficit, Getty's government is remembered for the creation of Family Day
Family Day (Canada)
In parts of Canada, the February Civic Holiday is a statutory holiday occurring on the third Monday in February. In the provinces of Ontario, Alberta and Saskatchewan it is termed Family Day. By contrast, in the provinces of Manitoba and Prince Edward Island, the statutory holiday on this date is...
. For the most part, however, Getty dropped quickly from the public view and public memory. Lisac suggests that this is because, unlike his predecessor and successor, he lacked a central message:
Professional football career
Don Getty played ten seasons with the Edmonton EskimosEdmonton Eskimos
The Edmonton Eskimos are a Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. They currently play in the West Division of the Canadian Football League . Edmonton is currently the third-youngest franchise in the CFL, although there were clubs with the name Edmonton Eskimos as early as 1895...
as a quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
. For the first part of his career, he backed up Jackie Parker
Jackie Parker
John Dickerson "Jackie" Parker was an American football player who became an All-American in college football and an outstanding professional football player in the Canadian Football League at the running back, quarterback, defensive back, and kicker positions. He is primarily known for his play...
and filled in for him when he was moved to running back
Running back
A running back is a gridiron football position, who is typically lined up in the offensive backfield. The primary roles of a running back are to receive handoffs from the quarterback for a rushing play, to catch passes from out of the backfield, and to block.There are usually one or two running...
. Eskimos coach Pop Ivy
Pop Ivy
Frank "Pop" Ivy was a football player and coach who holds the unique distinction of being the only person ever to serve as a head coach in the National Football League, the American Football League and the Western Interprovincial Football Union.A native of Skiatook, Oklahoma, Ivy was part Native...
surprised many observers when he started Getty at quarterback in the third game of the 1956 western final (which was a three game series at the time) during the 44th Grey Cup
44th Grey Cup
The 44th Grey Cup game was played on November 24, 1956 before 27,425 fans at Varsity Stadium in Toronto.The favoured Edmonton Eskimos won their third straight Grey Cup over the Montreal Alouettes by the score of 50 to 27....
, with Parker at running back. It bore results, however, as Parker tied the record for most touchdowns scored in a Grey Cup game, at three. Getty also handed the ball to Johnny Bright
Johnny Bright
Johnny D. Bright was a professional Canadian football player in the Canadian Football League. He played college football at Drake University...
for two touchdowns and scored two himself on quarterback keeps from the one yard line, as the Eskimos won their third consecutive championship over the Montreal Alouettes
Montreal Alouettes
The Montreal Alouettes are a Canadian Football League team based in Montreal, Quebec.The current franchise named the Alouettes moved to Montreal from Baltimore, Maryland, in 1996 where they had been known as the Baltimore Stallions...
by a score of 50–27. He continued with Eskimos until 1963, and also made three appearances in the 1965 season.
Getty was one of the most successful Canadian-born quarterbacks in the history of the Canadian Football League
Canadian Football League
The Canadian Football League or CFL is a professional sports league located in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football, a form of gridiron football closely related to American football....
, and sits at third on the all-time passing yardage list of Canadian quarterbacks, behind Russ Jackson
Russ Jackson
Russell Stanley "Russ" Jackson, OC is a former professional Canadian football quarterback. Jackson spent his entire 12-year professional football career with the Ottawa Rough Riders of the Canadian Football League...
and Gerry Dattilio
Gerry Dattilio
Gerry Dattilio is a former professional Canadian football quarterback in the Canadian Football League.- Early years :Dattilio played his high school football with the Chomedey Chiefs in the late 1960s and early 1970s, when he won a City Championship by beating St. Thomas High School of...
, with nearly nine thousand yards. He was declared the outstanding Canadian player in the Western Interprovincial Football Union in 1959, and was the runner up (to Jackson) for the Schenley Award
CFL's Most Outstanding Canadian Award
The Most Outstanding Canadian Award is annually rewarded to the best Canadian player in the Canadian Football League. This is the second-last award to be given during the CFL Awards banquet, which takes place the week before Grey Cup weekend in the same city where it is hosted. The two nominees...
as the league's most outstanding Canadian player the same year. He was placed on the Eskimos' Wall of Honour in 1992.
Career statistics
| Passing | Rushing1 | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | PA | PC | Pct | Yds | TD | Int | Car | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
| 1955 | Edm Edmonton Eskimos The Edmonton Eskimos are a Canadian football team based in Edmonton, Alberta. They currently play in the West Division of the Canadian Football League . Edmonton is currently the third-youngest franchise in the CFL, although there were clubs with the name Edmonton Eskimos as early as 1895... |
63 | 35 | 55.6% | 558 | 7 | 5 | 32 | 35 | 1.1 | 0 | 18 |
| 1956 | Edm | 44 | 18 | 40.9% | 256 | 3 | 3 | 11 | -24 | -2.2 | 0 | 8 |
| 1957 | Edm | 122 | 83 | 68.0% | 1,359 | 11 | 8 | 17 | -15 | -0.9 | 0 | 8 |
| 1958 1958 CFL season The 1958 CFL season was the fifth season in modern Canadian professional football, although officially it would become known as the inaugural season of the Canadian Football League .-CFL news in 1958:... |
Edm | 60 | 23 | 38.3% | 334 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 29 | 1.9 | 0 | 6 |
| 1959 1959 CFL season The 1959 CFL season was the sixth season in modern Canadian professional football, although officially it was the second season of the Canadian Football League.-Final regular season standings:... |
Edm | 198 | 116 | 58.6% | 2,080 | 10 | 11 | 29 | 134 | 4.6 | 0 | 17 |
| 1960 1960 CFL season The 1960 Canadian Football League season is considered to be the 7th season in modern-day Canadian football, although it is officially the 3rd Canadian Football League season.-CFL News in 1960:... |
Edm | 82 | 39 | 47.6% | 674 | 3 | 4 | 11 | 44 | 4.0 | 0 | 16 |
| 1961 1961 CFL season The 1961 Canadian Football League season is considered to be the 8th season in modern-day Canadian football, although it is officially the 4th Canadian Football League season.-CFL News in 1961:... |
Edm | 126 | 69 | 54.8% | 1,276 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 67 | 4.2 | 0 | 18 |
| 1962 1962 CFL season The 1962 Canadian Football League season is considered to be the 9th season in modern-day Canadian football, although it is officially the 5th Canadian Football League season.-CFL News in 1962:The Canadian Football Hall of Fame was established in Hamilton.... |
Edm | 163 | 92 | 56.4% | 1,465 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 35 | 3.1 | 0 | 11 |
| 1963 1963 CFL season The 1963 Canadian Football League season is considered to be the 10th season in modern-day Canadian football, although it is officially the 6th Canadian Football League season.-CFL News in 1963:... |
Edm | 125 | 64 | 51.2% | 913 | 6 | 8 | 7 | 14 | 2 | 1 | 11 |
| 1965 1965 CFL season The 1965 Canadian Football League season is considered to be the 12th season in modern-day Canadian football, although it is officially the 8th Canadian Football League season.-CFL News in 1965:... |
Edm | 9 | 4 | 44.4% | 37 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 992 | 543 | 54.7% | 8,952 | 58 | 60 | 149 | 318 | 2.1 | 1 | 18 | |
1Until and including the 1958 season, a tackle for a loss on a passing play was registered as a rushing attempt.
Retirement
Getty kept a low profile after leaving politics. He assumed several corporate directorships, and spent time with his grandchildren. Unlike Lougheed, he rarely commented on political matters. He was appointed as an Officer to the Order of CanadaOrder of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
in 1998.
In July 2008, after Premier Ed Stelmach
Ed Stelmach
Edward Michael "Ed" Stelmach, MLA is a Canadian politician and served as the 13th Premier of Alberta, Canada, from 2006 to 2011. The grandson of Ukrainian immigrants, Stelmach was born and raised on a farm near Lamont and speaks fluent Ukrainian. He spent his entire pre-political adult life as a...
announced $2 billion in funding to industry to develop carbon capture technology, Getty's company sought some of the funding to bury carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide
Carbon dioxide is a naturally occurring chemical compound composed of two oxygen atoms covalently bonded to a single carbon atom...
in salt caverns near Two Hills
Two Hills, Alberta
Two Hills is a town in central Alberta, Canada. It is located east of Edmonton at the junction of Highway 45 and Highway 36. Two Hills is primarily an agriculture-based community.- Demographics :...
.
As party leader
| 1989 Alberta provincial election Alberta general election, 1989 The Alberta general election of 1989 was the twenty-second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 20, 1989 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... |
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| Party | Party leader | # of candidates |
Seats | Popular vote | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1986 Alberta general election, 1986 The Alberta general election of 1986 was the twenty-first general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on May 8, 1986 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... |
1989 Alberta general election, 1989 The Alberta general election of 1989 was the twenty-second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 20, 1989 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... |
% Change | # | % | % Change | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Progressive Conservative Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta... |
Don Getty | 83 | 61 | 59 | -3.3% | 367,244 | 44.29% | -7.11% |
New Democrats Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which was originally founded as the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation... |
Ray Martin Ray Martin (politician) Raymond Martin is a politician in Alberta, Canada and former member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.Born in 1941 in Delia, Alberta, Martin attended the University of Alberta in Edmonton. He was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity... |
83 | 16 | 16 | 0% | 217,972 | 26.29% | -2.93% |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Laurence Decore Laurence Decore Laurence G. Decore, CM was a Ukrainian-Canadian lawyer and politician from Alberta. He was mayor of Edmonton, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, and leader of the Alberta Liberal Party.- Early life :... |
83 | 4 | 8 | +100% | 237,787 | 28.68% | +16.46% |
Social Credit Social Credit Party of Alberta The Alberta Social Credit Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada, that was founded on the social credit monetary policy and conservative Christian social values.... |
Harvey Yuill | 6 | * | - | * | 3,939 | 0.47% | * |
Communist Communist Party (Alberta) Communist Party – Alberta is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. It is a provincial branch of the Communist Party of Canada.-History:... |
Norman Brudy Norman Brudy Norman Brudy was a salesman, government lobbyist and a Canadian Communist politician and election candidate. He served for a time as leader of the Communist Party of Alberta.-Political career:... |
2 | - | - | - | 85 | 0.01% | -0.02% |
Independent | 10 | - | - | - | 2,162 | 0.26% | -0.60% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | 267 | 83 | 83 | - | 829,189 | 100% | |
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| 1986 Alberta provincial election Alberta general election, 1986 The Alberta general election of 1986 was the twenty-first general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on May 8, 1986 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... |
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| Party | Party leader | # of candidates |
Seats | Popular vote | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1982 Alberta general election, 1982 The Alberta general election of 1982 was the twentieth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on November 2, 1982 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... |
1986 Alberta general election, 1986 The Alberta general election of 1986 was the twenty-first general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on May 8, 1986 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... |
% Change | # | % | % Change |
Progressive Conservative Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta The Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta is a provincial centre-right party in the Canadian province of Alberta... |
Don Getty | 83 | 75 | 61 | -18.7% | 366,783 | 51.40% | -10.88% |
New Democrats Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which was originally founded as the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation... |
Ray Martin Ray Martin (politician) Raymond Martin is a politician in Alberta, Canada and former member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.Born in 1941 in Delia, Alberta, Martin attended the University of Alberta in Edmonton. He was a member of the Kappa Sigma fraternity... |
83 | 2 | 16 | +700% | 208,561 | 29.22% | +10.47% |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Nicholas Taylor Nicholas Taylor Nicholas "Nick" William Taylor is a retired geologist, businessman and politician and former Canadian Senator from Alberta, Canada.... |
63 | - | 4 | 87,239 | 12.22% | +10.41% |
Representative Representative Party of Alberta The Representative Party of Alberta was a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada formed by Raymond Speaker in 1984. The party was right of center, conservative in ideology and considered a modern version of Social Credit without the monetary reforms.... |
Raymond Speaker Raymond Speaker Raymond Albert "Ray" Speaker, PC, OC is a farmer and Canadian politician.Speaker was born and raised in Enchant, Alberta where he farms to this day... |
46 | * | 2 | * | 36,656 | 5.15% | * |
Western Canada Concept Western Canada Concept The Western Canada Concept was a Western Canadian political party founded in 1980 to promote the separation of the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia and the Yukon and Northwest Territories from Canada in order to create a new nation.The party argued that Western... |
Jack Ramsay Jack Ramsay (politician) F.J. "Jack" Ramsay is a former Reform Party of Canada member of the Canadian House of Commons. Ramsay is a former Royal Canadian Mounted Police officer.-Western Canada Concept:... |
20 | - | - | - | 4,615 | 0.65% | -11.11% |
Confederation of Regions | Elmer Knutson Elmer Knutson Elmer S. Knutson was a Canadian fringe politician. He was born on the family farm in Torquay, Saskatchewan. He worked on road gangs, in lumber camps and mines until he won a baseball scholarship to a Lutheran college in North Dakota, USA. After serving in the Royal Canadian Navy during World War... |
6 | * | - | * | 2,866 | 0.40% | * |
Heritage | Mike Pawlus Mike Pawlus Mike Pawlus was a minor provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada. He led the fringe right wing The Heritage Party of Alberta during the entire existence of the party.-Political career:... |
6 | * | - | * | 601 | 0.08% | * |
Communist Communist Party (Alberta) Communist Party – Alberta is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. It is a provincial branch of the Communist Party of Canada.-History:... |
Norman Brudy Norman Brudy Norman Brudy was a salesman, government lobbyist and a Canadian Communist politician and election candidate. He served for a time as leader of the Communist Party of Alberta.-Political career:... |
6 | - | - | - | 199 | 0.03% | -0.01% |
Independent | 20 | 2 | - | -100% | 6,134 | 0.86% | -3.01% | ||
| Total | 333 | 79 | 83 | - | 713,654 | 100% | |
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As MLA
| 1989 by-election results (Stettler Stettler (provincial electoral district) Stettler was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. It was mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1909 to 1993.-1957 liquor plebiscite:... ) |
font style="font-size: 90%;">Turnout 67.2% | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Affiliation | Candidate | Votes | % |
Progressive Conservative | Don Getty | 5,558 | 71.4% |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Frank Pickering | 1,598 | 20.5% |
NDP Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which was originally founded as the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation... |
Grant Bergman | 633 | 8.1% | |||||||||
| 1989 Alberta general election Alberta general election, 1989 The Alberta general election of 1989 was the twenty-second general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 20, 1989 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... results (Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. In 1989, its constituents unseated the Premier of the day, Donald Getty, by voting for Liberal candidate, Percy Wickman.... ) |
font style="font-size: 90%;">Turnout 58.7% | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Affiliation | Candidate | Votes | % |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Percy Wickman Percy Wickman Percy Dwight Wickman was a Canadian politician and well-known activist for people with disabilities. He was born in Thunder Bay, Ontario.Wickman served as an alderman on Edmonton City Council from 1977 to 1986... |
8,350 | 45.2% |
Progressive Conservative | Don Getty | 8,005 | 43.4% |
NDP Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which was originally founded as the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation... |
Nao Fernando | 2,099 | 11.4% | |||||||||
| 1986 Alberta general election Alberta general election, 1986 The Alberta general election of 1986 was the twenty-first general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on May 8, 1986 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... results (Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. In 1989, its constituents unseated the Premier of the day, Donald Getty, by voting for Liberal candidate, Percy Wickman.... ) |
font style="font-size: 90%;">Turnout 47.3% | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Affiliation | Candidate | Votes | % |
Progressive Conservative | Don Getty | 7,436 | 57.6% |
NDP Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which was originally founded as the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation... |
Tony Higgins | 3,875 | 30.0% |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Eric Wolfman | 1,135 | 8.8% |
Representative Representative Party of Alberta The Representative Party of Alberta was a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada formed by Raymond Speaker in 1984. The party was right of center, conservative in ideology and considered a modern version of Social Credit without the monetary reforms.... |
Bert Beinert | 366 | 2.8% |
Western Canada Concept Western Canada Concept The Western Canada Concept was a Western Canadian political party founded in 1980 to promote the separation of the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia and the Yukon and Northwest Territories from Canada in order to create a new nation.The party argued that Western... |
Walter Stack | 92 | 0.7% | |
| 1985 by-election results (Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. In 1989, its constituents unseated the Premier of the day, Donald Getty, by voting for Liberal candidate, Percy Wickman.... ) |
font style="font-size: 90%;">Turnout 32.9% | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Progressive Conservative | Don Getty | 5,955 | 60.2% |
NDP Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which was originally founded as the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation... |
Tony Higgins | 2,100 | 21.2% |
Representative Representative Party of Alberta The Representative Party of Alberta was a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada formed by Raymond Speaker in 1984. The party was right of center, conservative in ideology and considered a modern version of Social Credit without the monetary reforms.... |
Dick Mather Dick Mather Richard "Dick" Mather was a municipal politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of Edmonton city council from 1995 until his death in 1997. He also served as a public school trustee from 1983 to 1995.... |
800 | 8.1% |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Eric Wolfman | 637 | 6.4% |
Independent Independent (politician) In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do... |
Lucien Maynard Lucien Maynard Joseph Lucien Paul Maynard was a lawyer and a provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada. He served a long career as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1935 to 1955 sitting with the governing Social Credit caucus.Maynard served as a cabinet minister under Premier's William... |
355 | 3.6% |
Heritage | Mike Pawlus Mike Pawlus Mike Pawlus was a minor provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada. He led the fringe right wing The Heritage Party of Alberta during the entire existence of the party.-Political career:... |
53 | 0.5% | |
| 1975 Alberta general election Alberta general election, 1975 The Alberta general election of 1975 was the eighteenth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on March 25, 1975 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... results (Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. In 1989, its constituents unseated the Premier of the day, Donald Getty, by voting for Liberal candidate, Percy Wickman.... ) |
font style="font-size: 90%;">Turnout 59.3% | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Progressive Conservative | Don Getty | 9,614 | 67.8% |
NDP Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which was originally founded as the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation... |
Lila Fahlman | 2,645 | 18.6% |
Social Credit Social Credit Party of Alberta The Alberta Social Credit Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada, that was founded on the social credit monetary policy and conservative Christian social values.... |
Phil Dickson | 1,101 | 7.8% |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Dilys Andersen | 830 | 5.8% | |||||||||
| 1971 Alberta general election Alberta general election, 1971 The Alberta general election of 1971 was the seventeenth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on August 30, 1971 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... results (Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud Edmonton-Whitemud is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada. In 1989, its constituents unseated the Premier of the day, Donald Getty, by voting for Liberal candidate, Percy Wickman.... ) |
font style="font-size: 90%;">Turnout 82.1% | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Progressive Conservative | Don Getty | 8,201 | 58.3% |
Social Credit Social Credit Party of Alberta The Alberta Social Credit Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada, that was founded on the social credit monetary policy and conservative Christian social values.... |
Donald Murray Hamilton | 4,690 | 33.4% |
NDP Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which was originally founded as the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation... |
Joseph Mercredi | 936 | 6.7% |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
James Tanner | 235 | 1.7% | |||||||||
| 1967 Alberta general election Alberta general election, 1967 The Alberta general election of 1967 was the sixteenth general election for the Province of Alberta, Canada. It was held on May 23, 1967 to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta.... results (Strathcona West Strathcona West Strathcona West was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. It was created in 1959 when Edmonton broke up into nine ridings.In 1971 the riding was split between Edmonton-Whitemud and Edmonton-Parkallen.-1959 Redistribution:... ) |
font style="font-size: 90%;">Turnout 70.3% | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Progressive Conservative | Don Getty | 6,764 | 48.4% |
Social Credit Social Credit Party of Alberta The Alberta Social Credit Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada, that was founded on the social credit monetary policy and conservative Christian social values.... |
Randolph McKinnon Randolph McKinnon Randolph Hugh McKinnon was a provincial politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1959 to 1967 sitting with the Social Credit caucus in government... |
5,153 | 36.9% |
NDP Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party or Alberta NDP is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada, which was originally founded as the Alberta section of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation... |
Frank Kuzemski | 1,115 | 8.0% |
Liberal Alberta Liberal Party The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time... |
Ed Leger | 890 | 7.3% | |||||||||
Party leadership contest
| Alberta Progressive Conservative leadership convention, 1985 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Second ballot | ||
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage |
| Don Getty | 1,061 | 56.2% |
| Julian Koziak Julian Koziak Julian Koziak is a former provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1971 until 1986.-Political career:... |
827 | 43.8% |
| First ballot | ||
| Candidate | Votes | Percentage |
| Don Getty | 913 | 48.4% |
| Julian Koziak Julian Koziak Julian Koziak is a former provincial level politician from Alberta, Canada. He served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1971 until 1986.-Political career:... |
545 | 28.9% |
| Ron Ghitter Ron Ghitter Ronald D. Ghitter is a Canadian lawyer and former Senator.Born in Calgary, Alberta, he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1956 and his Bachelor of Law degree in 1959 from the University of Alberta. He practised real estate law in Calgary... |
428 | 22.7% |