40 years later, how the 1978 election shaped Yukon party politics

Just weeks after MLAs in the N.W.T. voted down a motion to introduce party politics there, Yukon politicians celebrated40 years of party politics in their territory.

A gathering of current and former politicians was held at the Legislative Assembly in Whitehorse this week, to mark the occasion.

The Yukon general election on Nov. 20, 1978, was the first inYukonhistory whereelected candidates were openly affiliated with a party. The Progressive Conservatives won a majority that year, with 11 seats in the 16-seat Legislature. Also elected were two Liberals, one New Democrat, and two Independents.

Before 1978, all representatives of the Yukon Territorial Council whichbecame the Legislative Assembly were considered Independents.

PCs win 1978 Yukon election

46 years ago

Duration 1:05

Yukon voters elected a PC government in 1978.

"Bringing political parties into the electoral process and into the functioning of the Legislative Assembly was not an end in itself," says Floyd McCormick, the current clerk of the Legislature.

"They were looking towardprovincehood, and there was a sense that if you want to become a province, you have to look and act like a province and that meant you had to have responsible government, you had to have political parties."

Yukon is still not a provincebut the 1978 election did seean immediate boost in voter turnout, McCormicksays.

"If you look at the the two elections that occurred prior to 1978 so, that would've been 1970, 1974 voter turnout was 64, 66 per cent. When they went to party politics for the 1978 election, 70 per cent," he said.

"And it's been more than that, ever since."

'The Tories came out of the closet'

Tony Penikettwas the only NDP candidate elected in 1978, and he later became the territory's premier. He tends to downplay to significance of the 1978 election, atleast in terms of party politics.

He says candidates in earlier Yukon elections had run as self-declared Liberal or NDP candidates,even if the party affiliationsweren't "official."

"In truth, the only thing that happened in 1978 was the Tories came out of the closet because they'd always been running and elected, and they'd worked together before," Penikettrecalled.

"I was involved in the territorial election in 1970, and I knew, even though they were running as Independents, I knew who the Conservative candidate was, and I knew who the Liberal candidate was."

Penikett says official party politics has been good for Yukon in at least one respect it forces some MLAsto serve as the opposition.

"So you spend a lot of time thinking, thinking about the mistakes you made last time you were in government, but also thinking about what you might do better, what you might dowhen you come to government again and that's a healthy process, in some sense," he said.

But Penikettargues that what was mostsignificant about the 1978 election was that two Indigenous MLAswere elected a first in the territory.Liberal Alice McGuire defeatedPC leader and would-be premier Hilda Watson in Kluane, while PCGraftonNjootliwas elected in Old Crow.

As for the N.W.T.'s musing about a move toward party politics, and away from consensus-style government,Pennikettis sceptical.

"I suspect the thinking about it goes on more in Yellowknife than it does out in the communities. And I don't think it'll happen quickly," he said.