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Crossing the Floor

The open, bilingual record of every floor crossing in Canadian parliamentary history.

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WWI & Conscription Crisis | Crossing the Floor

1914-1921

WWI & Conscription Crisis

The conscription crisis of 1917 caused the largest mass floor crossing in Canadian history, splitting the Liberal Party along linguistic lines.

English Canada overwhelmingly supported forcing men to fight in Europe. French Canada overwhelmingly opposed it. The Liberal Party shattered.

5 {count, plural, =0 {No crossings in this era} =1 {1 crossing} other {# crossings}}

~15 other Liberal MPs

1917

Liberal → UnionistMP

2/5

The WWI conscription crisis split the Liberal Party. Most English-speaking Liberal MPs supported conscription and crossed the floor to join the Union Government.

War & Conscription

Hugh Guthrie

1917Notable

Liberal → UnionistMPOntario

4/5

Another Liberal who supported conscription during WWI and crossed the floor.

War & ConscriptionGot Cabinet

William Stevens Fielding

1917Notable

Liberal → Liberal-UnionistMPNova Scotia

2/5

During World War I, the government wanted to force men to fight overseas (conscription). Fielding, a senior Liberal, supported conscription even though his party leader Wilfrid …

War & ConscriptionGot Cabinet

Frank Broadstreet Carvell

1917Notable

Liberal → Liberal-UnionistMPNew Brunswick

4/5

Like Fielding, Carvell supported conscription during WWI and left the Liberals to join the Union Government.

War & ConscriptionGot Cabinet

George William Andrews

1919Notable

Liberal-Unionist → IndependentMPManitoba

0/5

Andrews represented the heart of Winnipeg. When the government violently crushed the Winnipeg General Strike of 1919, he couldn't stay in the party. He left to sit alone as an i…

Stood on Principle