1996 Yukon general election facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
1996 Yukon general election

← 1992 September 30, 1996 2000 →
17 seats of the Yukon Legislative Assembly 9 seats needed for a majority
Turnout	79.6%
First party Second party Third party   NDP YP LIB Leader Piers McDonald John Ostashek Ken Taylor Party New Democratic Yukon Party Liberal Leader since 1995 1992 1995 Leader's seat McIntyre-Takhini Porter Creek North Ran in Mount Lorne (lost) Last election 6 7 1 Seats won 11 3 3 Seat change 5 4 2 Popular vote 5,774 4,366 3,486 Percentage 39.9% 30.1% 24.1% Swing 4.8% 4.8% 8.0%
Popular vote by riding. As this is an FPTP election, seat totals are not determined by popular vote, but instead by the result in each riding. Riding names are listed at the bottom.
Government Leader before election John Ostashek Yukon Party Premier after election Piers McDonald New Democratic

The 1996 Yukon general election took place on September 30, 1996. People in the Yukon Territory, Canada, voted to choose 17 members for the Yukon Legislative Assembly. This assembly is like a parliament for the Yukon.

The Yukon Party, which was the government at the time, lost the election. The New Democratic Party (NDP) won instead. The NDP is a party that believes in social democracy, focusing on fairness and public services. They won 11 seats, which was enough to form a majority government. This means they had more than half the seats.

After the election, the leader of the NDP, Piers McDonald, became the new Government Leader. The Yukon Party and the Yukon Liberal Party each won three seats. The Liberal Party is a centrist party, meaning they are often in the middle of political ideas. Even though his party won seats, the Liberal leader, Ken Taylor, did not win his own seat.

Understanding the Election Results

An election is how people choose their leaders. In the Yukon, voters pick someone to represent them in the Legislative Assembly. The party that wins the most seats usually forms the government.

How Parties Performed

Here's a look at how each main party did in the 1996 election:

• The New Democrats (NDP) were led by Piers McDonald. They had 16 candidates running. They won 11 seats, which was 5 more than they had before. They received 39.9% of all votes.
• The Yukon Party was led by John Ostashek. They had 15 candidates. They won only 3 seats, losing 4 seats from the previous election. They got 30.1% of the votes.
• The Liberal Party was led by Ken Taylor. They had 16 candidates. They won 3 seats, which was 2 more than they had before. They received 24.1% of the votes.
• Some candidates ran as Independents, meaning they did not belong to a specific party. They had 7 candidates but did not win any seats. They received 5.9% of the votes.

In total, 17 seats were available in the Legislative Assembly. The NDP won enough seats to form a majority government.

Changes in Members

Sometimes, members of the Legislative Assembly change between elections. This can happen if someone resigns or passes away.

• Esau Schafer from the Yukon Party was elected in a special by-election. This happened after the previous member, Johnny Able, passed away.
• David Sloan from the NDP was also elected in a by-election. This was after the former premier, Tony Penikett, resigned.
• Alan Nordling rejoined the Yukon Party before this election.

Images for kids

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  The Yukon Legislature after the 1996 election.