The 7th Alberta Legislative Assembly lasted from 1930 to 1935. The United Farmers of Alberta government had been re-elected to their third term in power under Premier John Brownlee.
Contents
Scandals
Premier John Brownlee's personal reputation was destroyed by a sex scandal in which he was successfully sued for the ancient and rarely litigated civil tort of seduction by a young woman in his employ.
In July 1933 Brownlee gave a car ride to Vivian MacMillan, then employed as a clerk in the office of the attorney general. MacMillan's fiancé filed a seduction suit against Brownlee, who denied all charges and launched a countersuit alleging that MacMillan, her father, and her fiancé had planned the entire affair for their own financial gain.
The jury found Brownlee guilty of seduction, but the presiding judge overturned its verdict. Nevertheless, the circumstances were damaging enough that Brownlee resigned from the provincial ministry in July 1934.
Little Bow MLA Oran McPherson also had a high profile divorce scandal that made big headlines after Cora McPherson took him to court.
The UFA's economic policies as well as the scandalizing of Alberta's conservative population led to the party's downfall in the 1935 election when it failed to win one seat in the legislature. William Aberhart and his Social Credit Party swept the province.
Floor crossings
A sensational week occurred in the Assembly just prior to the opening of the 4th Legislative Session. Victoria MLA Peter Miskew decided to cross the floor from the United Farmers to the Liberals. The floor crossing did terrific damage to John Brownlee's government as the Premier had announced three days prior that Miskew would be moving the governments reply to the throne speech.
Miskew's reasoned after crossing the floor that moving the reply to the speech from the throne would mean that he would support the governments policies which he no longer believed in. He sent notice by memo to the Premier deciding not to inform him in person.
Three day's later St. Albert MLA Omer St. Germain crossed the floor to join Miskew in the Liberal benches. David Duggan the leader of the Conservatives applauded Miskew crossing the floor. He stated that it was the beginning of the end for the United Farmers and that the conservative minded elements in the United Farmers will oppose the radical elements that were allowing the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation to pull the United Farmers to the left.