Women in the 14th–29th Canadian Parliaments

Women were first allowed to vote at the federal level in Canada in the 1917 general election in connection with military service, and were allowed to vote under the same conditions as men beginning on May 24, 1918. The next four elections saw only one woman elected: Agnes Macphail. The 1936 election saw two women in the House together for the first time. A by-election in 1941 saw a woman elected to the governing caucus for the first time. The 22nd federal election in 1953 was a slight breakthrough, electing four women, which was 1.5% of the House. Every Parliament thenafter would have at least two women at a time, except for the 28th Parliament from 1968 to 1972, in which Grace MacInnis was the only woman. Then 30th Parliament, elected in 1974, was another breakthrough, containing ten women MPs. The number of women in the House would not fall below ten again.

Meanwhile in the Senate, Cairine Wilson was appointed as the first woman Senator in 1930. Additional women were added every few years, but it was not until two appointments in March 1979 that the Senate would even have ten women serving simultaneously.

Members of the House of Commons

Parliament	House members	Party		Riding
14th Parliament of Canada 0.4% women MPs	Agnes Macphail		Progressive	Grey Southeast, ON
15th Parliament of Canada 0.4% women MPs	Agnes Macphail		Progressive	Grey Southeast, ON
16th Parliament of Canada 0.4% women MPs	Agnes Macphail		Progressive	Grey Southeast, ON
17th Parliament of Canada 0.4% women MPs	Agnes Macphail		Progressive	Grey Southeast, ON
18th Parliament of Canada 0.8% women MPs	Martha Black		Independent Conservative	Yukon, YK
	Agnes Macphail		United Farmers of Ontario-Labour	Grey—Bruce, ON
19th Parliament of Canada 0.8% women MPs	Cora Taylor Casselman*		Liberal	Edmonton East, AB
	Dorise Nielsen		Unity	North Battleford, SK
20th Parliament of Canada 0.4% women MPs	Gladys Strum		Co-operative Commonwealth Federation	Qu'Appelle, SK
21st Parliament of Canada 0.4% women MPs	Ellen Fairclough*		Progressive Conservative	Hamilton West, ON
22nd Parliament of Canada 1.5% women MPs	Margaret Aitken		Progressive Conservative	York—Humber, ON
	Sybil Bennett		Progressive Conservative	Halton, ON
	Ellen Fairclough		Progressive Conservative	Hamilton West, ON
	Marie Ann Shipley		Liberal	Timiskaming, ON
23rd Parliament of Canada 0.8% women MPs	Margaret Aitken		Progressive Conservative	York—Humber, ON
	Ellen Fairclough		Progressive Conservative	Hamilton West, ON
24th Parliament of Canada 1.9% women MPs	Margaret Aitken		Progressive Conservative	York—Humber, ON
	Ellen Fairclough		Progressive Conservative	Hamilton West, ON
	Judy LaMarsh*		Liberal	Niagara Falls, ON
	Margaret Macdonald*		Progressive Conservative	Kings, PE
	Jean Wadds*		Progressive Conservative	Grenville—Dundas, ON
25th Parliament of Canada 2.3% women MPs	Ellen Fairclough		Progressive Conservative	Hamilton West, ON
	Isabel Hardie		Liberal	Northwest Territories, NT
	Judy LaMarsh		Liberal	Niagara Falls, ON
	Margaret Macdonald		Progressive Conservative	Kings, PE
	Jean Wadds		Progressive Conservative	Grenville—Dundas, ON
26th Parliament of Canada 2.3% women MPs	Pauline Jewett		Liberal	Northumberland, ON
	Eloise Jones*		Progressive Conservative	Saskatoon, SK
	Margaret Konantz		Liberal	Winnipeg South, MB
	Judy LaMarsh		Liberal	Niagara Falls, ON
	Margaret Rideout*		Liberal	Westmorland, NB
	Jean Wadds		Progressive Conservative	Grenville—Dundas, ON
27th Parliament of Canada 1.5% women MPs	Judy LaMarsh		Liberal	Niagara Falls, ON
	Grace MacInnis		New Democrat	Vancouver Kingsway, BC
	Margaret Rideout		Liberal	Westmorland, NB
	Jean Wadds		Progressive Conservative	Grenville—Dundas, ON
28th Parliament of Canada 0.4% women MPs	Grace MacInnis		New Democrat	Vancouver Kingsway, BC
29th Parliament of Canada 1.9% women MPs	Monique Bégin		Liberal	Saint-Michel, QC
	Flora MacDonald		Progressive Conservative	Kingston and the Islands, ON
	Grace MacInnis		New Democrat	Vancouver Kingsway, BC
	Albanie Morin		Liberal	Louis-Hébert, QC
	Jeanne Sauvé		Liberal	Ahuntsic, QC

* By by-election.

Senators

Senator	Parliaments	Designation	Party
Ann Bell	28th–	Nanaimo-Malaspina, BC		Liberal
Thérèse Casgrain	28th	Mille Isles, QC		Independent
Iva Campbell Fallis	17th–22nd	Peterborough, ON		Progressive Conservative
Muriel McQueen Fergusson	21st–	Fredericton, NB		Liberal
Nancy Hodges	22nd–26th	Victoria, BC		Liberal
Florence Elsie Inman	22nd–	Murray Harbour, PE		Liberal
Olive Lillian Irvine	24th–28th	Lisgar, MB		Progressive Conservative
Marianna Beauchamp Jodoin	21st–27th	Saurel, QC		Liberal
Mary Elizabeth Kinnear	27th–	Welland, ON		Liberal
Renaude Lapointe	28th–	Mille Isles, QC		Liberal
Joan Neiman	28th–	Peel, ON		Liberal
Margaret Norrie	28th–	Colchester-Cumberland, NS		Liberal
Josie Alice Quart	24th–	Victoria, QC		Progressive Conservative
Cairine Wilson	16th–24th	Rockcliffe, ON		Liberal

See also

• Women in Canadian politics
• Women in Canadian provincial and territorial legislatures

External links

• Women in Parliament - Parliament of Canada
• Current lists of women in the House of Commons - Parliament of Canada
• Historical lists of women in the House of Commons - Parliament of Canada