Alberta liquor plebiscite, 1957

The 1957 Alberta Liquor Plebiscite was the second province-wide plebiscite conducted in Alberta, Canada, and it was held on October 30 1957. Unlike the other three plebiscites held in Alberta, the 1957 vote was not held in conjunction with a provincial election. At the time, the Alberta Liquor Control Board operated only a few stores from which liquor could be legally purchased. The plebiscite asked voters in every district if they were in favour of adding extra ALCB outlets.

In Calgary, and Edmonton, as well as the parts of Gleichen, Banff-Cochrane and Cloverbar, that were within the Calgary and Edmonton city limits, a second question was put on the ballot asking if "mixed drinking" should be permitted in beer parlours. Men and women had not been allowed to drink together in Albertan bars since 1928, four years after Prohibition has been repealed.

The province-wide question on new liquor store locations saw mixed results across the province: the more conservative rural areas voted overwhelmingly against, and urban areas voted overwhelmingly for. After the votes were counted, the "for" side won the plebiscite by a wide margin. The second question regarding mixed drinking in the major cities passed with an almost 4 to 1 margin. This was the second province-wide plebiscite in Alberta's history, and cost the province $355,309.62 to run.

The Alberta government abolished gender-based segregation of bars in the rest of the province (without an additional plebiscite) in 1967.

Plebiscite results

First question: asked province-wide.
Do you approve additional types of outlets for the sale of beer, wine and spirituous liquor subject to a local vote?
For	Against
171,786   63.92%	96,961   36.08%
Second question: asked only in the cities of Calgary and Edmonton
Should mixed drinking be allowed in beer parlours in Edmonton and Calgary and the surrounding areas?
For	Against
99,150   78.53%	27,203   21.47%

For a breakdown of results please see districts listed in the Alberta general election, 1955.

External links

• Speakers' Comments Alberta Legislative Assembly Hansard March 20, 2006