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In the 23 June 1896 Canadian election, Dalton McCarthy and nine of his supporters presented themselves for election in ridings in central and eastern Ontario. At the time, candidates could present their names for election in more than one riding at a time. McCarthy sought election and won in both Simcoe North, Ontario, and Brandon, Manitoba. Having won re-election in Simcoe North, McCarthy resigned the Brandon seat. McCarthy was the only McCarthyite candidate to win election.
In the eleven ridings, the McCarthyites collected a total of 12,861 votes, or 28.1% of the popular vote.
In three ridings, Lanark South, Hastings North and Durham East, the McCarthyite candidate was the losing candidate in a two-way race, scoring over 40% of the vote in each case. In Muskoka—Parry Sound, the McCartyite candidate won 20.1% of the vote in a three-way race. In the other ridings, the McCarthyites did poorly, winning about 10% of the vote or less.
McCarthy, an Irish-born lawyer, had been elected as a Conservative in Simcoe North in 1871, and was re-elected in every subsequent election. In 1891, McCarthy left the Conservative Party after disagreements with its leader, Sir John A. Macdonald, and ran and won as an independent.
McCarthy’s views were notoriously anti-Catholic and anti-French-Canadian. He was a founder of the Canadian branch of the Imperial Federation League, a group that sought to unite Britain and its colonies and dominions in a trans-global federation.
McCarthy also appears to have been associated with the Equal Rights Party, although did not run under its banner in the 1891 election.
Following the 1896 election, McCarthy forged an alliance with Wilfrid Laurier's Liberals. He would likely have been appointed to cabinet in 1898, had he not died following a carriage accident. The "McCarthyite" party had for all intents and purposes been dissolved by this time.
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