Image of the Day: Election night, 1958

CBC radio reported the live results from the federal election in 1958.

Prime Minister John Diefenbaker called a snap election just nine months after the previous poll. The move transformed his minority into the largest ever majority government (by percentage of seats) in Canadian history.

Newly chosen Liberal leader Lester B. Pearson secured 48 seats for his party - a loss of 56 seats compared to what the Liberals held going into the March 31, 1958 poll. The Social Credit Party also performed poorly - losing 17 seats and being reduced to just eight seats in the House of Commons.

Watch a clip about the election results:

Posted on Jul 12, 2011 6:00:00 AM