Populism And Democratic Thought In The Canadian Prairies, 1910 to 1945

This study offers a analysis of agrarian populist movements on the Canadian Prairies in the early 20th century. Drawing on newspapers, convention records, speeches, and election materials, David Laycock examines how various strands of prairie populism contributed to Canadian democratic thought. Rather than a unified ideology, populism is shown to be a diverse set of approaches shaped by leadership, social context, and political aims. Laycock identifies four distinct populist currents—crypto-liberalism, radical democratic populism, social democratic populism, and plebiscitarian populism—tracing their development through movements such as the Progressive Party, the United Farmers of Alberta, the CCF, and Alberta Social Credit.