Edwin Arnold Hansford (December 1, 1895[1] – March 12, 1959[2]) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada, and served as leader of that province's Co-operative Commonwealth Federation between 1948 and 1952.
He served overseas in World War I for four-and-a-half years, and subsequently worked for Canadian National Railways.
The CCF had joined Premier John Bracken's coalition ministry in 1940, but was subsequently marginalized by the Liberal-Conservative alliance that dominated the government.
Prior to the 1949 election, Hansford publicly rebuked two members of his caucus (Wilbert Doneleyko and Beresford Richards) who had condemned international negotiations for what became the North Atlantic Treaty Organization.
This resulted in a backlash from the left wing of the CCF, which generally opposed the foreign policies of American President Harry Truman.
Hansford was re-elected in St. Boniface,[1] but finished a discouraging second in what was now a two-member riding (members elected by preferential balloting).