Editing R. B. Bennett (section)

==Political return and leader of the Official Opposition (1925–1930)==

[[File:Pat Burns and R.B. Bennett (cropped).jpg|thumb|200px|Businessman [[Patrick Burns (businessman)|Patrick Burns]] and R. B. Bennett at the [[Calgary Stampede]] in 1928]]

After Meighen, who was attempting to become prime minister again, offered Bennett to be minister of justice, Bennett ran for and won the seat of Calgary West in the [[1925 Canadian federal election|1925 federal election]]. The Conservatives won the most seats but didn't have a [[majority government|majority]]. They didn't necessarily form government due to Liberal prime minister [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] negotiating support from the [[Progressive Party of Canada|Progressive Party]]. However, in the summer of 1926, the Conservatives were invited to form government by [[Lord Byng]]. Byng refused King's request to [[dissolve parliament]] and call an election, and thus King resigned. On July 2, the Meighen government was defeated in a [[motion of non-confidence]] by one vote, triggering [[1926 Canadian federal election|an election scheduled for September 14]].<ref name="BennettBio" /> At the time of the confidence vote, Bennett was in Alberta campaigning on behalf [[Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta|the province's Conservative Party]] for [[1926 Alberta general election|the provincial election]] and thus was unable to vote against the motion. Meighen greatly regretted his absence and later wrote, "If Mr. Bennett had been there... King would never have talked the diabolical and dishonest rot in which he indulged. He was a lot more careful when Bennett was across the floor...".<ref>{{cite book |last1=Graham |first1=Roger |title=Arthur Meighen: A Biography – Volume 2: And Fortune Fled |date=1963 |publisher=Clarke, Irwin & Company Limited |location=Toronto |page=526}}</ref>

In the election, the Liberals decisively won. In Meighen's short-lived government, Bennett served as [[Minister of Finance (Canada)|minister of finance]] along with numerous acting portfolios. After this defeat, Meighen stepped down as Tory leader, triggering [[1927 Conservative leadership convention|a leadership convention scheduled for October 1927]]. Bennett put himself forward as a candidate, but had little expectation of winning, believing along with most observers that the convention would either vote to reinstate Meighen, or confirm [[Interim leader (Canada)|interim leader]] [[Hugh Guthrie]] as his permanent successor. In the event, Meighen lacked the support to attempt a comeback, while Guthrie's chances were ruined by a poorly received speech that alienated the Quebec delegates, allowing Bennett to emerge as a compromise candidate and win the leadership on the second ballot. In his acceptance speech, Bennett talked about how he became rich through hard work. Upon being elected leader, Bennett resigned his company directorships.<ref name="BennettBio" />

When Bennett became leader, the Conservative Party had no money. The party could not rely on support from newspapers as there were only 11 dailies considered Conservative. By February 1930, 27 full-time employees were using modern office equipment to spread the Conservative message across provinces. Bennett and senior party members donated $2,500 a month each to fund this enterprise and some provincial enterprises. By May 1930, Bennett had personally donated $500,000 ({{inflation|CA|500000|1930|fmt=eq|r=-6}}) to the party; one-fifth of that went to [[Quebec]], where the Conservatives had been wiped out for the past four elections due to them imposing [[conscription]] in 1917.<ref name="BennettBio" />

As Opposition leader, Bennett faced off against Liberal prime minister [[William Lyon Mackenzie King]] in Commons debates and took some time to acquire enough experience to hold his own with King. In 1930, King blundered badly when he made overly partisan statements in response to criticism over his handling of the economic downturn, which was hitting Canada very hard. King's worst error was in stating that he "would not give Tory provincial governments a five-cent piece!" This serious mistake, which drew wide press coverage, gave Bennett his needed opening to attack King, which he did successfully in [[1930 Canadian federal election|that year's election]] campaign.<ref name="BennettBio" /><ref>''Mr. Prime Minister 1867–1964'', by [[Bruce Hutchison]], [[Toronto]] 1964, Longmans Canada</ref> On election day, July 28, Bennett led the Conservatives to a [[majority government]]. Although he was the first prime minister representing a constituency in Alberta, his party only won four of the province's sixteen seats. The Conservatives also had their best result in Quebec since the [[1911 Canadian federal election|1911 federal election]], going from 4 to 24 MPs.<ref name="BennettBio" />