Liberal Party candidates, 2006 Canadian federal election

The Liberal Party of Canada ran a full slate of 308 candidates in the 2006 federal election, and won 103 seats to form the Official Opposition against a Conservative minority government. The party had previously been in power since 1993.

Many of the party's candidates have their own biography pages. Information about others may be found here.

Quebec

Kim Leclerc (Haute-Gaspésie—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia)

Kim Leclerc was born in Quebec City in 1985. He lived in Matane until the age of six, when his family moved to James Bay and then Abitibi-Témiscamingue. He was the youngest Liberal candidate in the election. After the election he studied economics and politics at Université Laval.

Ontario

Javid Mirza (Hamilton Centre)

Mirza received 11,224 votes (23.49%), finishing second against New Democratic Party incumbent David Christopherson.

Geoff Turner (Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington)

Turner (born in Perth, Ontario) has a degree in Political Science from Wilfrid Laurier University, and has worked on development projects in India and Southeast Asia. He joined the Liberal Party in 1997, [http://www.geoffturner.ca/about/] , and was twenty-four years old during the election. [http://www.cbc.ca/canadavotes/riding/148/] Several media reports from the campaign highlighted his energy as a candidate ("Kingston Whig-Standard", 2 January 2006).

He received 14,709 votes (24.74%), finishing second against Conservative incumbent Scott Reid.

Elizabeth Kirley (Simcoe—Grey)

Kirley is a lawyer in Tottenham, Ontario. She has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and a Bachelor of Education degree from the University of Windsor, and a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Western Ontario. She has practised criminal, family and children's law for fourteen years in the Simcoe region, and has worked as an assistant Crown Attorney. At the time of the election, Kirley was working toward completion of a Master of Laws degree in international law from Osgoode Hall Law School. [http://www.lpco.ca/elizabethkirley/yourmp.aspx] She received 18,689 votes (30.86%), finishing second against Conservative incumbent Helena Guergis.

Rod Finnie (Wellington—Halton Hills)

Finnie is a municipal politician in Wellington County. He was elected to the council of Erin in 1997, was chosen as the town’s deputy mayor later in the same year. He was elected as mayor of Erin in 2000, ane was re-elected without opposition in 2003. Finnie was also elected to the council of Wellington County in 1997-98, and was returned in 2000, and has chaired the county’s administration, finance and personnel committee. In private life, he has operated a land surveying company since 1985. [http://www.cbc.ca/canadavotes/riding/205/]

In 2001, Finnie called for a 5% levy on large bottled-water companies accessing local water supplies ("Guelph Mercury", 17 December 2001). He opposed an anti-smoking by-law in 2003 ("Kitchener-Waterloo Record", 17 June 2003), and voted against a municipal tax increase in early 2004 ("Guelph Mercury", 29 March 2004). Finnie opposed a Greenbelt plan proposed by the provincial government of Dalton McGuinty in late 2004, arguing that half of his community would be classified as “protected” from development under the proposed legislation ("Guelph Mercury", 20 October 2004).

He received 16,065 votes (29.17%) in the election, finishing second against Conservative incumbent Michael Chong. Finnie expressed his personal respect for Chong after the results were declared ("Guelph Mercury", 24 January 2006).

Werner Keller (Windsor West)

Keller (born 1959) holds Bachelor of Applied Science (1981), Master of Business Administration (1987) and Bachelor of Laws (1987) degrees from the University of Windsor. He is an associate partner in the law firm of Sutts, Strosberg, practicing in the areas of corporate law, commercial and class action litigation. He is also a Business Law Instructor at the University of Windsor. Before entering law, he worked as a Chemical Engineer for Union Carbide Canada as a Product Development Specialist in Montreal, Quebec. [http://www.cbc.ca/canadavotes/riding/209/#wernerkeller]

He was president of the Windsor West riding association for seven years, and was an organizer for longtime Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) Herb Gray ("Windsor Star", 10 and 24 January 2006). Following Gray's retirement in 2001, he co-chaired Dana Howe's unsuccessful bid for the Windsor West Liberal nomination ("Star", 16 March 2002).

Keller was forty-six years old in 2006. He received 12,110 votes (25.39%), finishing second against New Democratic Party incumbent Brian Masse.

Manitoba

Tanya Parks (Elmwood—Transcona)

Parks was born and resides in Winnipeg, Manitoba. She is the owner of Distant Caravans in the Forks Market region, has volunteered for UNICEF and Folklorama, and has produced fashion shows for Winnipeg charities. Parks has been Chair of the Manitoba Liberal Party Women's Association and director of the Manitoba Provincial Liberal Women's Association. [ [http://www.cbc.ca/canadavotes/riding/218/ Elmwood—Transcona: Canada Votes 2006] , Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, accessed 1 March 2007.]

She supported Michael Ignatieff's 2006 bid to become Liberal Party leader, and also endorsed Marie Poulin's bid to become party president. [ [http://www.thehilltimes.ca/members/login.php?fail=2&destination=/html/index.php?display=story&full_path=/2006/september/4/liblist/&c=2 "An update on Liberal leadership candidates and some of their supporters"] , "Hill Times", 4 September 2006.] [ [http://www.mariepoulin.ca/en/endorsments/ Marie Poulin for LPC President] , Liberal Party of Canada, accessed 1 March 2007.]

Garry McLean (Portage—Lisgar)

McLean was born on September 22, 1951 at Manitoba's Dog Creek Indian Reserve. He has a Social Services Certificate from Assiniboine Community College in Brandon, and worked a social worker for over twenty years. McLean has been a Band Councillor and General Manager at the Lake Manitoba First Nation, [http://64.233.179.104/search?q=cache:FIqw9WRmnp0J:www.liberal.ca/bio_e.aspx%3Fid%3D46007%26type%3Dcan+%22Garry+McLean%22&hl=en&gl=ca&ct=clnk&cd=1] and was once a political advisor to former Manitoba Grand Chief Rod Bushie.

In 1996, he argued that government assistance programs were not adequately addressing the cost of food shipments to northern Manitoba. According to McLean, many northern families on social assistance were unable to pay their monthly food bills and were forced into cycles of debt as a result ("Winnipeg Free Press", 15 November 1996). To address the problem, he co-founded the First Nations Buying Group and arranged bulk purchases for isolated First Nations groups across the country. In September 2002, McLean was hired by the Vickar Community Chev Olds car dealership in Winnipeg as a liaison with First Nations consumers ("WFP", 7 February 2003).

McLean was one of three aboriginal candidates for the Liberal Party in Manitoba in the 2006 election ("Canadian Press", 5 January 2006). He received 4,199 votes (11.39%), finishing a distant second against Conservative incumbent Brian Pallister.

=Wes Penner (Provencher)=

Penner was born on February 23, 1939, and raised on a farm in Landmark, Manitoba. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree from St. John's College, and a Bachelor of Education degree and Teaching Certificate from the University of Manitoba. He worked as a teacher for ten years before becoming a full-time entrepreneur.

After starting in agricultural machinery sales, Penner founded Powerland Computers in 1985 with his son Kevin and nephew Mark Penner. The Winnipeg-based business grew into a success, and generated sales of eight million dollars in 1993 ("Computer Dealer News", 9 March 1994). In 1999, Penner and his partners purchased the Pinawa Resort and Conference Centre in southeastern Manitoba ("Winnipeg Free Press", 6 October 1999).

He is now president of David Penner Development, owner and operator of the Wilderness Edge Retreat and Conference Centre in Pinawa, and a partner in the construction firm Woodmaster. He is active with the Historica Foundation of Canada and the Professional Development and Education Committee, and is a founding director of The Technology Consortium. [http://www.cbc.ca/canadavotes/riding/221/]

Penner is a member of the Mennonite Central Committee's Peace and Social Concerns Committee, and has been involved in refugee assistance and anti-war causes. [http://www.google.com/search?q=cache:f9fPFk7UFXkJ:www.liberal.ca/bio_e.aspx%3Fid%3D46008%26type%3Dcan+%22Wes+Penner%22&hl=en&gl=ca&ct=clnk&cd=1] In 2003, he tried to mobilize international support for an initiative to prevent the invasion of Iraq. Under the proposal favoured by Penner and others, Saddam Hussein would have turned over his weapons in return for protection by Russia, France and Germany. The international contacts never materialized, and the plan came to nothing ("WFP", 24 March 2003).

The 2006 campaign was Penner's third bid for federal office. He campaigned for the Liberal Party in the 1988 federal election, and for Mel Hurtig's National Party in 1993. He was listed as sixty-six years old.

Penner opposed Conservative leader Stephen Harper's plans to reopen the national debate on same-sex marriage during the 2006 election. He was quoted as saying, "Gay Canadians have suffered a lot. All they want is some respect and (Harper) has to make a big deal out of it" (Marc Zienkiewicz, "Beausejour Review", online edition, 15 December 2005). Same-sex marriage is legal in Canada.

Parmjeet Singh Gill (Winnipeg North)

Gill is a prominent member of Winnipeg's Sikh community. He holds Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees from Panjab University in Chandigarh, Punjab, India. He is the fundraising chairperson for the Manitoba Sikh Cultural and Seniors' Centre, and in 1988 helped to found the Sikh Volunteers Association, which operates blood drives. He also operates a Subway restaurant and small trucking company ("WPF", 2 January 2006). He was forty-four years old in 2006. [http://www.parmjeetgill.ca/html/about_parmjeet.html]

Gill joined the Liberal Party in 1989, and gave active support to Rey Pagtakhan's election campaigns. He originally supported Allan Rock's abortive efforts to succeed Jean Chrétien as Liberal Party leader, and was elected to the Manitoba Liberal Party's executive vice-presidency in 2001 on a "Rock slate" ("Winnipeg Free Press", 2 December 2001). When Rock announced that he would not campaign for the party leadership, Gill declared his support for Paul Martin ("WFP", 2 March 2003).

He received 5,752 votes (21.11%) in 2006, finishing second against New Democratic Party incumbent Judy Wasylycia-Leis.

Alberta

Mike Swanson (Calgary Southwest)

Swanson was raised in Claresholm, Alberta, and received a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Alberta in 1982. He has practiced law in Edmonton, Calgary and other Alberta communities, and is now a partner in the firm Beaumont Church LLP, working in civil and criminal litigation and agricultural law. He also operates a farm and ranch that his family has owned since 1902. He was forty-eight years old at the time of the election. [http://72.14.207.104/search?q=cache:D6eM-tZfAq0J:www.liberal.ca/bio_e.aspx%3Fid%3D48008%26type%3Dcan+%22Mike+Swanson%22+Liberal&hl=en&gl=ca&ct=clnk&cd=1]

Swanson's family has long-standing Liberal roots in Alberta ("Globe and Mail", 29 December 2005). He received 6,553 votes (11.41%), finishing second against Conservative Party leader Stephen Harper, who became Prime Minister as a result of that federal election.

Footnotes