Tim Stevenson

Tim Stevenson
MLA for Vancouver-Burrard
In office 1996–2001
Preceded by	Emery Barnes
Succeeded by	Lorne Mayencourt
Vancouver City Councillor
Incumbent
Assumed office 2002
Personal details
Political party	New Democrat Vision Vancouver
Spouse(s)	Gary Paterson
Residence	Vancouver, British Columbia
Occupation	minister
Religion	United Church of Canada

Tim Stevenson (born in Vancouver, British Columbia) is a Canadian politician and United Church clergyman. He is currently an elected member of the Vancouver City Council as a member of Vision Vancouver. He is one of two openly gay city councilors in Vancouver, along with Ellen Woodsworth.

Background

He received a B.A. from the University of British Columbia, a M.A., Spirituality from Holy Names College in Oakland, California and a M.Div from the Vancouver School of Theology. In 1992 he was ordained by the British Columbia conference of the United Church of Canada. He was the first openly gay person to be ordained by the United Church — other United Church ministers had come out after their ordinations. In 1993 he was hired as the minister of St. Paul's United Church in Burnaby, after being first promised a job at a church in Winnipeg and then rejected due to controversy about his homosexuality within the congregation. He also served as a board member at the First United Church in the Downtown Eastside for 10 years.

Stevenson has worked in the Philippines and South Africa. In 1991 he was a Canadian representative at the African National Congress conference in Durban when Nelson Mandela was elected ANC party president. In 1994 he was an international observer in South Africa's first election after the fall of apartheid. Also in South Africa he has worked with the Black Liberation Gay and Lesbian Movement and other organizations that focus on social injustices.

Political career

In the 1996 provincial election he was elected in Vancouver-Burrard to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia as a member of the British Columbia New Democratic Party. He served as parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Health and between 2000-2001 he held a cabinet position as Minister for Employment and Investment. He was the first openly gay provincial cabinet minister in Canada. In the 2001 provincial election he lost to his BC Liberal opponent, Lorne Mayencourt.

In 2002 he was elected to the Vancouver City Council in British Columbia. As a member of the city council and board member of Tourism Vancouver, he best known for modernizing Vancouver's entertainment and tourism industry. When gay marriage became legalized in British Columbia, Tim Stevenson performed the first legal gay weddings in the province.

Stevenson was a candidate in the 2005 B.C. provincial election, again in Vancouver-Burrard. Conflicting results throughout election night had both Stevenson and Mayencourt declared the victor at different times, and the uncertainty continued for several weeks. In the official count of regular ballots, Stevenson was declared the winner by 17 votes. However, when absentee ballots were counted on May 30, 2005, Mayencourt was declared the winner by a margin of 18 votes. After a judicial recount, Mayencourt was declared the victor by 11 votes.

Stevenson won re-election as a city councilor in the 2005 Vancouver municipal election as a member of Vision Vancouver, and again in 2008.

Drunk driving conviction

In May 2006 Stevenson drove home from a neighbourhood bar after having three and a half pints of beer over a two to three-hour period. He was stopped by police and tested .14 on a breathalyzer, which was over the limit. Stevenson waited over a year to announce the charge and upcoming court appearance. On July 17, 2007, Stevenson pleaded guilty to impaired driving and was fined C$600.00.^{[citation needed]}

Open microphone controversy

In July 2010 Stevenson, Mayor Gregor Robertson and Councilor Heather Deal were caught on an open microphone mocking and laughing at public speakers at a council session who had called for greater transparency in the selection of a 12-person committee that will advise council on rezoning. The tirade became a YouTube sensation, which led to a public apology. Representatives of the speakers felt that the profanity was not the issue, but the disrespect of citizens who were attempting to voice their concerns.

Electoral record

B.C. General Election 2005: Vancouver-Burrard
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	BC Liberal	Lorne Mayencourt	12,009	42.16%	-5.94
	NDP	Tim Stevenson	11,998	42.12%	+11.04
	Green	Janek Patrick John Kuchmistrz	3,698	12.98%	-3.21
	Libertarian	John Clarke	388	1.36%
	Work Less	Lisa Voldeng	170	0.60%
	Sex Party	John Gordon Ince	111	0.39%
	DRBC	Ian McLeod	82	0.29%
	Platinum	Antonio Francisco Ferreira	27	0.09%
Total			28,483	100.00

B.C. General Election 2001: Vancouver-Burrard
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	BC Liberal	Lorne Mayencourt	11,396	48.11%	+10.88	$46,939
	NDP	Tim Stevenson	7,359	31.07%	-18.63	$45,493
	Green	Robbie Mattu	3,826	16.15%	+13.52	$1,029
	Marijuana	Marc Emery	906	3.82%		$394
	Unity	Gregory Paul Michael Hartnell	290	1.15%
	Independent	Boris Bear	136	0.57%		$157
	People's Front	Joseph Theriault	40	0.17%		$57
	Independent Rhino	Helvis	25	0.11%		$100
Total Valid Votes			23,688	100.00%
Total Rejected Ballots			123	0.52%
Turnout			23,811	63.67%

B.C. General Election 1996: Vancouver-Burrard
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	NDP	Tim Stevenson	10,646	49.70%	-1.23	$43,534
	BC Liberal	Duncan Wilson	7,975	37.23%	+2.00	$50,880
	PDA	Laura McDiarmid	1,014	4.73%		$1,072
	Green	Imtiaz Popat	563	2.63%	+0.32	$155
	BC Reform	Aletta Buday	671	3.13%		$100
	Libertarian	John Clarke	458	2.14%
	Natural Law	Wayne A. Melvin	93	0.43%		$100
Total Valid Votes			21,420	100.00%
Total Rejected Ballots			257	1.19%
Turnout			21,677	62.68%

External links

• Tim Stevenson at Vancouver City Council