Jack Harris (Newfoundland and Labrador politician)
| Jack Harris | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Canadian Parliament for St. John's East |
|
| In office 2008–2015 |
|
| Preceded by | Norman Doyle |
| Succeeded by | Nick Whalen |
| In office July 20, 1987 – 1988 |
|
| Preceded by | James McGrath |
| Succeeded by | Ross Reid |
| Leader of the Newfoundland and Labrador New Democratic Party | |
| In office 1992–2006 |
|
| Preceded by | Cle Newhook |
| Succeeded by | Lorraine Michael |
| MHA for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi (St. John's East) |
|
| In office 1990–2006 |
|
| Preceded by | Shannie Duff |
| Succeeded by | Lorraine Michael |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 27, 1948 St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador |
| Political party | New Democratic Party |
| Spouse(s) | Ann Martin |
| Residence | St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador |
| Profession | Lawyer, Journalist |
John James "Jack" Harris (born October 27, 1948) is a Canadian lawyer and politician from Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. Harris served as the New Democratic Party (NDP) Member of Parliament for St. John's East from 1987 to 1988 and again from 2008 to 2015. He is also a former leader of the Newfoundland and Labrador New Democratic Party.
Politics[edit]
Harris first became a member of the House of Commons of Canada after winning a by-election in the riding of St. John's East on July 20, 1987.[1] Harris was the second NDP candidate ever elected to the House of Commons in Newfoundland and Labrador.[2] He was subsequently defeated in the 1988 federal election.[3]
Harris was elected to the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly in a 1990 by-election[4] and was unopposed when he was elected to succeed Cle Newhook as leader of the provincial New Democrats at a party convention held November 1992.[5] He was re-elected to the Legislature in the 1993, 1996, 1999 and 2003 elections. He retired from provincial politics in 2006 and was succeeded by Lorraine Michael as leader of the party as well as the Member of the House of Assembly for Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi.[6][7][8] At the time of his departure, his former law partner Danny Williams was Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador.
In the 2008 federal election Harris was again elected as the Member of Parliament for the riding of St. John's East.[9] He received 74.1% of the vote, which was the fifth highest winning percentage in the election. Following the election Harris was appointed as the party's Critic for National Defence, and on several occasions has been named one of "The Backbench Top Ten", for his performance in the House of Commons, by Maclean's Magazine. Harris was re-elected in the 2011 federal election.[10] He lost the 2015 election in an upset to Liberal Party candidate Nick Whalen.[11][12]
Electoral history[edit]
| Canadian federal election, 2011 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ∆% | Expenditures | |||
| New Democratic | Jack Harris | 31,388 | 71.22 | -3.33 | ||||
| Conservative | Jerry Byrne | 9,198 | 20.87 | +11.61 | ||||
| Liberal | John Allan | 3,019 | 6.85 | -5.73 | ||||
| Green | Robert Miller | 467 | 1.06 | -0.32 | ||||
| Total valid votes/Expense limit | 44,072 | 100.00 | – | |||||
| Total rejected ballots | 136 | 0.31 | 0.32 | |||||
| Turnout | 44,208 | 58.77 | +0.88 | – | ||||
| Eligible voters | 75,218 | – | – | |||||
| St. John's East - Canadian federal election, 2008 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| New Democratic | Jack Harris | 31,369 | 74.63% | ||
| Liberal | Walter Noel | 5,273 | 12.34% | ||
| Conservative | Craig Westcott | 3,872 | 9.21% | ||
| Green | Howard Story | 586 | 1.39% | ||
| Progressive Canadian | Shannon Tobin | 584 | 1.39% | ||
| Newfoundland and Labrador First | Les Coultas | 349 | 0.83% | ||
| Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi, Newfoundland and Labrador general election, 2003 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | +/- | |
| New Democrat | Jack Harris | 2,456 | |||
| Progressive Conservative | Karen Carol | 2,221 | |||
| Liberal | Ray O'Neil | 391 | |||
| Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi, Newfoundland and Labrador general election, 1999 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | +/- | |
| New Democrat | Jack Harris | 2,179 | |||
| Liberal | Pete Sousey | 2,010 | |||
| Progressive Conservative | Chris O'Brien | 793 | |||
| Independent | Shaun Dunn | 53 | |||
| Independent | Paul David Hillier | 116 | |||
| Independent | John Whelan | 48 | |||
| Signal Hill-Quidi Vidi, Newfoundland and Labrador general election, 1996 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | +/- | |
| New Democrat | Jack Harris | 2,800 | |||
| Liberal | Joan Cook | 1,661 | |||
| Progressive Conservative | Cy Mills | 902 | |||
| Independent | Jason Crummey | 120 | |||
| St. John's East, Newfoundland and Labrador general election, 1993 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | +/- | |
| New Democrat | Jack Harris | 2,336 | |||
| Liberal | Joan Cook | 1,728 | |||
| Progressive Conservative | Sean Fitzgerald | 1,285 | |||
| St. John's East, Newfoundland and Labrador by-election, December 11, 1990 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | +/- | |
| New Democrat | Jack Harris | 1,977 | 49.24 | ||
| Liberal | Barbara Chalker | 1,237 | 30.81 | ||
| Progressive Conservative | John Ottenheimer | 801 | 19.95 | ||
| St. John's East - Canadian federal election, 1988 | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Progressive Conservative | Ross Reid | 21,503 | 44.13 | +9.16 | |
| New Democratic | Jack Harris | 17,198 | 35.30 | -10.98 | |
| Liberal | Jim Baird | 9,285 | 19.06 | +1.84 | |
| Christian Heritage | Robert Tremblett | 739 | 1.52 | Ø | |
| Total valid votes | 48,725 | ||||
| Canadian federal by-election, July 20, 1987: St. John's East | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | ||||||
| New Democratic | Jack Harris | 15,842 | ||||||
| Progressive Conservative | Tom Hickey | 11,971 | ||||||
| Liberal | Steve Neary | 5,894 | ||||||
| Rhinoceros | Peter Francis Quinlan | 527 | ||||||
References[edit]
- ^ "NDP sweeps three federal by-elections". The Globe and Mail. July 21, 1987.
- ^ "NDP holds Hamilton Mountain, takes St. John's East from Tories". The Globe and Mail. July 21, 1987.
- ^ "Soul-searching next on NDP agenda". The Globe and Mail. November 22, 1988.
- ^ "NDP wins seat in Newfoundland". The Globe and Mail. December 12, 1990.
- ^ "New leader for Newfoundland NDP". The Globe and Mail. November 16, 1992.
- ^ "Harris stepping down as NDP leader". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 28 October 2005. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
- ^ "Harris's resignation clears way for Signal Hill byelection". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 29 September 2006. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
- ^ "Do honourable thing and quit seat, Tories tell Harris". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 23 August 2006. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
- ^ "Former MP Harris sets sights on St. John's East". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 8 September 2008. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
- ^ "NDP's Harris landslide in St. John's East". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 2 May 2011. Retrieved 2 February 2013.
- ^ "Jack Harris 'surprised' after being ousted by Nick Whalen in St. John's East". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 20 October 2015. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
- ^ "NDP acknowledges defeat; loses two N.L. seats". The Telegram. St. John's. 20 October 2015. Retrieved 22 October 2015.
External links[edit]
- Website for Jack Harris, Member of Parliament, St. John's East
- Jack Harris (Newfoundland and Labrador politician) – Parliament of Canada biography
- Jack Harris Facebook page
- Jack Harris on CPAC, Beyond Politics
- Jack Harris' press conference on student loan interest rates (Youtube video)
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- 1948 births
- Lawyers in Newfoundland and Labrador
- Leaders of the Newfoundland and Labrador NDP/CCF
- Living people
- Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Newfoundland and Labrador
- New Democratic Party MPs
- Newfoundland and Labrador New Democratic Party MHAs
- People from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador