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'{{Infobox Canadian political party | party_name = Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba | logo = | status = active | class = prov | leader = [[Hugh McFadyen]] | president = [[Michael Richards (Canadian politician)|Michael Richards]] | foundation = {{Start date|1882}} | headquarters = 23 Kennedy Street<br>[[Winnipeg]], [[Manitoba|MB]]<br>R3C 1S5 | ideology = [[Conservatism]] | position = [[Centre-right]] to [[Right-wing]] | colours = [[Blue]] | colorcode = #9999FF | fiscalpolicy = | socialpolicy = | membership = | seats_legislature = {{Infobox political party/seats|18|57|hex=#9999FF}} | website = {{URL|http://www.pcmanitoba.com/}} | province = Manitoba }} The '''Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba''' is the only right wing [[political party]] in [[Manitoba]], [[Canada]]. It is also the official opposition party in the [[Legislative Assembly of Manitoba]]. ==Origins and early years== The origins of the party lie at the end of the nineteenth century. Party politics were weak in Manitoba for several years after it entered [[Canadian confederation]] in 1870. The system of government was essentially one of [[non-partisan democracy]], though some leading figures such as [[Marc-Amable Girard]] were identified with the [[Conservative Party of Canada (historical)|Conservatives]] at the federal level. The government was a balance of ethnic, religious and linguistic communities, and party affiliation was at best a secondary concern. In 1879, [[Thomas Scott (Manitoba politician)|Thomas Scott]] (not to be confused with another person of the same name who was executed by [[Louis Riel]]'s provisional government in 1870) and [[Joseph Royal]] attempted to introduce partisan politics into the province. Both were Conservatives, and both believed that they could lead a provincial Conservative Party. Their plans were thwarted by Premier [[John Norquay]], who also supported the Conservatives at the federal level but included both Liberals and Conservatives in his governing alliance. Norquay himself formed a reluctant alliance with the provincial Conservatives in 1882, in the face of strong opposition from [[Thomas Greenway]]'s [[Provincial Rights Party]]. His government was for all intents and purposes Conservative for the remainder of its time in office, though Norquay continued to describe it as "non-partisan". Starting in the election of 1883, moreover, political parties began to be listed on the provincial election [[ballot]]. ==Subsequent development of the party (to 1899)== When Norquay resigned as Premier in 1887, his successor [[David H. Harrison]] also became leader of the Conservative parliamentary caucus. Norquay was able to reclaim the latter position early in 1888, following an extremely divided meeting of senior Conservative politicians. By this time, the new Liberal Premier [[Thomas Greenway]] had formally introduced party government to the province, and no one doubted that Norquay was now the province's Conservative leader. The Conservative Party was not yet a legally recognized institution in the province, however, and began to lose its conherence again after Norquay's death in 1889. Conservative MLAs simply referred to themselves as "the opposition" for most of the decade that followed. [[Rodmond P. Roblin]] was the dominant Conservative MLA between 1890 and 1892, but he does not seem to have been recognized as an official leader. After Roblin's defeat in the election of 1892, [[William Alexander Macdonald]] became the leader of the opposition. In 1893, his election for [[Brandon (electoral district)|Brandon City]] was declared invalid, and he lost the subsequent by-election. Remarkably, the election of Macdonald's successor, [[John Andrew Davidson]], was also voided in 1894. For the remainder of this parliament, [[James Fisher (Manitoba politician)|James Fisher]] seems to have been the leading figure in the opposition ranks. It is not clear if he was formally recognized as "leader of the opposition", or even as an official member of the Conservative Party. Rodmand Roblin was re-elected in 1896, and officially became opposition leader in the legislature. The next year, [[Hugh John Macdonald]] (son of former [[Prime Minister]] [[John A. Macdonald]]) became the party's official leader, while Roblin continued to lead the opposition in parliament. ==Taking power (1899–1915)== The Conservative Party became an official entity in 1899, and drew up its first election platform in the same year. It promised a board of education for the province, the creation of agricultural and technical colleges, and government ownership of railways. [[Hugh John Macdonald]] became [[Premier of Manitoba|Premier]] following in the 1899 election, but resigned shortly thereafter to re-enter federal politics. [[Sir Rodmond P. Roblin]] succeeded Macdonald, and ruled the province for fifteen years. Roblin's government was progressively oriented, negotiated the extension of the railway, bought Manitoba's Bell [[telephone]] operations in order to establish a government run system, introduced corporate taxation, and created a public utilities commission while running a budgetary surplus. It was less progressive on social issues, however, and is most frequently remembered today for its opposition to women's suffrage. The [[Tories]] were brought down in 1915 by a scandal involving the construction of the province's new legislative buildings. Roblin was forced to resign as Premier, and [[James Albert Manning Aikins|James Aikins]] led the party to a disastrous loss later in the year. The Manitoba Conservatives received their greatest support from the francophone community in the [[Manitoba general election, 1915|1915 election]], due to the fact that the party was seen as more supportive than the Liberals of francophone education rights. This was a pronounced contrast to the situation in federal politics, where most francophone Canadians opposed the war policies of Prime Minister [[Robert Borden]]. ==In the political wilderness (1915–1940)== [[Aime Benard]] was chosen as leader ''pro tem'' of the party on August 15, 1915, and [[Albert Prefontaine]] was chosen as the official parliamentary leader shortly thereafter. The party was a minor force in parliament, however, and was largely sidelined by the radical farmer and labour movements of the late 1910s. On November 6, 1919, the Conservative Party chose farmer [[R.G. Willis]] to lead the party into its next electoral campaign. Willis's selection was a response to the provincial victory of the [[United Farmers of Ontario]] the previous month; he defeated [[Major Fawcett Taylor]] after three other candidates (including Prefontaine) withdrew their names. The vote total was not announced. Willis was defeated in the election of 1920, and the Conservatives became the fourth-largest group in parliament with only six seats. [[John Thomas Haig]] subsequently became their parliamentary leader, and Fawcett Taylor was chosen as the official party leader in early 1922. The Conservatives gradually regained support in the following twenty years, but were unable to defeat the [[Progressive Party of Manitoba|Progressive]] government of [[John Bracken]]. In 1932, Bracken's Progressives formed an alliance with the [[Manitoba Liberal Party]] to ensure that Taylor would not become the province's Premier. Taylor resigned as party leader in 1933, and [[W. Sanford Evans]] served as parliamentary leader for the next three years. In 1936, [[Errick Willis]] (son of R.G.) was acclaimed as party leader. He led the party in another unsuccessful challenge to the Bracken ministry in 1936. ==In coalition (1940–1950)== In 1940 Willis agreed to join Bracken in a wartime [[coalition government]]. Willis himself was given a prominent cabinet position in the all-party ministry which followed. Three anti-coalition Conservatives were elected to the legislature in 1941. One of these, [[Huntly Ketchen]], served as leader of the opposition. This group did not constitute a rival to the official Conservative Party, however. In 1946, the party changed its name to the ''Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba'' to reflect the change in name of the federal [[Progressive Conservative Party of Canada|Progressive Conservatives]]. Relations between the Tories and Liberal-Progressives deteriorated after [[Douglas Lloyd Campbell|Douglas Campbell]] became Premier in 1948, and the Tories voted 215–7 to leave the coalition in 1950. ==Varying fortunes (1953–1975)== The 1953 election was won by the Liberals, and Willis was compelled to accept a leadership challenge the following year. [[Dufferin Roblin|Duff Roblin]], son of Sir Rodmond Roblin, became party leader on the second ballot and rebuilt the party's organization which had been weakened during the coalition period. In 1958, Roblin's Tories ran and were elected to a [[minority government]] on a progressive platform of increased education grants, crop insurance, extension of [[Manitoba Hydro|hydro]] to the north, and road construction. In 1959, Roblin returned to the polls and won a [[majority government|majority]], which pursued a policy of 'social investment', active government and social reform (including reintroducing French to schools and expanding welfare services). In 1967, Roblin left provincial politics and was replaced by [[Walter C. Weir]], who led a more cautious and restrained government. Weir led the Conservatives to defeat at the hands of the [[New Democratic Party of Manitoba|New Democratic Party]] in 1969. [[Sidney Spivak]], another progressive, led the party from 1971 to 1975, but was unable to defeat Schreyer's government. ==The party under Sterling Lyon (1975–1981)== [[Sterling Lyon]] became leader of the party in 1975 and took it in a more conservative direction, anticipating the [[Neoconservative|neoconservatism]] of [[Margaret Thatcher]], [[Ronald Reagan]] and [[Mike Harris]]. The Lyon Tories defeated the NDP in 1977. The Lyon government was to the right of previous Tory administrations and implemented a program of spending cuts and reduced taxes (while also promoting mega-projects in the energy sector). Manitobans were unreceptive to the government's conservatism, and defeated it in 1981 after only one term in office. ==The party under Gary Filmon (1983–1999)== [[Gary Filmon]] became leader of the Progressive Conservatives in 1983, and formed a [[minority government]] in 1988 after defeating the NDP. Filmon's Tories remained in power for three terms, winning a [[majority government]] in 1990 and again in 1995. Filmon's government avoided excessive conservative rhetoric, but nonetheless reduced corporate taxes, mandated balanced budgets, and limited the power of teacher's and nurse's unions. It supported the [[Charlottetown Accord]] (a proposal for amending the Canadian constitution), as well as [[free trade]] with the United States. The party's financial [[austerity]] program resulted in a balanced budget in 1995, the first in 20 years. The Tories were hurt in the late 1990s by increased unemployment, a vote-manipulation scandal from the 1995 election (see [[Independent Native Voice]]), and the decline of the [[Manitoba Liberal Party]]. The latter development allowed the anti-Tory vote to coalesce around the NDP, contributing to that party's 1999 victory. ==Recent developments (1999 to date)== <!-- Commented out because image was deleted: [[Image:MBPClogo.gif|right|frame|Party logo before 2007]] --> Filmon resigned as leader in 2000, and was replaced by [[Stuart Murray]]. The party fell to twenty seats in the election of 2003, its worst showing since 1953. On November 5, 2005, at a meeting regarding a possible leadership convention in the near future, Stuart Murray received only 45% support from party members. On November 14, Stuart Murray stepped down as leadership of the party. [[Hugh McFadyen]] became leader of the party at the leadership convention on April 29, 2006 garnering two thirds of the first ballot vote. In McFadyen's first campaign as party leader during the [[Manitoba general election, 2007|2007 provincial election]], popular support for PC Party rose 2% over 2003 numbers. Although he managed to capture a greater percentage of the provincial vote, one less conservative was elected in 2007 than in 2003. The party's youth organization is called PC Youth. ==Leaders of the party== *[[Hugh John Macdonald]] (March 1897 – October 1900 | Premier from 1900–1900) *[[Sir Rodmond P. Roblin]] (October 1900 – May 1915 | Premier from 1900–1915) *[[James Albert Manning Aikins|Sir James Aikins]] (July 1915 – August 1915) *[[Albert Prefontaine]] (January 1916 – November 6, 1919) *[[R.G. Willis]] (November 6, 1919 – April 5, 1922) *[[Col. Fawcett G. Taylor]] (April 5, 1922 – March 1933) *[[W. Sanford Evans]] (April 1933 – June 1936) *[[Errick F. Willis]] (June 1936 – June 1954) *[[Dufferin Roblin]] (June 1954 – November 1967 | Premier from 1958–1967) *[[Walter Weir]] (November 1967 – February 1971 | Premier from 1967–1969) *[[Sidney Spivak]] (February 1971 – December 1975) *[[Sterling Lyon]] (December 1975 – December 1983 | Premier from 1977–1981) *[[Gary Filmon]] (December 1983 – May 29, 2000 | Premier from 1988–1999) *[[Bonnie Mitchelson]] (May 29, 2000 – November 2000) (interim) *[[Stuart Murray]] (November 2000 – April 2006) *[[Hugh McFadyen]] (April 2006 – present) Note: [[John Thomas Haig]] led the Manitoba Conservatives in the legislature from 1920 to 1922. ==Election results== {| class="wikitable sortable" style="text-align:center" |- ! Year<br /> ! PC<br />Leader<br /> ! Seats<br />won<br /> ! Seat<br />change<br /> ! Popular<br />vote<br /> ! % of popular<br />vote<br /> ! Result<br /> |- | [[Manitoba general election, 2007|2007]] || [[Hugh McFadyen]] || 19 || -1 || 158,511 || 38.2% || NDP majority |- | [[Manitoba general election, 2003|2003]] || [[Stuart Murray]] || 20 || -4 || 142,967 || 36.19% || NDP majority |- | [[Manitoba general election, 1999|1999]] || [[Gary Filmon]] || 24 || -7 || 201,562 || 40.84% || NDP majority |- ! [[Manitoba general election, 1995|1995]] || [[Gary Filmon]] || 31 || +1 || 216,246 || 42.87% || PC Majority |- ! [[Manitoba general election, 1990|1990]] || [[Gary Filmon]] || 30 || +5 || 206,810 || 41.99% || PC Majority |- ! [[Manitoba general election, 1988|1988]] || [[Gary Filmon]] || 25 || -1 || 206,180 || 38.37% || PC Minority |- | [[Manitoba general election, 1986|1986]] || [[Gary Filmon]] || 26 || +3 || 193,728 || 40.56% || NDP majority |- | [[Manitoba general election, 1981|1981]] || [[Sterling Lyon]] ||23 || -10 || 211,602 || 43.82% || NDP majority |- ! [[Manitoba general election, 1977|1977]] || [[Sterling Lyon]] || 33 || +12 || 237,496 || 48.75% || PC Majority |- | [[Manitoba general election, 1973|1973]] || [[Sidney Spivak]] || 21 || -1 || 171,553 || 36.73% || NDP majority |- | [[Manitoba general election, 1969|1969]] || [[Walter Weir]] || 22 || -9 || 119,021 || 35.56% || NDP minority |- ! [[Manitoba general election, 1966|1966]] || [[Dufferin Roblin]] || 31 || -5 || 130,102 || 39.96% || PC Majority |- ! [[Manitoba general election, 1962|1962]] || [[Dufferin Roblin]] || 36 || – || – || 44.7% || PC Majority |- ! [[Manitoba general election, 1959|1959]] || [[Dufferin Roblin]] || 36 || – || – || 46.3% || PC Majority |- ! [[Manitoba general election, 1958|1958]] || [[Dufferin Roblin]] || 26 || – || – || 40.6% || PC Minority |} ==See also== *[[List of Manitoba general elections]] *[[Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba leadership elections]] ==External links== *[http://www.pcmanitoba.com PC Manitoba] {{Manitoba PC Leaders}} {{Manitoba provincial political parties}} {{Canadian Conservative Parties}} [[Category:Provincial political parties in Manitoba]] [[Category:Conservative parties in Canada]] [[fr:Parti progressiste-conservateur du Manitoba]]'