Paul Wessenger

Paul Wessenger (born December 25, 1937) is a former Canadian politician in Ontario. He was a New Democratic Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 1995 who represented the central Ontario riding of Simcoe Centre.

Paul Wessenger
Ontario MPP
In office
1990–1995
Preceded byBruce Owen
Succeeded byJoe Tascona
ConstituencySimcoe Centre
Personal details
Born (1937-12-25) December 25, 1937
Brockville, Ontario, Canada
Political partyNew Democrat
Alma materUniversity of Toronto
OccupationLawyer

Background

Wessenger attended the University of Toronto, receiving a law degree. He worked as a lawyer in Toronto for four and a half years, and then practiced in Barrie, Ontario for a further twenty-one years.[1] From 1973 to 1976 he served as an alderman within Barrie.[2] There is a street in Barrie named after him.[3]

Politics

He ran for the Ontario legislature in the 1975 provincial election, coming a close second to Progressive Conservative incumbent Art Evans in the riding of Simcoe Centre.[4] He ran again in the 1977 provincial election, losing to the PC candidate George William Taylor by a greater margin.[5]

Wessenger ran for the House of Commons of Canada as a candidate for the federal New Democratic Party in the 1980 federal election, but finished third in the riding of Simcoe South.[6] He ran a third provincial campaign in the 1985 provincial election, but again lost to PC candidate Earl Rowe.[7]

The NDP won a majority government in the 1990 provincial election, and Wessenger, running for a fourth time in Simcoe Centre, defeated incumbent Liberal Bruce Owen by almost 3,000 votes.[8] He served as parliamentary assistant to the Attorney General from 1991 to 1995 and to the Minister of Health for the remainder of his time in office.[9]

In 1992, Wessenger and Jack Layton travelled the province to seek public consultation on changes to Ontario's Public Hospitals Act.[10]

The NDP were defeated in the 1995 provincial election, and Wessenger finished third against PC candidate Joe Tascona.[11]

Electoral record
1995 Ontario general election: Simcoe Centre
Party Candidate Votes
Progressive ConservativeJoe Tascona29,790
LiberalBruce Owen12,061
New DemocraticPaul Wessenger7,655
Family CoalitionSusane MacPhee-Manning769
GreenRichard Warman580
IndependentLes Barnett284
Total valid votes 51,139
1990 Ontario general election: Simcoe Centre
Party Candidate Votes%
New DemocraticPaul Wessenger15,71137.8
LiberalBruce Owen12,86931.0
Progressive ConservativeBen Andrews10,01324.1
Confederation of RegionsBonnie Ainsworth2,9797.2
Total valid votes 41,572
1985 Ontario general election: Simcoe Centre
Party Candidate Votes
Progressive ConservativeEarl W. Rowe15,379
LiberalRoss Whiteside14,845
New DemocraticPaul Wessenger9,639
IndependentSteve Kaasgaard566
Total valid votes 40,429
1980 Canadian federal election: Simcoe South
Party Candidate Votes
Progressive ConservativeRonald Stewart19,768
LiberalBruce Owen16,174
New DemocraticPaul Wessenger9,474
1977 Ontario general election: Simcoe Centre
Party Candidate Votes%
Progressive ConservativeGeorge Taylor15,87644.25
New DemocraticPaul Wessenger10,44229.11
LiberalJim Corneau9,55626.64
1975 Ontario general election: Simcoe Centre
Party Candidate Votes
Progressive ConservativeDavid Arthur Evans13,555
New DemocraticPaul Wessenger11,623
LiberalMargaret Kelly9,116

References
  1. Hain, Bruce (July 20, 2005). "Tascona tops MPPs for expenses". Barrie - Advance. p. 3.
  2. Ferguson, Jock (April 18, 1985). "PCB storage in Barrie becomes election issue". The Globe and Mail. p. M5.
  3. "Wessenger Drive". Google Maps. Retrieved March 5, 2014.
  4. "Table of vote results for all Ontario ridings". The Globe and Mail. September 19, 1975. p. C12.
  5. "Ontario provincial election results riding by riding". The Globe and Mail. June 10, 1977. p. D9.
  6. "Election '80". The Toronto Star. February 19, 1987. p. B7.
  7. "Results of vote in Ontario election". The Globe and Mail. May 3, 1985. p. 13.
  8. "Ontario election: Riding-by-riding voting results". The Globe and Mail. September 7, 1990. p. A12.
  9. van Wageningen, Ellen (August 20, 1992). "Volunteer hospital boards defended at hearing". The Windsor Star. p. A5.
  10. Sumi, Craig (June 23, 1992). "Jo Brant beefs? Come out Aug. 12 Ministry mulls changes to Public Hospitals Act". The Hamilton Spectator. p. T2.
  11. "Summary of Valid Ballots by Candidate". Elections Ontario. June 8, 1995. Archived from the original on April 2, 2015. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
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