Dave Clarke (politician)
Encyclopedia
Dave Clarke is a municipal politician in Kingston
, Ontario
, Canada
. He served on the Kingston City Council from 1994 to 2000, and was a candidate for the Reform Party
in the 1997 federal election
.
Clarke was born in Brockville
, Ontario, and was raised in Woodstock
. He became active in radio broadcasting when still in high school, and worked in radio and television for sixteen years after his graduation. He was a news anchor for CKWS
Television from 1987 to 1993, when he switched to sales at CIZ radio.
He first ran for public office in the 1994 Kingston municipal election, seeking a council seat in the St. Lawrence Ward. Clarke ran on a pro-business platform, claiming that the previous council had alienated city business interests. He also supported regional amalgamation. He was narrowly elected, defeating rival candidate Mike Murphy by twenty votes. In 1997, he was one of only three council members to vote against a bill extending employee benefits for same-six couples.
In January 1997, Clarke defeated Grey Kennedy to win the Reform Party nomination for Kingston and the Islands
. He had previously been approached to run for the Progressive Conservative Party
. In the general election, he finished third against Liberal
incumbent Peter Milliken
.
Shortly before the 1997 municipal election, the provincial government of Mike Harris
amalgamated the city of Kingston with a number of surrounding municipalities. Clarke was re-elected to council by winning a seat on the newly-created Board of Control, a powerful four-member board elected by the region at large. In early 1998, he was appointed to the Kingston police services board.
Following an extended period of tension between the Board of Control and the rest of city council, the council voted 15-1 to abolish the board in September 1999. Clarke was the only member to vote for retention. He spoke out against council spending on a homeless shelter later in the year, arguing that Kingston did not have a homeless program and that many of those using the shelter were youths who did not need it. In 2000, he supported the creation of the Canadian Alliance
.
He campaigned for re-election in the 2000 municipal election in Council Ward Five (Portsmouth), but lost to Beth Pater. He sought re-election in 2003, and lost to Pater a second time.
Kingston, Ontario
Kingston, Ontario is a Canadian city located in Eastern Ontario where the St. Lawrence River flows out of Lake Ontario. Originally a First Nations settlement called "Katarowki," , growing European exploration in the 17th Century made it an important trading post...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. He served on the Kingston City Council from 1994 to 2000, and was a candidate for the Reform Party
Reform Party of Canada
The Reform Party of Canada was a Canadian federal political party that existed from 1987 to 2000. It was originally founded as a Western Canada-based protest party, but attempted to expand eastward in the 1990s. It viewed itself as a populist party....
in the 1997 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...
.
Clarke was born in Brockville
Brockville, Ontario
Brockville is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada, in the Thousand Islands region. Though it serves as the seat of the United Counties of Leeds and Grenville, Brockville is politically independent and is grouped with Leeds and Grenville for census purposes only.Known as the "City of the 1000...
, Ontario, and was raised in Woodstock
Woodstock, Ontario
Woodstock is a city and the county seat of Oxford County in Southern Ontario, Canada. Woodstock is located 128 km southwest of Toronto, north of Highway 401 along the historic Thames River...
. He became active in radio broadcasting when still in high school, and worked in radio and television for sixteen years after his graduation. He was a news anchor for CKWS
CKWS-TV
CKWS is an affiliate of the CBC Television Network in Kingston, Ontario, providing coverage to Eastern Ontario from Campbellford to Morrisburg and from Perth to Oswego, New York in the United States....
Television from 1987 to 1993, when he switched to sales at CIZ radio.
He first ran for public office in the 1994 Kingston municipal election, seeking a council seat in the St. Lawrence Ward. Clarke ran on a pro-business platform, claiming that the previous council had alienated city business interests. He also supported regional amalgamation. He was narrowly elected, defeating rival candidate Mike Murphy by twenty votes. In 1997, he was one of only three council members to vote against a bill extending employee benefits for same-six couples.
In January 1997, Clarke defeated Grey Kennedy to win the Reform Party nomination for Kingston and the Islands
Kingston and the Islands
Kingston and the Islands is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968....
. He had previously been approached to run for the Progressive Conservative Party
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....
. In the general election, he finished third against Liberal
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
incumbent Peter Milliken
Peter Milliken
Peter Andrew Stewart Milliken, UE is a Canadian lawyer and politician. He was a member of the Canadian House of Commons from 1988 until his retirement in 2011 and served as Speaker of the House for 10 years beginning in 2001. Milliken represented the Ontario riding of Kingston and the Islands as a...
.
Shortly before the 1997 municipal election, the provincial government of Mike Harris
Mike Harris
Michael Deane "Mike" Harris was the 22nd Premier of Ontario from June 26, 1995 to April 15, 2002. He is most noted for the "Common Sense Revolution", his Progressive Conservative government's program of deficit reduction in combination with lower taxes and cuts to government...
amalgamated the city of Kingston with a number of surrounding municipalities. Clarke was re-elected to council by winning a seat on the newly-created Board of Control, a powerful four-member board elected by the region at large. In early 1998, he was appointed to the Kingston police services board.
Following an extended period of tension between the Board of Control and the rest of city council, the council voted 15-1 to abolish the board in September 1999. Clarke was the only member to vote for retention. He spoke out against council spending on a homeless shelter later in the year, arguing that Kingston did not have a homeless program and that many of those using the shelter were youths who did not need it. In 2000, he supported the creation of the Canadian Alliance
Canadian Alliance
The Canadian Alliance , formally the Canadian Reform Conservative Alliance , was a Canadian conservative political party that existed from 2000 to 2003. The party was the successor to the Reform Party of Canada and inherited its position as the Official Opposition in the House of Commons and held...
.
He campaigned for re-election in the 2000 municipal election in Council Ward Five (Portsmouth), but lost to Beth Pater. He sought re-election in 2003, and lost to Pater a second time.