Sandra Pupatello
Encyclopedia
Sandra Pupatello was a politician in 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...

. She served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...

 from 1995 to 2011 as a member of the Ontario Liberal Party
Ontario Liberal Party
The Ontario Liberal Party is a provincial political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. It has formed the Government of Ontario since the provincial election of 2003. The party is ideologically aligned with the Liberal Party of Canada but the two parties are organizationally independent and...

, serving as a Minister in the government of Dalton McGuinty
Dalton McGuinty
Dalton James Patrick McGuinty, Jr., MPP is a Canadian lawyer, politician and, since October 23, 2003, the 24th and current Premier of the Canadian province of Ontario....

.

Pupatello is married to Jim Bennett
Jim Bennett (politician)
Jim Bennett is a Canadian politician. He was elected to the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly in the 2011 provincial election. He ran in St. Barbe during the 2007 general election but lost to Wallace Young. Bennett previously served as leader of the Liberal Party of Newfoundland and...

, a former leader of the Newfoundland and Labrador Liberal Party.

Early life and career

Pupatello was born Sandra Pizzolitto in Windsor
Windsor, Ontario
Windsor is the southernmost city in Canada and is located in Southwestern Ontario at the western end of the heavily populated Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. It is within Essex County, Ontario, although administratively separated from the county government. Separated by the Detroit River, Windsor...

, Ontario. She became politically active by campaigning for 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...

 Member of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

 (MP) Herb Gray
Herb Gray
Herbert Eser Gray, is a retired Canadian politician. He was Canada's first Jewish federal cabinet minister, and is one of only a few Canadians ever granted the title The Right Honourable who was not so entitled by virtue of a position held.-Early life:Born in Windsor, Ontario, the son of Harry...

 in the 1970s. She holds a Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree from the University of Windsor
University of Windsor
The University of Windsor is a public comprehensive and research university in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's southernmost university. It has a student population of approximately 15,000 full-time and part-time undergraduate students and over 1000 graduate students...

 (1986). She remained in the city after her graduation, serving as general manager of the city's Rotary Club and executive director of the Essex County Kidney Foundation of Canada. She was also a board member of the Windsor Regional Hospital and Windsor Regional Children's Centre, and was president of the Fogolar Furlan Club. Pupatello was named "Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 of the Year" for Windsor-Essex County in 1996, received the Charlie Clark Award for Outstanding Service from the University of Windsor in 2001, and was named "Windsor Woman of the Year" in 2003.

In opposition

Pupatello was first elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1995 provincial election
Ontario general election, 1995
The Ontario general election of 1995 was held on June 8, 1995, to elect members of the 36th Legislative Assembly of the province of Ontario, Canada...

, defeating New Democratic Party candidate Arlene Rousseau by 5,526 votes in Windsor—Sandwich
Windsor—Sandwich
Windsor—Sandwich was a provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada. It came into existence for the first time with the 1934 Ontario election, and was eliminated with the 1967 election as a result of redistribution...

. The seat had previously been held by New Democrat George Dadamo
George Dadamo
George Dadamo is a Canadian politician. He served as a New Democratic Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 1995.-Early life:...

, who did not seek re-election. The Progressive Conservative Party
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario
The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario , is a right-of-centre political party in Ontario, Canada. The party was known for many years as "Ontario's natural governing party." It has ruled the province for 80 of the years since Confederation, including an uninterrupted run from 1943 to 1985...

 won a majority government
Majority government
A majority government is when the governing party has an absolute majority of seats in the legislature or parliament in a parliamentary system. This is as opposed to a minority government, where even the largest party wins only a plurality of seats and thus must constantly bargain for support from...

 in the election, and Pupatello entered the legislature as an opposition Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP). During her first term, she served as Official Opposition Critic for Community and Social Services, Children's issues, Youth Issues, and the Management Board of Cabinet.

Pupatello was co-manager of Dwight Duncan
Dwight Duncan
Dwight Duncan, MPP is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He has been a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario since 1995, and is the Minister of Finance in the government of Dalton McGuinty...

's 1996 campaign to lead the Ontario Liberal Party. Like Duncan, she supported Gerard Kennedy
Gerard Kennedy
Gerard Michael Kennedy is a Canadian politician in Ontario, Canada. He served as Ontario's Minister of Education from 2003 to 2006, when he resigned to make an unsuccessful bid for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada...

 on the final ballot.

Pupatello was re-elected by a landslide in the 1999 provincial election
Ontario general election, 1999
An Ontario general election was held on June 3, 1999, to elect members of the 37th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

 for the redistributed constituency of Windsor West
Windsor West
Windsor West is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1968.The district consists of the part of the city of Windsor lying west and south of a line drawn from the U.S...

, while the Progressive Conservatives were re-elected to a second consecutive majority government. Pupatello remained a member of the opposition frontbench, serving over the next four years as Deputy Leader of the Opposition and Official Opposition Critic for Health and Long-Term Care.

She was a vocal critic of the 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...

 and Ernie Eves
Ernie Eves
Ernest Lawrence "Ernie" Eves was the 23rd Premier of the province of Ontario, Canada, from April 15, 2002, to October 23, 2003.-Beginnings:...

 governments, frequently criticizing cutbacks to child care and other programs. In 1997, she introduced a Private Member's Resolution intended to stop cutbacks to hospital funding. She later criticized the Progressive Conservative government's plans to introduce a private MRI clinic, arguing that it posed a long-term threat to public health-care.

In government

The Liberal Party won a majority government in the 2003 provincial election
Ontario general election, 2003
The Ontario general election of 2003 was held on October 2, 2003, to elect the 103 members of the 38th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

, and Pupatello was again re-elected in Windsor West with a significant majority. On October 23, 2003, she was appointed to cabinet as Minister of Community and Social Services
Ministry of Community and Social Services (Ontario)
The Ministry of Community and Social Services in the Canadian province of Ontario is responsible for social services such as welfare, and disability insurance and community service programs around issues such as homelessness, domestic violence, spousal support, adoption, and assisted housing for...

 with responsibility for Women's Issues. There was some speculation that she would be appointed Deputy Premier
Deputy Premier of Ontario
The Deputy Premier of Ontario is the representative of the Premier of Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario when the current Premier is unable to attend functions executed by the Premier...

 as well, but this position was instead left vacant until George Smitherman
George Smitherman
George Smitherman is a Canadian politician and broadcaster. He represented the provincial riding of Toronto Centre in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1999 to 2010, when he resigned to contest the mayoralty of Toronto in the 2010 municipal election...

's appointment in 2006. Pupatello has been described as a possible candidate for the leadership of the Ontario Liberal Party when Dalton McGuinty retires.

Minister of Community and Social Services

Pupatello's most important responsibility in the Community and Social Services portfolio was overseeing Ontario's welfare and disability assistance system. Shortly after taking office, she announced that her government would remove a lifetime ban on welfare recipients who are caught cheating on their applications. Pupatello described the rule as counterproductive, in that many welfare officials were reluctant to bring forward charges out of concern for the extreme punitive consequences. She also announced that her government would take greater steps to find parents who are delinquent with child support payments.

In March 2004, Pupatello announced $2 million to assist low-income Ontarians with increased hydro bills. In June, she announced $10 million to help Ontarians with physical disabilities modify their houses and cars.

Pupatello introduced a 3% social assistance rate increase in 2004, the first such increase after twelve years of freezes. Mechanical difficulties with computers purchased by the 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...

 government subsequently delayed its implementation, and the province implemented lump-sum payments instead. Later in 2004, Pupatello announced that her government would eliminate a rule requiring welfare recipients to liquidate their education savings plans. Speaking to the media, Pupatello described the requirement as "a dumb rule that works at cross-purposes to what welfare is supposed to be doing for people and their families". In 2005, she announced the creation of the JobsNow program to help welfare recipients enter the workforce.

In January 2005, Pupatello was appointed to chair an ad hoc cabinet committee on the modernization of government.

Pupatello spearheaded passage of the Adoption Information Disclosure Act
Adoption Information Disclosure Act
The Adoption Information Disclosure Act, formally An Act respecting the disclosure of information and records to adopted persons and birth parents, also known as Bill 183, is an Ontario law regarding the disclosure of information between parties involved in adoptions.Passed by the Legislative...

in 2005, allowing birth records to be released to adoptees
Adoption
Adoption is a process whereby a person assumes the parenting for another and, in so doing, permanently transfers all rights and responsibilities from the original parent or parents...

. Ontario Privacy Commissioner Ann Cavoukian
Ann Cavoukian
Ann Cavoukian is the current Information and Privacy Commissioner for the Canadian province of Ontario.- Early life and career :Born in Cairo in 1952 to ethnic Armenian parents Artin and Lucie Cavoukian, Cavoukian immigrated to Toronto with her family in 1958...

 was a critic of the bill, arguing that it was not sufficiently respectful of the promises of anonymity made to birth parents at the time of adoption. Pupatello argued that the bill was necessary to provide adoptees with information about their personal history, and has noted that it provides safeguards for instances where safety issues are a concern.

In November 2005, the Ministry of Community and Social Services, under Pupatello's leadership, rolled out a series of amendments to the special diet allowance, a program which provides additional funding of up to $250 per month for social assistance recipients to cover the increased costs of certain medically-related diets. Groups such as the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
Ontario Coalition Against Poverty
The Ontario Coalition Against Poverty is an anti-poverty group in Ontario, Canada, who promote the interests of the poor and homeless...

 had previously encouraged recipients to apply for the benefit and there had been a significant increase in the number of requests. Pupatello argued that there was a loophole in the program, it was being exploited by activist groups and that the resulting drain on the system needed to be corrected. Several anti-poverty groups criticized the decision. In February 2008, the Ontario Human Rights Commission referred a group of complaints to the Human Rights Tribunal of Ontario, asserting that the 2005 amendments violated the Ontario Human Rights Code. The Tribunal hearings are scheduled to take place in 2009.

Pupatello announced in January 2006 that her department would close Ontario's three remaining government-operated institutions for mentally disabled adults, and assist the occupants with moving into in more integrated community facilities. She noted that a "sea change in attitude" had occurred over institutionalization practices since the buildings were first established, and that greater integration was now the preferred approach. Previous ministers, including John Baird, had also called for the buildings to close. Critics argued that the plan could put the patients at risk.

In March 2006, the McGuinty government was criticized for a backlog in approving provincial disability allowances. Pupatello described the backlog as "totally unacceptable", and announced that her ministry would work to correct it.

Social assistance rates were raised again by 2% in 2006. Pupatello also introduced policy to allow further money to be 'flowed through' from the federal government's National Child Benefit Supplement in each year since 2003. She was unable to implement a planned removal of the federal tax credit clawback, and argued that the deficit inherited from the previous government made this change unviable before 2007.

Minister of Education

Pupatello was promoted to Minister of Education on April 5, 2006, after Gerard Kennedy
Gerard Kennedy
Gerard Michael Kennedy is a Canadian politician in Ontario, Canada. He served as Ontario's Minister of Education from 2003 to 2006, when he resigned to make an unsuccessful bid for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Canada...

 resigned to run for the federal Liberal leadership. The following month, she announced that her government would give $3 million to the Kids Help Phone service to set up a 24 hour anti-bullying hotline. She also pledged more than $1 million to provide young students with swimming and water survival lessons, in the aftermath of a series of drowning deaths in the Guelph
Guelph
Guelph is a city in Ontario, Canada.Guelph may also refer to:* Guelph , consisting of the City of Guelph, Ontario* Guelph , as the above* University of Guelph, in the same city...

 area the previous year.

In late May 2006, Pupatello introduced a strategic high school transition plan intended to reduce Ontario's high-school dropout rate. The following month, she introduced a $50 million plan for teacher training and reduced wait times for special needs programs. She also worked toward solving the vexing issue of the teacher funding formula, a problem that the Liberals inherited from the previous government.

Pupatello also announced a comprehensive plan for changes at TV Ontario, including a greater focus on educational programming and more money for equipment upgrades. The popular Studio 2
Studio 2
Studio 2 was a daily current affairs newsmagazine on TVOntario in Ontario, Canada. The show won several Gemini Awards, and was hosted by Steve Paikin and Paula Todd , and first aired in 1994. TVOntario announced the program's termination on June 29, 2006...

 program was cancelled, and replaced by a nightly current affairs show called The Agenda. Some opposition politicians charged political interference in the latter decision, but this was denied by both Pupatello and Studio 2 host Steve Paikin
Steve Paikin
Steve Paikin is a Canadian journalist, author, and documentary producer at TVOntario . He is currently anchor and senior editor of TVO's flagship current affairs program The Agenda with Steve Paikin, and previously hosted TVO's Studio 2 and Diplomatic Immunity.A native of Hamilton, Ontario,...

.

During the summer of 2006, Pupatello criticized a number of Ontario school boards for failing to balance their books. She appointed a financial adviser to the Dufferin-Peel Catholic District School Board, which was experiencing difficulties balancing its budget. Pupatello also targeted administrative costs in the Toronto District School Board, arguing that the board had the means to balance its books without program cuts. In late August, she appointed two provincial representatives to review the TDSB books.

During a September 2006 by-election Parkdale—High Park
Parkdale—High Park
Parkdale—High Park is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1979.Peggy Nash of the New Democratic Party was elected the Member of Parliament for the riding on May 2, 2011....

, Pupatello engaged in a controversial negative campaign on behalf of Liberal candidate Sylvia Watson
Sylvia Watson
Sylvia Watson is a former Canadian politician. She was a Toronto City Councillor for ward 14, part of the riding of Parkdale-High Park from 2003 to 2006 and the candidate for the Liberal Party of Ontario in the 2006 by-election and in the 2007 general election.-Background:Watson and her family...

. She accused New Democratic Party candidate Rev. Cheri DiNovo
Cheri DiNovo
Cheri DiNovo, MPP, is a Canadian social democratic politician. She is an United Church of Canada minister and previously headed the Emmanuel-Howard Park congregation in Toronto, Ontario. As the New Democratic Party of Ontario candidate in Parkdale–High Park, she was elected to the Legislative...

 of comparing Canada's media coverage of serial killer Karla Homolka
Karla Homolka
Karla Leanne Homolka, also known as Karla Leanne Teale , is a Canadian serial killer. She attracted worldwide media attention when she was convicted of manslaughter following a plea bargain in the 1991 and 1992 rape-murders of two Ontario teenage girls, Leslie Mahaffy and Kristen French, as well as...

 to the persecution of Jesus Christ, and suggested that DiNovo was unfit to run for parliament. Many argued that Pupatello took DiNovo's words completely out of context, and opposition politicians accused the Liberals of conducting a smear campaign. The effort backfired, and DiNovo was elected by a significant margin. Pupatello has defended her role in the campaign, saying "If I was presented once again with apparently what is factual and has yet to be refuted and that is sermons that were posted on the world wide web ... I would have exactly the same opinion as I do today".

Minister of Economic Development and Trade

Pupatello was reassigned as Minister of Economic Development and Trade on September 18, 2006, following the resignation of Joe Cordiano. This was generally interpreted as a demotion, although at least one columnist has suggested that holding an economic portfolio could help Pupatello's long-term political ambitions.

Pupatello led provincial trade delegations to Alberta
Alberta
Alberta is a province of Canada. It had an estimated population of 3.7 million in 2010 making it the most populous of Canada's three prairie provinces...

 in late 2006 and early 2007, promoting Ontario's business sector to the western province's booming economy. She also took part in a trade mission to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...

 and Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan...

 in January 2007, and went on a four-day trade mission to Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

 in April of the same year. Her department has also set up a growing number of marketing centres around the world.

Minister Responsible for Women's Issues

In late 2005, Pupatello introduced a program to assist provincial emergency workers in identifying cases of domestic abuse. She has also introduced several initiatives to assist women from low income backgrounds in entering the job market. She introduced "EqualityRules.ca" in November 2006, to encourage equal relationships between young boys and girls. In the same month, she announced $2.1 million for interpreter services for victims of domestic violence.

Minister of International Trade and Investment

In September 2008, she was appointed the province's Minister of International Trade and Development, which was created with the mandate of attracting new investment in Ontario.

Minister of Economic Development and Trade

In June 2009, she was appointed the Minister of Economic Development and Trade, a new ministry that combined three previous ministries: Small Business, International Trade and Investment and Economic Development.

In June, 2011, she announced that she would not seek re-election in the October, 2011 Provincial elections.

Federal politics

Pupatello supported Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....

's bid to succeed Jean Chrétien
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....

 as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. She also supported Michael Ignatieff
Michael Ignatieff
Michael Grant Ignatieff is a Canadian author, academic and former politician. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition from 2008 until 2011...

's bid for the party leadership in 2006.

Table of offices held

Elliott's official title was "Minister of Community, Family and Children's Services". The department was restructured and renamed in 2003.

Biographical information from both of these sites has been incorporated into this article.

Electoral record

|-

|Sandra Pupatello
|align="right"|16,783
|align="right"|50.2%
|align="right"|-12.32%
|-

|Mariano Klimowicz
|align="right"|8,560
|align="right"|25.6%
|align="right"|+4.62%
|-

|Lisa Lumley
|align="right"|5,668
|align="right"|17.0%
|align="right"|+5.1%
|-

|Jason Richard Haney
|align="right"|1,986
|align="right"|5.9%
|align="right"|+2.4%
|-

|Daniel Joseph Dionne
|align="right"|451
|align="right"|1.4%
|align="right"|
|}
All electoral information is taken from Elections Ontario
Elections Ontario
Elections Ontario is a non-partisan Agency of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. They work under the Chief Electoral Officer, an officer of the Legislative Assembly. responsible for the conduct of provincial elections.-External links:*...

. The expenditure figures cited on this page for all elections after 1995 are the Total Candidate's Campaign Expenses Subject to Limitation, and include transfers from constituency associations.

External links

The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
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