Sean Conway
Encyclopedia
Sean Conway is a Canadian university
professor
and administrator. He served for 28 years as a Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
, from 1975 to 2003, and was a high-profile cabinet minister in the government of David Peterson
. Conway is currently a Fellow
in the School of Policy Studies at Queen's University
in Kingston, Ontario
, a special assistant to the Principal of Queen's University
, Daniel Woolf
, and the Acting Vice-Principal (Advancement) at Queen's.
), and his Masters at Queen's University, both in history.
, at age twenty-four, Conway was elected as a Liberal Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for the eastern Ontario riding of Renfrew North. His grandfather, Thomas Patrick Murray
, had represented Renfrew South
for the Liberals from 1929 to 1945. He defeated Progressive Conservative
candidate Bob Cotnam by 183 votes. The Progressive Conservatives won a minority government
in the election, and Conway sat with his party in the opposition benches.
The Liberals increased their parliamentary representation in the 1977 election
, although not by enough to form government; Conway was re-elected over Cotnam by an increased margin. He became his party's official Critic for Health following the election, and served in this capacity for the entirety of the four-year minority parliament which followed.
The Progressive Conservatives won a majority government
in the 1981 provincial election
, although Conway was popular enough in his own riding to be re-elected by about 2,000 votes. On March 9, 1982, he was chosen as Deputy Leader of the Ontario Liberal Party by David Peterson
, who had defeated Sheila Copps
in a leadership convention
the previous month.
resulted in a minority parliament, with the Progressive Conservatives having only four more seats than the Liberals and the New Democratic Party
holding the balance of power with twenty-five seats. Conway, by this time regarded as being on the progressive wing of his party, was involved in the Liberal Party's post-election negotiations with the NDP. In this capacity, he helped bring about a written pact, in which the NDP offered support to the Liberals for two years in return for certain progressive legislative initiatives. On June 26, 1985 he was named as the province's Minister of Education.
Conway's most controversial responsibility as Education Minister was managing the government's legislation for full funding to Ontario's Roman Catholic separate schools. Conway's grandfather, Thomas Murray, had championed a similar initiative in the 1930s, and was disappointed when Mitchell Hepburn
backed away from a previous commitment in the face of Protestant opposition. Conway had supported the announcement of full funding by Bill Davis
's Progressive Conservative government prior to the 1985 election
, and was responsible for significantly increasing the actual revenues to the Catholic system after a mathematical error in the Davis government's funding formula came to light. He also guaranteed hiring rights for non-Catholics within the system, and exempted non-Catholic children from compulsory religious education in separate high schools.
For Conway, the issue of separate-school funding was a question of righting an historical wrong; others, however, regarded government funding of Catholic education as a threat to the public school system. The larger issue of denominational school funding remains extremely controversial in the province.
On June 17, 1986, Conway was also named Acting Ontario Minister of Government Services, a position which he held until the dissolution of parliament in 1987. He was re-elected by a landslide in the 1987 provincial election
, in which the Liberals won 95 of 130 seats. On September 29, 1987, he was named Government House Leader
and Minister of Mines. Following a cabinet shuffle on August 2, 1989, he was again named Minister of Education, and also held the portfolios of Minister of Skills Development and Colleges and Universities.
Like many others in the Peterson government, Conway opposed holding an early election in 1990 (in fact, he would later reveal that sentiment in the party caucus was almost uniformly against an early trip to the polls). Nonetheless, Peterson called a snap provincial election in 1990
, and his party was resoundingly defeated by the NDP. Conway himself was re-elected in a landslide in Renfrew North, where the NDP has a very limited base of historical support. On September 17, 1991, he was chosen as Deputy Leader of the Official Opposition. Conway did not contest the Liberal leadership in 1992.
The Progressive Conservatives under Mike Harris
returned to government in the 1995 provincial election
with a large majority. Despite the Tories' sweep of much of the province, Conway's personal popularity allowed him a fairly easily re-election in Renfrew North.
Conway was the early frontrunner to succeed Lyn McLeod
as party leader in 1996, and surprised many by choosing not to run. Conway instead supporting Dwight Duncan
, who finished fourth. He continued to serve as Deputy Opposition Leader until December 19, 1996, when new party leader Dalton McGuinty
replaced him with Joseph Cordiano
. In the 1999 election
, he defeated an incumbent MPP, Tory Leo Jordan
, in the redistributed riding of Renfrew--Nipissing--Pembroke. With the retirement of Bud Wildman
in 1999, Conway became the longest-serving member of the legislature.
Having spent more than half his life as an MPP, Conway decided to retire before the 2003 provincial election.
School of Policy Studies. He also serves as a special assistant to Queen's University
's Principal, Daniel Woolf
.
On November 20, 2008, Conway was appointed as Acting Vice-Principal (Advancement) at Queen's.
In November 2007, Conway was honoured with the prestigious Churchill Society Award for Excellence in the Cause of Parliamentary Democracy. Previous recipients include former Prime Ministers, Cabinet Ministers, Premiers and Lieutenant Governors.
Conway offered significant assistance to former Canadian Prime Minister
Paul Martin
, in the project to publish Martin's memoirs, Hell Or High Water: My Life In And Out of Politics, which appeared in late 2008. Conway performed many interviews for the National Archives of Canada, which were also utilized for the book.
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
professor
Professor
A professor is a scholarly teacher; the precise meaning of the term varies by country. Literally, professor derives from Latin as a "person who professes" being usually an expert in arts or sciences; a teacher of high rank...
and administrator. He served for 28 years as a Liberal member of 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 1975 to 2003, and was a high-profile cabinet minister in the government of David Peterson
David Peterson
David Robert Peterson, PC, O.Ont was the 20th Premier of the Province of Ontario, Canada, from June 26, 1985 to October 1, 1990. He was the first Liberal premier of Ontario in 42 years....
. Conway is currently a Fellow
Fellow
A fellow in the broadest sense is someone who is an equal or a comrade. The term fellow is also used to describe a person, particularly by those in the upper social classes. It is most often used in an academic context: a fellow is often part of an elite group of learned people who are awarded...
in the School of Policy Studies at Queen's University
Queen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
in Kingston, Ontario
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...
, a special assistant to the Principal of Queen's University
Queen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
, Daniel Woolf
Daniel Woolf
Daniel Robert Woolf is a British/Canadian historian. He is the Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, a position to which he was appointed in January 2009 and took up as of September 1, 2009...
, and the Acting Vice-Principal (Advancement) at Queen's.
Early life
Conway attended St. Joseph's Separate School, Madawaska Valley District High School. He earned his Bachelor of Arts at Waterloo Lutheran University (now Wilfrid Laurier UniversityWilfrid Laurier University
Wilfrid Laurier University is a university located in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada. It also has campuses in Brantford, Ontario, Kitchener, Ontario and Toronto, Ontario and a future proposed campus in Milton, Ontario. It is named in honour of Sir Wilfrid Laurier, the seventh Prime Minister of Canada....
), and his Masters at Queen's University, both in history.
Elected to legislature at 24
In the provincial election of 1975Ontario general election, 1975
The Ontario general election of 1975 was held on September 18, 1975, to elect the 125 members of the 30th Legislative Assembly of Ontario of the Province of Ontario, Canada....
, at age twenty-four, Conway was elected as a Liberal Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for the eastern Ontario riding of Renfrew North. His grandfather, Thomas Patrick Murray
Thomas Patrick Murray
Thomas Patrick Murray was an Ontario lumber merchant and political figure. He represented Renfrew South in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1929 to 1945 as a Liberal member....
, had represented Renfrew South
Renfrew South (provincial electoral district)
Renfrew South was a riding of Ontario, Canada. The last Member of Provincial Parliament for Renfrew South in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario was Paul Joseph Yakabuski, in the 33rd Parliament ....
for the Liberals from 1929 to 1945. He defeated Progressive Conservative
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...
candidate Bob Cotnam by 183 votes. The Progressive Conservatives won a minority government
Minority government
A minority government or a minority cabinet is a cabinet of a parliamentary system formed when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in the parliament but is sworn into government to break a Hung Parliament election result. It is also known as a...
in the election, and Conway sat with his party in the opposition benches.
The Liberals increased their parliamentary representation in the 1977 election
Ontario general election, 1977
The Ontario general election of 1977 was held on June 9, 1977, to elect the 125 members of the 31st Legislative Assembly of Ontario of the Province of Ontario, Canada....
, although not by enough to form government; Conway was re-elected over Cotnam by an increased margin. He became his party's official Critic for Health following the election, and served in this capacity for the entirety of the four-year minority parliament which followed.
The Progressive Conservatives 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 1981 provincial election
Ontario general election, 1981
The Ontario general election of 1981 was held on March 19, 1981, to elect members of the 32nd Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....
, although Conway was popular enough in his own riding to be re-elected by about 2,000 votes. On March 9, 1982, he was chosen as Deputy Leader of the Ontario Liberal Party by David Peterson
David Peterson
David Robert Peterson, PC, O.Ont was the 20th Premier of the Province of Ontario, Canada, from June 26, 1985 to October 1, 1990. He was the first Liberal premier of Ontario in 42 years....
, who had defeated Sheila Copps
Sheila Copps
Sheila Maureen Copps, PC is a former Canadian politician who also served as Deputy Prime Minister of Canada from November 4, 1993 to April 30, 1996 and June 19, 1996 to June 11, 1997....
in a leadership convention
Leadership convention
In Canadian politics, a leadership convention is held by a political party when the party needs to choose a leader due to a vacancy or a challenge to the incumbent leader.- Overview :...
the previous month.
Cabinet minister
The provincial election of 1985Ontario general election, 1985
The Ontario general election of 1985 was held on May 2, 1985, to elect members of the 33rd Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada...
resulted in a minority parliament, with the Progressive Conservatives having only four more seats than the Liberals and the New Democratic Party
Ontario New Democratic Party
The Ontario New Democratic Party or , formally known as New Democratic Party of Ontario, is a social democratic political party in Ontario, Canada. It is a provincial section of the federal New Democratic Party. It was formed in October 1961, a few months after the federal party. The ONDP had its...
holding the balance of power with twenty-five seats. Conway, by this time regarded as being on the progressive wing of his party, was involved in the Liberal Party's post-election negotiations with the NDP. In this capacity, he helped bring about a written pact, in which the NDP offered support to the Liberals for two years in return for certain progressive legislative initiatives. On June 26, 1985 he was named as the province's Minister of Education.
Conway's most controversial responsibility as Education Minister was managing the government's legislation for full funding to Ontario's Roman Catholic separate schools. Conway's grandfather, Thomas Murray, had championed a similar initiative in the 1930s, and was disappointed when Mitchell Hepburn
Mitchell Hepburn
Mitchell Frederick Hepburn was the 11th Premier of Ontario, Canada, from 1934 to 1942. He was the youngest Premier in Ontario history, appointed at age 37....
backed away from a previous commitment in the face of Protestant opposition. Conway had supported the announcement of full funding by Bill Davis
Bill Davis
William Grenville "Bill" Davis, was the 18th Premier of Ontario, Canada, from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the MPP for Peel in the 1959 provincial election where he was a backbencher in Leslie Frost's government. Under John Robarts, he was a cabinet minister overseeing the education...
's Progressive Conservative government prior to the 1985 election
Ontario general election, 1985
The Ontario general election of 1985 was held on May 2, 1985, to elect members of the 33rd Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada...
, and was responsible for significantly increasing the actual revenues to the Catholic system after a mathematical error in the Davis government's funding formula came to light. He also guaranteed hiring rights for non-Catholics within the system, and exempted non-Catholic children from compulsory religious education in separate high schools.
For Conway, the issue of separate-school funding was a question of righting an historical wrong; others, however, regarded government funding of Catholic education as a threat to the public school system. The larger issue of denominational school funding remains extremely controversial in the province.
On June 17, 1986, Conway was also named Acting Ontario Minister of Government Services, a position which he held until the dissolution of parliament in 1987. He was re-elected by a landslide in the 1987 provincial election
Ontario general election, 1987
The Ontario general election of 1987 was held on September 10, 1987, to elect members of the 34th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada.The governing Ontario Liberal Party, led by David Peterson, was returned to power with a large majority...
, in which the Liberals won 95 of 130 seats. On September 29, 1987, he was named Government House Leader
House Leader
In Canada, each political party with representation in the House of Commons has a House Leader who is a front bench Member of Parliament and an expert in parliamentary procedure...
and Minister of Mines. Following a cabinet shuffle on August 2, 1989, he was again named Minister of Education, and also held the portfolios of Minister of Skills Development and Colleges and Universities.
Like many others in the Peterson government, Conway opposed holding an early election in 1990 (in fact, he would later reveal that sentiment in the party caucus was almost uniformly against an early trip to the polls). Nonetheless, Peterson called a snap provincial election in 1990
Ontario general election, 1990
The Ontario general election of 1990 was held on September 6, 1990, to elect members of the 35th Legislative Assembly of the province of Ontario, Canada....
, and his party was resoundingly defeated by the NDP. Conway himself was re-elected in a landslide in Renfrew North, where the NDP has a very limited base of historical support. On September 17, 1991, he was chosen as Deputy Leader of the Official Opposition. Conway did not contest the Liberal leadership in 1992.
The Progressive Conservatives under 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...
returned to government 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...
with a large majority. Despite the Tories' sweep of much of the province, Conway's personal popularity allowed him a fairly easily re-election in Renfrew North.
Conway was the early frontrunner to succeed Lyn McLeod
Lyn McLeod
Lyn McLeod is a politician in Ontario, Canada. She served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1987 to 2003. McLeod was a cabinet minister in the Liberal government of David Peterson from 1987 to 1990, and served as leader of the Ontario Liberal Party from 1992 to 1996.-Background - Pre...
as party leader in 1996, and surprised many by choosing not to run. Conway instead supporting 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...
, who finished fourth. He continued to serve as Deputy Opposition Leader until December 19, 1996, when new party leader 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....
replaced him with Joseph Cordiano
Joseph Cordiano
Joseph Cordiano is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was formerly a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, and a cabinet minister in the government of Liberal Premier Dalton McGuinty.-Early life:...
. In the 1999 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....
, he defeated an incumbent MPP, Tory Leo Jordan
Leo Jordan
W. Leo Jordan is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 1999....
, in the redistributed riding of Renfrew--Nipissing--Pembroke. With the retirement of Bud Wildman
Bud Wildman
Charles Jackson "Bud" Wildman is a Canadian politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario as a New Democratic Party Member of Provincial Parliament from 1975 to 1999, representing the riding of Algoma, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Bob Rae.-Background:He was...
in 1999, Conway became the longest-serving member of the legislature.
Having spent more than half his life as an MPP, Conway decided to retire before the 2003 provincial election.
After politics
He is currently a member of TV Ontario's political discussion panel, a public policy advisor with Gowlings Professionals, and a Visiting Fellow at the Queen's UniversityQueen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
School of Policy Studies. He also serves as a special assistant to Queen's University
Queen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
's Principal, Daniel Woolf
Daniel Woolf
Daniel Robert Woolf is a British/Canadian historian. He is the Principal and Vice-Chancellor of Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario, a position to which he was appointed in January 2009 and took up as of September 1, 2009...
.
On November 20, 2008, Conway was appointed as Acting Vice-Principal (Advancement) at Queen's.
In November 2007, Conway was honoured with the prestigious Churchill Society Award for Excellence in the Cause of Parliamentary Democracy. Previous recipients include former Prime Ministers, Cabinet Ministers, Premiers and Lieutenant Governors.
Conway offered significant assistance to former Canadian Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
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....
, in the project to publish Martin's memoirs, Hell Or High Water: My Life In And Out of Politics, which appeared in late 2008. Conway performed many interviews for the National Archives of Canada, which were also utilized for the book.