Margery Ward | |
|---|---|
| Ontario MPP | |
| In office 1990–1993 | |
| Preceded by | Murad Velshi |
| Succeeded by | David Johnson |
| Constituency | Don Mills |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 18, 1942 Bass River, New Brunswick, Canada |
| Died | January 22, 1993 (aged 50) Toronto, Ontario, Canada |
| Political party | New Democrat |
| Occupation | Computer systems designer |
Margery Ward (July 18, 1942 - January 22, 1993) was a politician in Ontario, Canada. She served as a New Democratic Party member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 until her death in 1993.
Background
Ward grew up in Bass River, New Brunswick. She came from a family of eight children, six girls and two boys. She left there as a teenager after dropping out of high school and moved to Toronto. She worked as a grocery store clerk for twenty years. During this time she completed her high school diploma at night school. She attended York University, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in computer science. She went to work at Manufacturer's Life Insurance Company as a data processing manager and as a computer systems designer. She was active in the Retail, Wholesale and Department Store Union, eventually becoming secretary of the Toronto local.[1][2]
Politics
Ward ran in the 1987 provincial election in the riding of Don Mills. She placed third behind winner Liberal Murad Velshi tallying 6,3681 votes, about 24% of the votes cast.[3] She tried again in the 1990 provincial election and this time was elected over Velshi by 746 votes.[4] Ward attributed her win to her opposition to the rent control system as 60% of the voters in the riding were tenants. She said, "The current legislation provides no protection whatsoever for the tenants."[5]
She was appointed parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Government Services on October 1, 1990, and held this position until her death from cancer in early 1993.[6]
York University now offers a Margery Ward Memorial Bursary in political science.[7]
Electoral results
| 1987 Ontario general election: Don Mills | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||||
| Liberal | Murad Velshi | 10,573 | 39.9 | |||||
| Conservative | David Lindsay | 8,666 | 32.7 | |||||
| New Democratic | Margery Ward | 6,368 | 24.0 | |||||
| Independent | David Smith | 588 | 2.2 | |||||
| Freedom | David Pengally | 330 | 1.2 | |||||
| Total | 26,525 | |||||||
| Source: "How Metro-Area Voted". The Toronto Daily Star. Toronto. 1987-09-11. p. A12. | ||||||||
| 1990 Ontario general election: Don Mills | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||||
| New Democratic | Margery Ward | 9,740 | 34.2 | |||||
| Liberal | Murad Velshi | 8,994 | 31.6 | |||||
| Conservative | Nola Crewe | 7,385 | 25.9 | |||||
| Libertarian | David Miller | 744 | 2.6 | |||||
| Green | Katherine Mathewson | 624 | 2.2 | |||||
| Independent | Colin McKay | 562 | 2.0 | |||||
| Freedom | David Pengally | 413 | 1.5 | |||||
| Source: "How Metro-Area Voted". The Toronto Daily Star. Toronto. 1990-09-07. p. A10. | ||||||||
References
- ^ Hall, Joseph (September 27, 1990). "Computer addict's social conscience leads to Legislature". Toronto Star. p. A8.
- ^ "Margery Ward was socialist, MPP for Don Mills". Toronto Star. January 23, 1993. p. A8.
- ^ "How Metro-Area Voted". The Toronto Daily Star. Toronto. September 11, 1987. p. A12.
- ^ "How Metro-Area Voted". The Toronto Daily Star. September 7, 1990. p. A10.
- ^ Mahood, Casey (September 7, 1990). "Don Mills NDP winner is a surprise in former Tory stronghold". Toronto Star. p. A13.
- ^ "Margery Ward was socialist, MPP for Don Mills". Toronto Star. January 23, 1993. p. A8.
- ^ "Awards and Scholarships". York University: Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies. Retrieved March 15, 2014.