Russ Ramsay | |
|---|---|
| Ontario MPP | |
| In office 1978–1985 | |
| Preceded by | John Rhodes |
| Succeeded by | Karl Morin-Strom |
| Constituency | Sault Ste. Marie |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1928-08-05)August 5, 1928 |
| Died | February 9, 2003(2003-02-09) (aged 74) |
| Political party | Progressive Conservative |
| Spouse | Margaret |
| Children | 5 |
| Occupation | Radio station manager |
Russell Harold Ramsay (August 5, 1928 — February 9, 2003) was a politician inOntario, Canada. He served as a member of theSault Ste. Marie city council before being elected to theLegislative Assembly of Ontario in 1978. He was acabinet minister in the government ofWilliam Davis from 1981 to 1985. Ramsay was a member of theProgressive Conservative Party.
Ramsay was born inSault Ste. Marie, and was educated in that city and atQueen's University inKingston. He became manager ofCJIC-TV in 1956, and served as vice-president ofHuron Broadcasting. Ramsay was the recipient of a Centennial Medal in 1967, and was named "Man of the Year" by Sault Ste. Marie'sRotary Club in 1969. He was a member of the Sault Ste. Marie city council from January to June 1975. He was married to Margaret with whom he raised five children.
Ramsay first campaigned for theAlgoma West seat in theHouse of Commons in the1965 federal election but lost toLiberal candidateGeorge Nixon.[1] He ran again in1968, this time against LiberalTerry Murphy inSault Ste. Marie but lost again.[2]
In 1974, Ramsay ran to represent Ward 2 on Sault Ste. Marie's city council. He was elected in the December 2, 1974 municipal election.
Following the death of Progressive Conservative cabinet ministerJohn Rhodes, Ramsay was persuaded to run in the December 14, 1978by-election to representSault Ste. Marie in the Ontario legislature. He was elected by a comfortable 5,815 vote margin over theNew Democratic Party candidate.[3] Three years later, he was re-elected with 50 percent of the vote in the1981 provincial election.[4] He was appointed to cabinet asProvincial Secretary for Resources Development on April 10, 1981.[5] He was promoted toMinister of Labour on February 13, 1982.[6]
Following the premier's autumn 1984 decision to step down, Ramsay supportedLarry Grossman's unsuccessful bid to replace Bill Davis as Progressive Conservative leader in February 1985.[7]
In the1985 provincial election that followed, Ramsay lost his seat to New Democratic Party candidateKarl Morin-Strom by 1,069 votes.[8] His loss was attributed to a weak provincial campaign by the Progressive Conservatives, and by some to Ramsay's suggestion that equal pay for women could cause some businesses to shut down.[9]
In 1996, Ramsay ran in a mayoral by-election in Sault Ste. Marie to replaceJoe Fratesi who had left to become the city's chief administrative officer, but he was defeated by former federal MPSteve Butland.
| Davis ministry,Province of Ontario (1971-1985) | ||
| Cabinet posts (2) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Predecessor | Office | Successor |
| Robert Elgie | Minister of Labour 1982–1985 | Robert Elgie |
| René Brunelle | Provincial Secretary for Resources Development 1981–1982 | Lorne Henderson |
In January 1987, he was appointed to the Health Discipline Board and the Denture Therapists Appeal Board.[10] Three months later he was appointed executive vice president and general manager of the Industrial Accident Prevention Association.[11] He stayed in that position until 1995 when the board was eliminated by theMike Harris administration.[12]
From January 1990 to February 1999 he wrote a regular column inThe Sault Star on local sports and the history and traditions of the city.[13]
In October 1991, in recognition to his contributions to sport in the city, the Sault Ste. Marie Museum named its new gallery the Russell H. Ramsay Sports History Hall of Fame.[14]
On April 22, 1993 Ramsay was named a member of theOrder of Canada. His citation read,
In July 1993 he was named to theOrder of Ontario.[16] In April of that same year he was named distinguished citizen of the year byLake Superior State University in Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.[17]
The Sault Ste. Marie Chamber of Commerce awarded Ramsay the Paul Dalseg community achievement award in 2000.[18]
In July 2000, Sault Ste. Marie's city council renamed the Algoma boardroom at the city's civic centre after him. In addition, Ferry Street, the lower part of Brock Street leading to the civic centre was renamed Russ Ramsay Way.[19]
Ramsay died on February 9, 2003 at a Sault Ste. Marie nursing home, at age 73. He had previously been diagnosed withAlzheimer's disease.[20] He was interred at Sault Ste. Marie's Holy Sepulchre Cemetery.
In 2009, he was posthumously inducted into theSault Ste. Marie Walk of Fame in recognition of the "community-mindedness of Russ as business man, politician and volunteer."[21]
| Ontario provincial by-election, December 14, 1978 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Russ Ramsay | 15,960 | 52.14 | -3.14 | ||||
| New Democratic | Ron Moreau | 10,145 | 33.14 | -0.42 | ||||
| Liberal | Ron Luciano | 4,505 | 14.72 | +4.03 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 30,610 | 100.00 | ||||||
| Progressive Conservativehold | Swing | -1.36 | ||||||
| 1981 Ontario general election | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Russ Ramsay | 14,712 | 49.99 | -5.29 | ||||
| Liberal | Albert Ferranti | 7,555 | 25.67 | +14.98 | ||||
| New Democratic | Susan Brothers | 7,162 | 24.34 | -9.22 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 29,429 | 100.00 | ||||||
| Progressive Conservativehold | Swing | -10.14 | ||||||
^ Change from general election
| 1985 Ontario general election | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| New Democratic | Karl Morin-Strom | 16,362 | 44.85 | +20.51 | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Russ Ramsay | 15,293 | 41.92 | -8.08 | ||||
| Liberal | Ray Youngson | 4,830 | 13.24 | -12.43 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 36,485 | 100.00 | ||||||
| New Democraticgain fromProgressive Conservative | Swing | +14.29 | ||||||
