Harry Nixon | |
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| 13thPremier of Ontario | |
| In office May 18, 1943 – August 17, 1943 | |
| Monarch | George VI |
| Lieutenant Governor | Albert E. Matthews |
| Preceded by | Gordon Daniel Conant |
| Succeeded by | George Drew |
| Member of theOntario Provincial Parliament forBrant Brant North 1919–1926 Brant County 1926–1934 | |
| In office October 20, 1919 – October 22, 1961 | |
| Preceded by | Thomas Scott Davidson |
| Succeeded by | Robert Nixon |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Harry Corwin Nixon (1891-04-01)April 1, 1891 |
| Died | October 22, 1961(1961-10-22) (aged 70) St. George, Ontario |
| Resting place | St. George United Cemetery |
| Party | Ontario Liberal Party (1937–1961) |
| Other political affiliations | United Farmers of Ontario (1919–1923) Progressive (1923–1934) Liberal-Progressive (1934–1937) |
| Alma mater | University of Toronto |
Harry Corwin Nixon (April 1, 1891 – October 22, 1961) was aCanadian politician and briefly the 13thpremier of Ontario in 1943. He is both the longest-serving member in the history of the Ontario legislature and the shortest-serving premier of Ontario.
Nixon was born on a farm nearSt. George, Ontario, the son of a dairy farmer, Henry Nixon, and studied at theUniversity of Toronto'sOntario Agricultural College (then affiliated with the university).
He was first elected to theLegislative Assembly of Ontario in 1919 as a candidate of theUnited Farmers of Ontario. He served as aCabinet minister in the government ofPremierErnest C. Drury asProvincial Secretary and Registrar. Following the defeat of the UFO-Labour government in the1923 election, Nixon sat as aProgressiveMember of the Legislative Assembly (MLA), and became the leader of the small Progressive bloc (as most UFOers now called themselves) after the1929 election.
Mitchell Hepburn, a farmer and former UFO organizer, became leader of theOntario Liberal Party, and Nixon led his Progressive remnant into an alliance with Hepburn's party. In the1934 election, Nixon and his followers ran asLiberal-Progressives, helping bring the Hepburn to power. He ran and was elected as a Liberal in the1937 election.
Nixon resumed his former Cabinet position of Provincial Secretary and Registrar in the Hepburncabinet and was the senior minister in the government. DuringWorld War II, Hepburn clashed withWilliam Lyon Mackenzie King, theLiberalPrime Minister of Canada, arguing that King was not sufficiently prosecuting the war effort, in particular by not introducingconscription (seeConscription Crisis of 1944). Hepburn openly supported King's rival,Conservative leaderArthur Meighen in a 1942York South by-election, and seemed to be calling for the defeat of King. This was too much for many Ontario Liberals, who were either King loyalists or feared a rift between the federal and provincial parties. Hepburn was forced to resign on October 21, 1942.
Nixon was widely seen as the "heir apparent," and had earlier turned down Hepburn's offer to recommend that Nixon be appointed Premier, as Nixon insisted the leadership should be the choice of the party, not of Hepburn. However, Hepburn, while resigning as Premier, insisted on remaining as party leader, and simply appointed his ally,Gordon Daniel Conant as the newPremier of Ontario on October 21, 1942. Nixon resigned from the cabinet on October 22, 1942, in opposition to Hepburn's refusal to allow aleadership convention to elect a new leader. Conant was forced to resign after only six months due to serious divisions in the party, and a leadership convention was called. Nixon was chosen as Liberal leader, and thus appointed Premier in May 1943, but his government was unable to win the election heldthree months later, and the Liberals were reduced to third place behindGeorge Drew'sProgressive Conservatives andTed Jolliffe'sCo-operative Commonwealth Federation. Nixon resigned as Liberal leader on December 10, 1944, and nominated Hepburn as the party's House Leader (interim leader).[1] Hepburn led to party into the1945 provincial election.
Harry Nixon remained a LiberalMember of Provincial Parliament (MPP)1 until his death in 1961. His son,Robert Nixon succeeded him as MPP, and later became leader of the Liberal Party but never Premier. He served as Treasurer in the Cabinet ofDavid Peterson from 1985 to 1990. Harry Nixon's granddaughter (and Robert Nixon's daughter)Jane Stewart served as a Cabinet minister in thefederal Liberal government ofJean Chrétien.
1 In 1938, Members of the Ontario Legislative Assembly (MLAs) passed a motion to adopt the title "Members of Provincial Parliament" (MPP).
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| Preceded by | Leader of the Progressives 1929–1934 | Succeeded by none |
| Preceded by | Leader of the Ontario Liberal Party 1943–1944 | Succeeded by |
| United Farmers of Ontario |
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