Helen Johns
Template:Short description Template:About Template:Use Canadian English Template:Infobox officeholder Helen Johns (born April 24, 1953) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. She was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1995 to 2003 and served as a cabinet minister in the governments of Mike Harris and Ernie Eves.
Background
Johns was born in Toronto, Ontario. She attended York University, the University of Windsor and Simon Fraser University where she majored in business and commerce. She worked as a controller of small and medium-sized businesses for fifteen years before entering public life, and was also the Director and Treasurer of the Huron United Way.
Politics
Johns was elected to the Ontario legislature in the provincial election of 1995, defeating Liberal John Jewitt and incumbent New Democrat Paul Klopp in the riding of Huron.<ref name="1995 results">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> For the next four years, she served as a backbench government member.
Prior to the 1999 election, the number of seats was reduced from 130 to 103. Johns and fellow MPP Barb Fisher (riding of Bruce) competed for the Tory nomination in the redistributed riding of Huron—Bruce. Johns won the nomination battle. In the ensuing election campaign, she narrowly defeated Liberal candidate Ross Lamont.<ref name="1999 results">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> On June 17, 1999, she was named Citizenship, Culture and Recreation.<ref name="1999HarrisCab">Template:Cite news</ref> Following a cabinet shuffle on February 8, 2001, she was named Associate Minister of Health and Long-Term Care, under Tony Clement.<ref name="2001HarrisCab">Template:Cite news</ref>
When Ernie Eves replaced Harris as Premier on April 15, 2002, he named Johns as his Minister of Agriculture and Food.<ref name="2002EvesCabinet">Template:Cite news</ref> and also served as interim Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing in early 2003.<ref name="2003EvesCab">Template:Cite news</ref>
In the 2003 provincial election she was defeated by Liberal Carol Mitchell by about 3,000 votes.<ref name="2003 results">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>
Cabinet positions
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Electoral record
Template:2003 Ontario general election/Huron—Bruce Template:1999 Ontario general election/Huron—Bruce
References
External links
Template:Harris Ministry Template:Eves Ministry Template:Authority control
- 1953 births
- Women government ministers of Canada
- Living people
- Members of the Executive Council of Ontario
- Politicians from Toronto
- Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs
- Simon Fraser University alumni
- University of Windsor alumni
- Women MPPs in Ontario
- York University alumni
- 20th-century Canadian women politicians
- 21st-century Canadian women politicians
- 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario
- 21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario