Gordon Daniel Conant

Gordon Daniel Conant
12th Premier of Ontario
In office October 21, 1942 – May 18, 1943
Preceded by	Mitchell Hepburn
Succeeded by	Harry Nixon
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for Ontario
In office October 6, 1937 – June 30, 1943
Preceded by	William Edmund Newton Sinclair
Succeeded by	Arthur Henry Williams
Attorney General of Ontario
In office October 12, 1937 – May 18, 1943
Preceded by	Arthur Roebuck
Succeeded by	Eric William Blake Cross
Leader of the Ontario Liberal Party (interim)
In office 1942–1943
Preceded by	Mitchell Hepburn
Succeeded by	Harry Nixon
Personal details
Born	January 11, 1885(1885-01-11) Cedar Dale, East Whitby Township, Ontario
Died	January 2, 1953(1953-01-02) (aged 67) Oshawa, Ontario
Political party	Ontario Liberal Party
Alma mater	University of Toronto
Profession	Lawyer
Religion	United Church

Gordon Daniel Conant, KC (January 11, 1885 – January 2, 1953) was a Canadian lawyer, politician, and the 12th Premier of Ontario.

Early life

Born in Cedar Dale, East Whitby Township (now part of the City of Oshawa) in Ontario, he was educated at the University of Toronto and called to the Ontario Bar in 1912. He practiced law in Oshawa. In 1933, he was made a King's Counsel.

Municipal politics

In 1914, he was Deputy Reeve of Oshawa and Reeve in 1915. In 1916 and 1917, he was the Mayor of Oshawa. In 1934, he became Crown Attorney for Ontario County.

Provincial politics

In 1937 elections, he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario representing the electoral district of Ontario. A Liberal, he was appointed Attorney-General of Ontario in 1937 in the government of Mitchell Hepburn.

Hepburn resigned suddenly, in October 1942, after a long series of erratic acts and especially due to his feud with Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King that split Hepburn's cabinet and threatened the unity of his party. Hepburn announced that he was remaining leader of the party and Conant was selected as the new Premier by the Lieutenant Governor. The party, led by King's supporters, demanded a leadership convention and Conant and Hepburn were forced to acquiesce resulting in the election of Harry Nixon as the new Liberal leader, who was thus appointed Premier in May 1943.

Later life

From 1943 to 1951, he was a Master of the Supreme Court of Ontario. In 1944, he was awarded an honorary degree from the University of Toronto. "Conant Street" in the Cedardale area of Oshawa is named for him, as was an elementary school (now closed).

See also

• Mitchell Hepburn#Resignation

References

• "Conant, Gordon, 1885–1953". Archives of Ontario. http://ao.minisisinc.com/scripts/mwimain.dll/140/AUTH_JOIN/HEADING/Conant,+Gordon,[phone]?JUMP. Retrieved June 29, 2006. 

External links

• Find-A-Grave profile for Gordon Daniel Conant
• Legislative Assembly of Ontario biography

Political offices
Preceded by Mitchell Hepburn	Premier of Ontario 1942–1943	Succeeded by Harry Nixon
Party political offices
Preceded by Mitchell Hepburn	Leader of the Ontario Liberal Party 1942–1943 (interim)	Succeeded by Harry Nixon

Persondata
Name	Conant, Gordon Daniel
Alternative names
Short description	lawyer, politician
Date of birth	January 11, 1885
Place of birth	Cedar Dale, East Whitby Township, Ontario, Canada
Date of death	January 2, 1953
Place of death	Oshawa, Ontario