Denis Rocan(born February 14, 1949) is a politician inManitoba,Canada. He was a member of theLegislative Assembly of Manitobafrom 1986 to 2007, and served asspeaker of the assemblyfrom 1988 to 1995. Rocan was a member of theProgressive Conservative Party,but became an independent in 2007.[1]
Denis Rocan | |
|---|---|
| 26thSpeaker of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba | |
| In office July 21, 1988 – May 22, 1995 | |
| Premier | Gary Filmon |
| Preceded by | Myrna Phillips |
| Succeeded by | Louise Dacquay |
| Member of theLegislative Assembly of ManitobaforTurtle Mountain | |
| In office March 18, 1986 – May 22, 2007 | |
| Preceded by | Brian Ransom |
| Succeeded by | Bob Rose |
| Personal details | |
| Born | February 14, 1949 Somerset, Manitoba |
| Political party | Progressive Conservative Party |
| Residence(s) | Somerset and Arizona |
| Alma mater | Otterburne College |
| Occupation | Farmer, trucker |
Life
editRocan was born to aFrench-Canadianfamily inSomerset, Manitobaand was raised innorth-end Winnipeg.[2]He is alsoMétisby background[3]and a direct descendant ofJean-Baptiste LagimodièreandMarie-Anne Gaboury.He was educated at Sacré-Coeur inWinnipeg,Somerset Collegiate and Otterburne College. He is fluently bilingual inEnglishandFrench.Rocan worked as a farmer before entering political life, and also operated a building and moving company and a grain business.[2]He is aShrinerand afreemason,as well as a member of theRoyal Canadian Legion.
He was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the1986 provincial election,winning the rural, southern constituency ofTurtle Mountain.[1]Rural seats in southern Manitoba are generally considered safe for the Progressive Conservative party, and Rocan was elected by more than 2,000 votes over his nearest opponent.[4]TheNew Democratic Partywon the election, and Rocan served as a member of the opposition.
Rocan was re-elected overLiberalcandidate Ross McMillan in the1988 election,though his majority was cut to about 600 votes.[4]The Progressive Conservatives emerged from this election with aminority government,and Rocan was appointed asspeakerof the assembly bypremierGary Filmonon July 21, 1988.[1]He was the first Franco-Manitoban to serve as speaker for the provincial assembly.[5]
Support for the Liberal Party declined in the1990 provincial election,and Rocan was easily re-elected in the redistributed constituency ofGladstone.He won the constituency a second time in the1995 election,but was not re-appointed as speaker and served for the next four years as a backbench supporter of Filmon's government.[1]Rocan was respected by all parties in the legislature, and his tenure as speaker was free of the controversies over partisanship which plagued his successor,Louise Dacquay.
Further redistribution brought Rocan into the riding ofCarmanfor the1999 provincial election.He was easily returned, and was re-elected again in the2003 election.[1]The Progressive Conservatives lost both elections to the New Democratic Party, and Rocan served as a member of the opposition. A former smoker, he supported premierGary Doer's efforts to ban public smoking in 2003.[3]
Rocan supported his friendReg Alcockin the federal elections of2000and2004,despite the fact that Alcock is aLiberal.[3]
On November 16, 2006, Rocan lost the Carman Conservative nomination toBlaine Pedersen.On April 18, 2007, Rocan was removed from the Conservative caucus for supporting the NDP budget, which his party opposed.[6][7]He considered running as an independent candidate in the2007 election,but declined.
Rocan later bought a small house in Arizona for the winter, becoming a long-haul trucker.[3]
Electoral record
edit| 2003 Manitoba general election:Carman | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Progressive Conservative | Denis Rocan | 3,523 | 51.86 | +3.05 | $21,274.32 | |||
| Liberal | Don Oldcorn | 1,825 | 26.87 | −3.37 | $11,694.92 | |||
| New Democratic | Bill Harrison | 1,445 | 21.27 | +1.22 | $3,019.50 | |||
| Total valid votes | 6,793 | 99.62 | ||||||
| Rejected and declined ballots | 26 | |||||||
| Turnout | 6,819 | 54.14 | −6.33 | |||||
| Electors on the lists | 12,595 | |||||||
References
edit- ^abcde"MLA Biographies - Living".Legislative Assembly of Manitoba.Retrieved28 April2014.
- ^ab"CPA Activities: The Canadian Scene".Canadian Parliamentary Review.11(3). 1988.
- ^abcdLett, Dan (23 August 2010)."Politics could use Rocan's honour".Winnipeg Free Press.
- ^ab"Turtle Mountain".Manitoba Votes 2007.CBC News.
- ^Adams, Christopher (2008).Politics in Manitoba: Parties, Leaders, and Voters.University of Manitoba Press. p. 49.ISBN978-0887553554.
- ^"Denis Rocan est expulsé du parti conservateur du Manitoba"(in French). Radio Canada. 18 April 2007.
- ^"Tories oust MLA over budget vote".CBC News. 18 April 2007.Retrieved12 April2016.