Andrew Naismith (Andy) Watson (born April 1, 1937) is a former politician in
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...
, Canada. He served in the
Legislative Assembly of Ontario
The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...
from 1978 to 1985, as a member of the
Progressive Conservative Party.
Background
Watson was born in
Woodbridge, Ontario
Woodbridge is a very large suburban community in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada, along the city's border with Toronto. It occupies the city's entire southwest quadrant, west of Ontario Highway 400, Highway 400, east of Ontario Highway 50, Highway 50, n ...
. He graduated from Ontario Agricultural College at the
University of Guelph
, mottoeng = "to learn the reasons of realities"
, established = May 8, 1964 ()As constituents: OAC: (1874) Macdonald Institute: (1903) OVC: (1922)
, type = Public university
, chancellor ...
in 1959, and became the OMAF assistant agricultural representative for
Waterloo County
Waterloo County was a county in the Canadian province of Ontario from 1853 until 1973. It was the direct predecessor of the Regional Municipality of Waterloo.
Situated on a subset of land within the Haldimand Tract, the traditional territory of ...
later in the same year. He was transferred to
Northumberland County in 1962, and became the agricultural representative for
Kent County from 1968 to 1978.
Politics
In 1978, Watson ran as served as the
Progressive Conservative candidate in the riding of
Chatham—Kent to replace former Progressive Conservative cabinet minister
Darcy McKeough
William Darcy McKeough, (born January 31, 1933) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1963 to 1978 who represented the ridings of Kent West and Chatham†...
. He defeated
Liberal
Liberal or liberalism may refer to:
Politics
* a supporter of liberalism
** Liberalism by country
* an adherent of a Liberal Party
* Liberalism (international relations)
* Sexually liberal feminism
* Social liberalism
Arts, entertainment and m ...
Brian Gamble by 708 votes, and served in the legislature as a
backbench
In Westminster and other parliamentary systems, a backbencher is a member of parliament (MP) or a legislator who occupies no governmental office and is not a frontbench spokesperson in the Opposition, being instead simply a member of the " ...
supporter of
Bill Davis
William Grenville Davis, (July 30, 1929 – August 8, 2021) was a Canadian politician who served as the 18th premier of Ontario from 1971 to 1985. Davis was first elected as the member of provincial Parliament for Peel in the 1959 provincia ...
's government. He was re-elected in
1981
Events January
* January 1
** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union.
** Palau becomes a self-governing territory.
* January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...
.
Although forty-two years in government, the Progressive Conservatives were reduced to a tenuous
minority administration
A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in ...
in the
1985 provincial election, and were subsequently defeated in the legislature. Watson lost the
Chatham—Kent seat to Liberal
Maurice Bossy
Maurice Louis Bossy (April 1, 1929 – November 29, 2008) was a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Liberal Party of Canada, Liberal member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1980 to 1984, and represented the Ontario Liberal Party in the ...
by 1,134 votes.
After politics
After his loss, Watson served from 1986 to 1994 as assistant commissioner for Ontario on the Canadian Grain Commission. He became farm director for
CFCO
CFCO (630 AM) is a news, sports, and country music radio station located in Chatham–Kent, Ontario. The station, owned by London, Ontario, London, Ontario-based Blackburn Radio, features a heavy local news commitment. CFCO is one of the few ded ...
radio in 1997, and was named to the Chatham-Kent Agricultural Hall of Fame in 2004. In 2010, Watson became the President of the Chatham Rotary Club and he operates a Christmas tree farm.
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Watson, Andy
1937 births
Living people
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario MPPs