Abe Kovnats (March 22, 1928 in St. Boniface,

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

– March 6, 1996) was a

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

, Canada. He was a member of the

Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba (french: Assemblée législative du Manitoba) is the deliberative assembly of the Manitoba Legislature in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly at provincial gener ...

from 1977 to 1988, serving as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party. The son of Michael Kovnats and Mary Silverman, he was educated at the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.Canadian Football League The Canadian Football League (CFL; french: Ligue canadienne de football—LCF) is a professional sports league in Canada. The CFL is the highest level of competition in Canadian football. The league consists of nine teams, each located in a ci ...

. In 1956, he married Donna Catherine Maloney. Kovnats first ran for the Manitoba legislature in the provincial election of 1973, losing to

New Democrat New Democrats, also known as centrist Democrats, Clinton Democrats, or moderate Democrats, are a centrist ideological faction within the Democratic Party in the United States. As the Third Way faction of the party, they are seen as cultural ...

Harry Shafransky Harry Shafransky (September 4, 1930 – September 10, 1986) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served as a New Democratic member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1969 to 1977. Born in Poland, he came to Canada while still you ...

in the riding of Radisson by about 600 votes. In the provincial election of 1977, he defeated Shafransky by about 800 votes as the Progressive Conservatives formed a majority government under

Sterling Lyon Sterling Rufus Lyon (January 30, 1927 – December 16, 2010) was a Canadian lawyer, cabinet minister, and the 17th premier of Manitoba from 1977 to 1981. His government introduced several fiscally-conservative measures, and was sometimes seen a ...

. Kovnats was not called to become a member of

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

, but was named Deputy

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

in 1978. In the 1981 provincial election, Kovnats was re-elected over NDP candidate Lloyd Schreyer by about 700 votes in the redistributed riding of Niakwa. In 1983, he supported

Gary Filmon Gary Albert Filmon (born August 24, 1942) is Canadian politician from Manitoba. He was the leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba from 1983 to 2000, and served as the 19th premier of Manitoba from 1988 to 1999. Political care ...

's bid to become party leader. He was an opponent of the legal retrenchment of French language services in Manitoba in 1984, and was re-elected with an increased majority in the 1986 provincial election. Kovnats was defeated by

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 ...

candidate

Herold Driedger Herold Leonhart Driedger (born March 28, 1942 in Winnipeg, Manitoba) is a politician in the Canadian province of Manitoba. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1988 to 1990, representing the Winnipeg riding of Niakwa f ...

in the 1988 provincial election, ironically as the Progressive Conservatives formed a

minority government A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and Cabinet (government), cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or Coalition government, coalition of parties do ...

. Had he been re-elected, he probably would have served as a cabinet minister in the government of

. He did not seek a return to political life before his death in 1996. Kovnats died at his winter home in

Lady Lake, Florida Lady Lake is a town in Lake County, Florida, United States. The population was 13,926 at the 2010 census. As of 2019, the population recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau is 16,020. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Stat ...

at the age of 67. In 2013, he was inducted into the Football Manitoba Hall of Fame as an official.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kovnats, Abe 1928 births 1996 deaths People from Lake County, Florida People from Saint Boniface, Winnipeg Politicians from Winnipeg Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba MLAs