Brian Ransom (June 6, 1940–February 26, 2020) was a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

provincial politician in

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 ...

. In 1983, he unsuccessfully ran for the leadership of the

Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba (french: Parti progressiste-conservateur du Manitoba) is a centre-right political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is currently the governing party in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, after winnin ...

. Ransom was born in

Boissevain, Manitoba Boissevain () is an unincorporated urban community in Manitoba near the North Dakota border that held town status prior to 2015. It is located within the Municipality of Boissevain – Morton. Boissevain is a community of just over 1,500 people an ...

, and 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.University of Alberta The University of Alberta, also known as U of A or UAlberta, is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. It was founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford,"A Gentleman of Strathcona – Alexander Cameron Rutherfor ...

. He worked as a resource manager and farmer before entering public life. He was elected to 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 ...

1977 Events January * January 8 – Three bombs explode in Moscow within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group. * January 10 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in eastern Zaire (now the Democratic R ...

, representing the rural riding of Souris-Killarney. In that year,

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 ...

's Progressive Conservatives won an upset victory over

Edward Schreyer Edward Richard Schreyer (born December 21, 1935) is a Canadian politician, diplomat, and statesman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 22nd since Canadian Confederation. Schreyer was born and educated in Manitoba, and was first electe ...

New Democrats 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 culturall ...

. Following the election, Ransom was appointed Minister of Mines, Resources and Environment. Following a reorganization of cabinet in 1979, he became

Minister of Natural Resources The minister of natural resources () is the minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for Natural Resources Canada (NRCan). In addition to NRCan, the minister oversees the federal government's natural resources portfolio ...

and Chairman of the Treasury Board. In January 1981, he was promoted to

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

. Ransom did not serve long in this position, as Lyon's government fell to the NDP under

Howard Pawley Howard Russell Pawley (November 21, 1934 – December 30, 2015) was a Canadian politician and professor who was the 18th premier of Manitoba from 1981 to 1988. Prior to his premiership, Pawley served in various ministerial positions after his t ...

at another election later in the year. Ransom was easily re-elected in the riding of Turtle Mountain, defeating New Democrat Joan Johannson by 3,115 votes. He ran for the party's leadership in 1983 as a representative of the party's rural/conservative wing, but on the second ballot lost to

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 ...

, who was then regarded as a progressive. Subsequently, supporters of Ransom would allege that the Filmon camp encouraged third-place candidate

Clayton Manness Clayton Sidney Manness (born January 23, 1947) is a Manitoba politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1981 to 1995. In 1983, he was an unsuccessful candidate for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of M ...

to run as a means of splitting the conservative vote. Ransom did not seek re-election in the

1986 Manitoba general election The 1986 Manitoba general election was held on March 18, 1986 to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the New Democratic Party of Manitoba, New Democratic Par ...

. He subsequently became chairman of the Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board, and worked as a consultant in sustainable development.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ransom, Brian 1940 births 2020 deaths Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba MLAs Members of the Executive Council of Manitoba People from Boissevain, Manitoba Finance ministers of Manitoba