Joseph Charles Van Horne (January 3, 1921 – August 27, 2003) 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 ...

New Brunswick New Brunswick (french: Nouveau-Brunswick, , locally ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is one of the three Maritime provinces and one of the four Atlantic provinces. It is the only province with both English and ...

, Canada, and the leader of the

Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick The Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick is a centre-right, conservative political party in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The party has its origins in the pre-Canadian confederation Conservative Party that opposed the granti ...

between 1966 and 1967. A lawyer and

hotel A hotel is an establishment that provides paid lodging on a short-term basis. Facilities provided inside a hotel room may range from a modest-quality mattress in a small room to large suites with bigger, higher-quality beds, a dresser, a ref ...

owner in the Campbellton area, Van Horne ran for the federal Progressive Conservatives in the riding of Restigouche-Madawaska in a 1955 by-election following the death of

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 ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

Joseph Gaspard Boucher. Van Horne won the election, breaking a 22-year Liberal hold on the riding. While in Parliament, Van Horne successfully lobbied the federal and provincial governments to build a bridge between Campbellton and Pointe-à-la-Croix, Québec. The bridge opened in October 1961 and is currently named for him. In 1966, after the resignation of

Cyril Sherwood Cyril Beverly "Cy" Sherwood (July 1, 1915 – December 10, 1996) was a farmer and political figure in New Brunswick, Canada. He represented King's County in the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick as a Progressive Conservative member fro ...

, Van Horne successfully ran for leader of the provincial Progressive Conservative Party. His campaign against Liberal

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Louis Robichaud Louis Joseph Robichaud (October 21, 1925 – January 6, 2005), popularly known as "Little Louis" or "P'tit-Louis", was the second (but first elected) Acadian premier of New Brunswick, serving from 1960 to 1970. With the Equal Opportunity p ...

in the 1967 provincial election is considered one of the most flamboyant and extravagant in New Brunswick history. Traversing the province in a

Cadillac The Cadillac Motor Car Division () is a division of the American automobile manufacturer General Motors (GM) that designs and builds luxury vehicles. Its major markets are the United States, Canada, and China. Cadillac models are distributed i ...

, wearing a cowboy hat, and with

Don Messer Donald Charles Frederick Messer (May 9, 1909 – March 26, 1973) was a Canadian musician, band leader, radio broadcaster, and defining icon of folk music during the 1960s. His CBC Television series '' Don Messer’s Jubilee'' (1959–69) feature ...

providing entertainment at each stop, Van Horne frequently attacked Robichaud's mixed

Acadian The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the de ...

and

First Nations First Nations or first peoples may refer to: * Indigenous peoples, for ethnic groups who are the earliest known inhabitants of an area. Indigenous groups *First Nations is commonly used to describe some Indigenous groups including: **First Natio ...

heritage and said that "these half-breeds shouldn't drink liquor". Critics also accused Van Horne of being too vague on his promises. Robichaud was re-elected, and Van Horne resigned as leader. He attempted to regain the leadership at the 1969 party leadership convention but lost to

Richard Hatfield Richard Bennett Hatfield (April 9, 1931 – April 26, 1991) was a New Brunswick politician and the longest serving premier of New Brunswick from 1970 to 1987.Richard Starr, ''Richard Hatfield, The Seventeen Year Saga,'' 1987, Early life T ...

. Van Horne remained in the Legislative Assembly and served as

Minister of Tourism The Minister of Tourism is the head of the governmental department that specializes in tourism, recreation and/or culture. The position exists in many different countries under several names: *Ministry of Tourism and Environment (Albania) * Minist ...

in the Cabinet of

between 1970 and 1972 when he was fired from cabinet for going over budget. In 1975, he left politics entirely after pleading guilty to accepting a bribe over the purchase of park lands and receiving a two-year suspended sentence."Colourful N.B. Tory leader was convicted of bribery" ''Globe and Mail'', September 2, 2003

References

Sources

Journal of the New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, December 9, 2003

"Ethnicity and Accommodation in the New Brunswick party system"
by William Cross and Ian Stewart. ''Journal of Canadian Studies'', Winter 2002. * ''Louis J. Robichaud: A Not So Quiet Revolution'' by Michel Cormier, translated by Johnathan Kaplansky. Faye Editions, 2004. * ''The Right Fight: Bernard Lord and the Conservative Dilemma'' by Jacques Poitras. Goose Lane Editions, 2004.

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Van Horne, Charles 1921 births 2003 deaths Members of the Executive Council of New Brunswick Members of the House of Commons of Canada from New Brunswick Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs People from Campbellton, New Brunswick Canadian people of Dutch descent New Brunswick political party leaders