David Maurice Mercier (July 20, 1939 – April 12, 2021) was a Canadian politician. He served in the

Legislative Assembly of British Columbia The Legislative Assembly of British Columbia is the deliberative assembly of the Parliament of British Columbia, in the province of British Columbia, Canada. The Legislative Assembly meets in Victoria, British Columbia, Victoria. Members ar ...

from 1986 to 1991, as a

Social Credit Social credit is a distributive philosophy of political economy developed by C. H. Douglas. Douglas attributed economic downturns to discrepancies between the cost of goods and the compensation of the workers who made them. To combat what he ...

member for the constituency of

Burnaby-Edmonds Burnaby-Edmonds is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada. Geography The district is located in southern Burnaby, British Columbia. It is bordered by Boundary Road to the east, Imperial and ...

. He was a chartered accountant. Mercier was mayor of

Burnaby Burnaby is a city in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia, Canada. Located in the centre of the Burrard Peninsula, it neighbours the City of Vancouver to the west, the District of North Vancouver across the confluence of the Burrard I ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

from 1979 to 1981. On October 3, 1989, Mercier and three colleagues —

Graham Bruce Graham Preston Bruce is a former Canadian politician. After serving as Mayor of North Cowichan, Bruce was elected as a Social Credit Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1986 to 1991 in the electoral district of Cowichan- ...

Duane Delton Crandall Duane Delton Crandall (born August 14, 1946) was a Canadian politician. He served in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1986 to 1991, as a Social Credit member for the constituency of Columbia River. On October 3, 1989, Crandall ...

, and

Doug Mowat Douglas Lyle Mowat (May 16, 1929 – August 11, 1992) was a Canadian politician, who served as a Social Credit Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 1983 to 1991, representing the riding of Vancouver-Little Mountain. A q ...

— quit the governing Social Credit caucus to sit as "Independent Social Credit" members. In a joint statement, the four stressed that they "in no way desire the fall of our government", but wished to spur an "open and realistic assessment" of

Bill Vander Zalm William Nicholas Vander Zalm (born Wilhelmus Nicholaas Theodore Marie van der Zalm; May 29, 1934) is a politician and entrepreneur in British Columbia, Canada. He was the 28th premier of British Columbia from 1986 to 1991. Early life Wilhelmus Ni ...

's continued leadership. Mercier returned the Socred caucus on February 14, 1990, alongside Bruce and Mowat (Crandall had already rejoined caucus in January). Mercier explained his move by saying his concerns about Vander Zalm's leadership and re-election chances had been addressed. He was the leader of the

British Columbia Conservative Party The Conservative Party of British Columbia is a provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. In the early half of the 20th century, the Conservatives competed with the British Columbia Liberal Party for power in the province. Since th ...

between 1997 until 2001. Mercier died in 2021 from complications of

Parkinson's disease Parkinson's disease (PD), or simply Parkinson's, is a long-term degenerative disorder of the central nervous system that mainly affects the motor system. The symptoms usually emerge slowly, and as the disease worsens, non-motor symptoms becom ...

References

1939 births British Columbia Conservative Party leaders British Columbia Social Credit Party MLAs Canadian accountants 2021 deaths Members of the Executive Council of British Columbia Politicians from Vancouver {{BritishColumbia-MLA-stub