Gregory Dewar, (born January 9, 1956) is a 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 ...

, Canada. He is a former 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 ...

. Dewar was born in Selkirk, Manitoba, the grandson of former

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

Ben Massey. He was educated at the

University of Winnipeg The University of Winnipeg (UWinnipeg, UW) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and kinesiology and applied health as well as gr ...

, and worked as a steelworker and as a small businessman prior to entering political life. Dewar served as treasurer of the Selkirk local of the

Manitoba Metis Federation The Manitoba Metis Federation (MMF) a federally recognized Métis organization provincially incorporated in Manitoba, Canada, on 28 December 1967. Its current president is David Chartrand. In September of 2021, the MMF withdrew from the Métis Natio ...

, and was a founding director of the Maurepas Village Housing Cooperative. He was also involved in the Selkirk Restitution and Reconciliation Committee, a program which assists young offenders. Dewar was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the provincial election of 1990, running as a

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 culturall ...

in the riding of Selkirk. He received 3735 votes, against 3467 for Progressive Conservative Russ Farrell (incumbent

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 ...

Gwen Charles Gwen Charles (born July 19, 1949 in Lindsay, Ontario) is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. She was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1988 to 1990, representing the riding of Selkirk for the Manitoba Liberal Party. The dau ...

was third with 3009). Dewar was re-elected by a wider margin in the 1995 election, and by a comfortable margin in

1999 File:1999 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The funeral procession of King Hussein of Jordan in Amman; the 1999 İzmit earthquake kills over 17,000 people in Turkey; the Columbine High School massacre, one of the first major school shootin ...

. The NDP formed government following the 1999 election, and Dewar was appointed

Government Whip A whip is an official of a political party whose task is to ensure party discipline in a legislature. This means ensuring that members of the party vote according to the party platform, rather than according to their own individual ideology o ...

. Dewar supported

Lorne Nystrom Lorne Edmund Nystrom, (born April 26, 1946) is a Canadian politician and was a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1968 to 1993 and again from 1997 to 2004. He is a member of the New Democratic Party. Nystrom has been a prominent figu ...

's bid to become leader of the federal

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * t ...

in 1995. In 2003, he supported

Bill Blaikie William Alexander Blaikie (June 19, 1951 – September 24, 2022) was a Canadian politician. He served as a Member of Parliament (Canada), member of Parliament (MP) from 1979 to 2008, representing Elmwood—Transcona and its antecedent ridings i ...

. Dewar was easily re-elected in the provincial election of 2003, receiving more than 60% of the vote in his riding. He was re-elected in the 2007 provincial election and in the 2011 provincial election. Dewar was the legislative assistant to the Minister of Finance. He resumed the role of Government Whip following the 2011 election and held that position until 2014. On November 3, 2014, Dewar was appointed as Minister of Finance after then-Minister Jennifer Howard, along with four other ministers, resigned from cabinet over concerns about Premier Selinger's leadership.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Dewar, Gregory 1956 births Living people New Democratic Party of Manitoba MLAs People from Selkirk, Manitoba Members of the Executive Council of Manitoba 21st-century Canadian politicians Finance ministers of Manitoba Métis politicians