Ivor Graham Dent, (February 7, 1924 – March 29, 2009) was a politician from

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

, Canada. He served as mayor of

Edmonton Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city ancho ...

(1968-1974) and was a candidate for the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

and the

Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is the deliberative assembly of the province of Alberta, Canada. It sits in the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton. The Legislative Assembly currently has 87 members, elected first past the post from singl ...

on behalf of the CCF and the NDP parties.

Early life

Ivor Dent was born in

Prince Albert, Saskatchewan Prince Albert is the third-largest city in Saskatchewan, Canada, after Saskatoon and Regina. It is situated near the centre of the province on the banks of the North Saskatchewan River. The city is known as the "Gateway to the North" because ...

on February 7, 1924. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, he attempted to enlist in the

Royal Canadian Air Force The Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF; french: Aviation royale canadienne, ARC) is the air and space force of Canada. Its role is to "provide the Canadian Forces with relevant, responsive and effective airpower". The RCAF is one of three environm ...

, but was rejected. He subsequently took work as an office boy for

Canadian Pacific The Canadian Pacific Railway (french: Chemin de fer Canadien Pacifique) , also known simply as CPR or Canadian Pacific and formerly as CP Rail (1968–1996), is a Canadian Class I railway incorporated in 1881. The railway is owned by Canadi ...

until he was accepted to the air force a year later; he served as a bombardier for three years. After the war, he married his wife, Aileen, in 1948 while he was studying science at the

University of Saskatchewan A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

; the couple had four children. Ivor Dent graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in science in 1949. Three years later, he and his wife moved to Edmonton and Dent enrolled at the

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 ...

, from which he earned a

Bachelor of Education A Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) is an undergraduate professional degree which prepares students for work as a teacher in schools. In some countries such as Tanzania and Kenya, additional tasks like field work and research are required in order for ...

. After earning his second degree, he moved to

Enchant, Alberta Enchant is a hamlet in southern Alberta, Canada within the Municipal District of Taber. It is located on Highway 526 and the Canadian Pacific Railway, between Vauxhall and Lomond. It has an elevation of . The hamlet is located in census divi ...

, where he taught for a year before returning to Edmonton to teach. He earned his third university degree, a Master of Administration, from the University of Alberta in 1956 and continued to teach.

Early political career

Dent's first bid for office took place during the 1955 Alberta election, when he ran in

for the

Co-operative Commonwealth Federation The Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF; french: Fédération du Commonwealth Coopératif, FCC); from 1955 the Social Democratic Party of Canada (''french: Parti social démocratique du Canada''), was a federal democratic socialism, democra ...

. He placed twenty-fifth of thirty candidates in the first ballot (the multi-seat constituency used a

single transferable vote Single transferable vote (STV) is a multi-winner electoral system in which voters cast a single vote in the form of a ranked-choice ballot. Voters have the option to rank candidates, and their vote may be transferred according to alternate p ...

electoral system at the time) and was eliminated from contention on subsequent ballots. Dent turned his attention to municipal politics; In the 1957 municipal election, he ran for alderman on

Edmonton City Council The Edmonton City Council is the governing body of the City of Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Edmonton currently has one mayor and twelve city councillors. Elections are held every four years. The most recent was held in 2021, and the next is in 20 ...

. He finished seventh out of nineteen, falling short of the top five placing needed to be elected. Efforts during the

1959 Events January * January 1 - Cuba: Fulgencio Batista flees Havana when the forces of Fidel Castro advance. * January 2 - Lunar probe Luna 1 was the first man-made object to attain escape velocity from Earth. It reached the vicinity of E ...

and

1960 It is also known as the "Year of Africa" because of major events—particularly the independence of seventeen African nations—that focused global attention on the continent and intensified feelings of Pan-Africanism. Events January * Ja ...

elections (in which he placed tenth of seventeen and eighth of fifteen, respectively) were similarly unsuccessful, and Dent took a two-year hiatus from politics, to earn his doctorate in educational administration from the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

. Upon his return to Edmonton, he took up a position as a school vice principal. He ran for the leadership of the newly formed

Alberta New Democratic Party The Alberta New Democratic Party (french: Nouveau Parti démocratique de l'Alberta), commonly shortened to Alberta's NDP, is a social-democratic political party in Alberta, Canada. It is the provincial Alberta affiliate of the federal New Democr ...

in January 1962, losing to

Neil Reimer Neil Reimer (July 3, 1921 – March 29, 2011) was an activist, trade unionist and politician in Canada. Reimer attended the University of Saskatchewan, but left in 1942 at the age of 19 to work at the Consumers Co-operative Refinery in Regina, Sa ...

, but was elected party president. Dent ran in the 1963 federal election in

Edmonton East Edmonton ( ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Alberta. Edmonton is situated on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Metropolitan Region, which is surrounded by Alberta's central region. The city anchor ...

for the

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 ...

. He finished fourth of five candidates, defeating only

Communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

W.A. Tuomi, as incumbent Progressive Conservative William Skoreyko was handily re-elected. Dent was finally elected to office in the 1963 municipal election, when he was elected to a one-year aldermanic term (he placed fourth of sixteen). He was re-elected to a two-year term in the 1964 municipal election, in which he placed fifth of forty-six candidates, and in the 1966 election, in which he placed second out of forty-four candidates.

Mayor

After five years as an alderman, Dent ran for mayor in the 1968 election, in which he defeated his fellow aldermen Reginald Easton and John Leslie Bodie in a close three-way race (he was the first mayor elected to a three-year, rather than a two-year, term). He was re-elected in

1971 * The year 1971 had three partial solar eclipses ( February 25, July 22 and August 20) and two total lunar eclipses (February 10, and August 6). The world population increased by 2.1% this year, the highest increase in history. Events Ja ...

, when he survived a challenge from alderman

Julian Kinisky Julian may refer to: People * Julian (emperor) (331–363), Roman emperor from 361 to 363 * Julian (Rome), referring to the Roman gens Julia, with imperial dynasty offshoots * Saint Julian (disambiguation), several Christian saints * Julian (give ...

, but his second term didn't go as smoothly as the first. A damaging transit strike cost Dent support from all sides. In the 1974 election, Dent faced credible challenges from former mayor

William Hawrelak William Hawrelak (October 4, 1915 – November 7, 1975) was a politician in Alberta, Canada, the longest-serving mayor in Edmonton's history, and a candidate for election to the House of Commons of Canada. Early life Hawrelak was born in Wasel, ...

(who had returned to municipal politics after vowing never to do so) and alderman

Cec Purves Cecil John Harry "Cec" Purves (born October 18, 1933) is a politician in Alberta, Canada, who served as mayor of Edmonton. Early life Purves was born in Edmonton on October 18, 1933. He grew up in the city's Calder, Pigeon Lake, Norwood, River ...

. He wound up losing to both of them. Hawrelak was elected and Dent finished in third place in a seven candidate race. Although he was out of office by the time they occurred, Dent is credited by many with bringing the

1978 Commonwealth Games The 1978 Commonwealth Games were held in Edmonton, Alberta from 3 to 12 August 1978, two years after the 1976 Summer Olympics were held in Montreal, Quebec. They were boycotted by Nigeria, in protest at New Zealand's sporting contacts with apar ...

to Edmonton.

Further elections, awards, and retirement

After his defeat, Dent went to

Oxford University Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

to study public administration. Upon his return to Canada, he became the principal of Rundle Elementary School, where he stayed until his retirement in 1980. In 1995 he joined the Board of Directors of SOS Children's Villages Canada until 2001. He attempted to reclaim his old office in the 1977 election, but finished in fourth place after the victor Purves, alderman

Laurence Decore Laurence George Decore (born Lavrentiy Dikur; June 28, 1940 – November 6, 1999) was Canadian lawyer and politician from Alberta. He was of Ukrainian descent. He was mayor of Edmonton, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, and ...

(himself a future mayor), and Terry Cavanagh (the alderman Council had selected to complete the deceased Hawrelak's term). He did not return to municipal politics, but ran in a 1986 federal by-election in Pembina for the

. Although he entered the race as the favourite, he was narrowly defeated by Progressive Conservative

Walter van de Walle Walter Van De Walle (July 20, 1922 – April 21, 2011) was a Canadian politician from Alberta and former member of the House of Commons of Canada. Van De Walle was born to Belgian immigrants in the hamlet of Villeneuve on the shores of Bi ...

. He was admitted as a Member to the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the ...

in 1984, and was awarded the Alberta Centennial Medal in 2005. He was defeated in a 1990 bid for the chairmanship of the

Commonwealth Games Federation The Commonwealth Games Federation (CGF), currently known as Commonwealth Sport, is the international organisation responsible for the direction and control of the Commonwealth Games and Commonwealth Youth Games, and is governing body of the ...

Death

On March 29, 2009 Ivor Dent died from

Alzheimer's disease Alzheimer's disease (AD) is a neurodegeneration, neurodegenerative disease that usually starts slowly and progressively worsens. It is the cause of 60–70% of cases of dementia. The most common early symptom is difficulty in short-term me ...

References

External links

Edmonton Public Library Biography of Ivor DentCity of Edmonton biography of Ivor DentOrder of Canada citation(CBC News) Former Edmonton mayor Ivor Dent dies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dent, Ivor 1924 births 2009 deaths Canadian schoolteachers Deaths from Alzheimer's disease Neurological disease deaths in Alberta Edmonton city councillors Mayors of Edmonton Members of the Order of Canada New Democratic Party candidates for the Canadian House of Commons Alberta New Democratic Party candidates in Alberta provincial elections Politicians from Prince Albert, Saskatchewan Royal Canadian Air Force personnel of World War II University of Alberta alumni University of Oregon alumni University of Saskatchewan alumni 20th-century Canadian politicians