James Edwin Robertson (October 8, 1840 – October 30, 1915) 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 ...

physician and politician. Born in

New Perth, Prince Edward Island New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

, the son of Peter Robertson and Annie McFarlane, Robertson was educated at

McGill University McGill University (french: link=no, Université McGill) is an English-language public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1821 by royal charter granted by King George IV,Frost, Stanley Brice. ''McGill Universit ...

where he graduated with honours in 1865, after which he located in

Montague, Prince Edward Island Montague is a community within the Town of Three Rivers in Kings County, Prince Edward Island, Canada. Previously incorporated as a town, it amalgamated with the Town of Georgetown, the rural municipalities of Brudenell, Cardigan, Lorne Vall ...

where he has worked up a large practice. In 1870, he was acclaimed to the

Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island The Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island (french: Assemblée législative de l'Île-du-Prince-Édouard) is the sole chamber of the General Assembly of Prince Edward Island. The Legislative Assembly meets at Province House, which is locate ...

for 4th Kings. He was re-elected in 1876 but was defeated in

1879 Events January–March * January 1 – The Specie Resumption Act takes effect. The United States Note is valued the same as gold, for the first time since the American Civil War. * January 11 – The Anglo-Zulu War begins. * Janu ...

. He was re-elected in 1882. He was a Minister Without Portfolio in the cabinet of

Robert Poore Haythorne Robert Poore Haythorne (2 December 1815 – 7 May 1891) was a Prince Edward Island politician and premier. He was born in England to a prominent family, his father having been mayor of Bristol on several occasions. Haythorne arrived in Princ ...

and

Louis Henry Davies Sir Louis Henry Davies (May 4, 1845May 1, 1924) was a Canadian lawyer, businessman and politician, and judge from the province of Prince Edward Island. In a public career spanning six decades, he served as the third premier of Prince Edward Is ...

. He was elected to 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 ...

for King's County in the 1882 election.

Unseating

In 1883, he was declared not duly elected on the grounds that he was a member of the Prince Edward Island Legislative Assembly at the time of the election, in defiance of the law banning

dual mandate A dual mandate is the practice in which elected officials serve in more than one elected or other public position simultaneously. This practice is sometimes known as double jobbing in Britain and ''cumul des mandats'' in France; not to be confused ...

s. Shortly after winning his federal seat, he had submitted his resignation notice from the provincial legislature to two fellow MLAs, Malcolm McFadyen and Peter McLaren, in accordance with the process for resigning from the legislature, and the legislature had already held a by-election to replace him.''Journals of the House of Commons of the Dominion of Canada'', Volume 17. MacLean, Roger & Co., 1883. However, a procedural error by McFadyen and McLaren had left the resignation not properly registered, thus leaving his provincial office technically double-seated and his eligibility for federal office in doubt. While several Canadian provinces did at the time allow people to simultaneously hold seats in both the provincial and federal legislatures, Prince Edward Island had enacted a law explicitly disallowing this. The federal committee adjudicating the matter was dominated by the governing

Conservative Party The Conservative Party is a name used by many political parties around the world. These political parties are generally right-wing though their exact ideologies can range from center-right to far-right. Political parties called The Conservative P ...

, whereas Robertson was a

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 ...

. The committee ruled that his resignation from the provincial legislature was not valid, and voted to unseat Robertson; rather than holding a by-election, the committee directly awarded the seat to

Augustine Macdonald Augustine Colin Macdonald (June 30, 1837 – July 16, 1919) was a Canadian merchant and political figure. He represented King's County and later King's in the House of Commons of Canada from 1873 to 1874, from 1878 to 1882, from 1883 to 188 ...

, the Conservative candidate whom Robertson had defeated in the federal election. He was re-elected in

1887 Events January–March * January 11 – Louis Pasteur's anti-rabies treatment is defended in the Académie Nationale de Médecine, by Dr. Joseph Grancher. * January 20 ** The United States Senate allows the Navy to lease Pearl Har ...

, but was defeated in 1891.

Senate appointment

In 1902, he was appointed to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

on the advice of

Wilfrid Laurier Sir Henri Charles Wilfrid Laurier, ( ; ; November 20, 1841 – February 17, 1919) was a Canadian lawyer, statesman, and politician who served as the seventh prime minister of Canada from 1896 to 1911. The first French Canadian prime minis ...

, representing the

senatorial division Canadian Senate divisions refers to two aspects of the Senate of Canada. First, it refers to the division of Canada into four regional Senate divisions of 24 senators each, as set out in section 22 of the Constitution Act, 1867.The Constitution Act ...

of Prince Edward Island. He served until April 1915.

References

External links

* ''This article incorporates text from
The Canadian album: men of Canada, Vol. 3
', a publication now in the public domain.'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Robertson, James 1840 births 1915 deaths People from Kings County, Prince Edward Island Canadian senators from Prince Edward Island Liberal Party of Canada MPs Liberal Party of Canada senators McGill University alumni Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island Liberal Party MLAs