June Westbury (July 26, 1921 – February 11, 2004) 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 ...

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, Canada. She was a 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 gen ...

from 1979 to 1981, sitting as 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 ...

. Westbury was born, in

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

, New Zealand. The daughter of Philip William Cantwell and Doris "Dolly" Halcrow, Westbury was educated at Brian's College in

Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The most populous urban area in the country and the fifth largest city in Oceania, Auckland has an urban population of about ...

, New Zealand, worked for the Auckland Savings Bank and moved to Canada in 1947. In 1949, she married Peter Westbury. She served as a

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749, ...

city councillor from 1971 to 1979, and was associated with the Independent Citizens' Election Committee. She served as Vice-President of the Liberal Party of Canada from 1970 to 1973, and was a member of the regional and national executives of the Canadian Council of Christians and Jews. She first ran for election to the Manitoba legislature in the provincial election of 1973, but lost to

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 cultural ...

Ian Turnbull by over 1,500 votes in the central Winnipeg riding of Osborne. When

Lloyd Axworthy Lloyd Norman Axworthy (born December 21, 1939) is a Canadian politician, elder statesman and academic. He served as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien. Following his retirement from parliament ...

resigned his seat in 1979, Westbury ran to succeed him in the riding of Fort Rouge, and defeating New Democrat Vic Savino by 368 votes. For the next two years, Westbury was the only Liberal MLA in the legislature. She was chosen Woman of the Year in Political and Government Affairs in 1979. The Manitoba Liberal Party saw its support decline to historic lows in the early 1980s, and Westbury was defeated by New Democrat

Roland Penner Roland Penner (July 30, 1924 – May 31, 2018) was a political activist and lawyer who became a cabinet minister in the Manitoba provincial government and dean of law at the University of Manitoba. Education and early career Penner was born i ...

by almost 2,000 votes in the provincial election of 1981. She did not seek a return to elected office after this time, but assisted Liberal leader

Sharon Carstairs Sharon Carstairs (born April 26, 1942) is a Canadian politician and former Senator. Early life Carstairs was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia, the daughter of former Nova Scotia Premier and federal Senator Harold Connolly and his wife Vivian. She ...

in the election of 1988. Westbury was known as a supporter of the arts within Winnipeg, and worked to make the Legislative Building of Manitoba fully accessible to female members. She was a supporter of the Manitoba Opera Association, as well as the Royal Winnipeg Ballet. When Videon applied to the Community Committee in 1977 to request television recording equipment be allowed, Westbury was quoted as saying "I support the idea because the more coverage we have, the more community involvement we can hope for." She died at the Convalescent Home of Winnipeg at the age of 82.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Westbury, June 1921 births 2004 deaths Manitoba Liberal Party MLAs Winnipeg city councillors Women MLAs in Manitoba People from Hamilton, New Zealand Women municipal councillors in Canada 20th-century Canadian women politicians