Mark Minenko (born March 29, 1957) is a former

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, a ...

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 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 gener ...

from 1988 to 1990, representing the

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 749,6 ...

riding of Seven Oaks for the

Manitoba Liberal Party The Manitoba Liberal Party (french: Parti libéral du Manitoba) is a political party in Manitoba, Canada. Its roots can be traced to the late 19th century, following the province's creation in 1870. Origins and early development (to 1883) Origina ...

Early years and education

He was born in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. Minenko's father was the Very Rev. Tymofiy Minenko, a Ukrainian-born priest in the

Ukrainian Orthodox The history of Christianity in Ukraine dates back to the earliest centuries of the history of Christianity, to the Apostolic Age, with mission trips along the Black Sea and a legend of Saint Andrew even ascending the hills of Kyiv. The first C ...

Church; his mother was Anastasia Krywonos. He was raised in Winnipeg, and 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 the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.Canadian Forces } The Canadian Armed Forces (CAF; french: Forces armées canadiennes, ''FAC'') are the unified military forces of Canada, including sea, land, and air elements referred to as the Royal Canadian Navy, Canadian Army, and Royal Canadian Air Force. ...

Medical Services in 1976, eventually reaching the rank of captain. He was awarded the Canada Forces Decoration in 1988.

Political career

In 1981, Minenko worked as an assistant to MLA

June Westbury June Westbury (July 26, 1921 – February 11, 2004) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. She was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1979 to 1981, sitting as a Liberal. Westbury was born, in Hamilton, New Zealand. The daughter ...

, who was at the time the only Liberal representative in the provincial legislature. Minenko first ran for provincial office in the election of 1988, scoring an upset victory over outgoing New Democratic

Finance Minister A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

Eugene Kostyra Eugene Michael Kostyra (June 19, 1947 – May 3, 2020) was a Canadian politician in Manitoba. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1981 to 1988 and a cabinet minister in the New Democratic Party government of Howard ...

in Seven Oaks. Minenko won the election by 332 votes at a time when provincial support for the NDP was at its lowest ebb since the 1960s. He was named as Deputy

Speaker Speaker may refer to: Society and politics * Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly * Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture * A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially: ** I ...

on July 21, 1988, but resigned on May 18, 1989. In the provincial election of 1990, redistribution forced him to run in the riding of St. Johns against another incumbent, New Democrat

Judy Wasylycia-Leis Klazina Judith Wasylycia-Leis (; born 1951) is a Canadian politician. She was a Manitoba cabinet minister in the government of Howard Pawley from 1986 to 1988, and was a member of the House of Commons of Canada from September 22, 1997, to April ...

. He lost, by almost two thousand votes, amid a general decline in support for the Liberal Party. He has not sought a return to provincial politics since this time. Minenko later became active in the

Ukrainian Canadian Congress The Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC; uk, Конгрес Українців Канади) is a nonprofit umbrella organization of Ukrainian-Canadian political, cultural, and religious organizations. History Originally known as the Ukrainian ...

and has sought a formal apology from the federal government for the detainment of Ukrainians in concentration camps during the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. He also continued his education 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 ...

, working towards a Master of Laws degree.

Election results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Minenko, Mark Manitoba Liberal Party MLAs 1957 births Living people Canadian people of Ukrainian descent