Samuel Drover (1911 in Hodge's Cove, Trinity Bay,

Dominion of Newfoundland Newfoundland was a British dominion in eastern North America, today the modern Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. It was established on 26 September 1907, and confirmed by the Balfour Declaration of 1926 and the Statute of Westmi ...

– June 20, 2005) was a longtime member of

Newfoundland Newfoundland and Labrador (; french: Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador; frequently abbreviated as NL) is the easternmost province of Canada, in the country's Atlantic region. The province comprises the island of Newfoundland and the continental region ...

House of Assembly House of Assembly is a name given to the legislature or lower house of a bicameral parliament. In some countries this may be at a subnational level. Historically, in British Crown colonies as the colony gained more internal responsible governme ...

and founded the Newfoundland Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (CCF), a

social democratic Social democracy is a political, social, and economic philosophy within socialism that supports political and economic democracy. As a policy regime, it is described by academics as advocating economic and social interventions to promote soci ...

political party. Drover was educated in Hodge's Cove and at Memorial University. He taught school from 1929 until 1938, when he joined the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary. Drover tried to enlist in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

in 1942 but was not accepted. He then joined the Newfoundland Ranger Force, serving until 1949. He was originally elected 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 ...

member of the House of Assembly in the 1949 election, which was the first after the dominion of Newfoundland joined the

Canadian confederation Canadian Confederation (french: Confédération canadienne, link=no) was the process by which three British North American provinces, the Province of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick, were united into one federation called the Canada, Dom ...

as a province. He was re-elected in 1951. Drover became disenchanted with

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

Joey Smallwood Joseph Roberts Smallwood (December 24, 1900 – December 17, 1991) was a Newfoundlander and Canadian politician. He was the main force who brought the Dominion of Newfoundland into Canadian Confederation in 1949, becoming the first premier of ...

's government because he believed that it ignored the problems of

rural poverty Rural poverty refers to poverty in rural areas, including factors of rural society, rural economy, and political systems that give rise to the poverty found there.Janvry, A. de, E. Sadoulet, and R. Murgai. 2002“Rural Development and Rural Pol ...

. He

crossed the floor Crossed may refer to: * ''Crossed'' (comics), a 2008 comic book series by Garth Ennis * ''Crossed'' (novel), a 2010 young adult novel by Ally Condie * "Crossed" (''The Walking Dead''), an episode of the television series ''The Walking Dead'' S ...

to the CCF in 1955, becoming the first CCF member in Newfoundland. He helped form the new party and became its leader. The CCF fielded ten candidates in the 1956 election. The party won no seats, however, and he lost his own seat in the riding now known as Trinity North. It would take three decades before the CCF's successor, the New Democratic Party, was able to win a seat in the legislature. Following his defeat, Drover started his own business in Hodge's Cove. Drover ran in the 1965 federal election as an "independent Liberal" in

Trinity—Conception Trinity—Conception was a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1949 to 1968. This riding was created in 1949 when Newfoundland joined the Canadian Confedera ...

and in the 1972 election as an independent candidate in

Bonavista—Trinity—Conception Bonavista—Trinity—Conception was a federal electoral district in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1968 to 2003. This riding was created in 1966 from parts of Bonavista—Twillin ...

. On both occasions he came in fourth, behind the three major parties.

References

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Drover, Sam 1911 births Liberal Party of Newfoundland and Labrador MHAs Leaders of the Newfoundland and Labrador NDP/CCF 2005 deaths