Warner Herbert Jorgenson (26 March 1918 – 30 July 2005) was a Canadian politician in Manitoba. He served as a
Progressive Conservative member of 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 ...
from 1957 to 1968, and as a
Progressive Conservative member of the
Manitoba Legislature from 1969 to 1981. From 1977 to 1981, he was a
cabinet minister
A minister is a politician who heads a ministry, making and implementing decisions on policies in conjunction with the other ministers. In some jurisdictions the head of government is also a minister and is designated the ‘prime minister’, â ...
in the provincial government of
Sterling Lyon.
Early life
Born in
Canora, Saskatchewan, the son of George Jorgenson and Hilma Naslund, Jorgenson attended school at
Ste-Elizabeth, Manitoba and
Dominion City, Manitoba
Dominion City is an unincorporated community in the Municipality of Emerson – Franklin, Manitoba Canada. It is located in southeastern part of the province, approximately north of the Canada–United States border.
Dominion City is served by ...
before becoming a farmer at Ste-Elizabeth.
Jorgenson served overseas with the
Canadian Army from 1940 to 1946, and worked as a farmer on returning to Canada. He also served as President of the Riverview Golf and Country Club, and was an Honorary President of the Valley Agricultural Society.
Federal politics
He was first elected to the House of Commons in the
general election of 1957, defeating longtime
Liberal MP Rene Jutras by 250 votes in the southeastern Manitoba riding of
Provencher. In the
election of 1958, he was re-elected by a greater margin over Liberal Rene Prefontaine. He was not called to join
John Diefenbaker's cabinet, but became parliamentary secretary to the Minister of Agriculture in 1960.
Jorgenson was re-elected in the
election of 1962 and the
election of 1963, defeating Liberal
Stan Roberts
Stanley Carl "Stan" Roberts (January 17, 1927 – September 6, 1990) was a Canadian politician. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba between 1958 and 1962, and ran for the leadership of the Manitoba Liberal Party in 1961. ...
on both occasions. In the
1965 election, he defeated Liberal Gordon Barkman by about 1,000 votes. He was defeated in the
1968 election by
Mark Smerchanski
Mark G. Smerchanski (November 1, 1914 – September 21, 1989) was a Canadian politician. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1962 to 1966, and a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1968 to 1972. Smerchans ...
, a leading organizer in the provincial Liberal party.
Provincial politics
Jorgenson then shifted to provincial politics, and was easily elected for the rural riding of
Morris in the 1969 by-election. He did not serve in the cabinet of
Walter Weir. He was easily re-elected in the
provincial election of 1969, despite the Tories losing power to the
NDP.
Jorgenson was again re-elected without difficulty in the
election of 1973 and the
election of 1977. The Tories regained power under
Sterling Lyon on the latter occasion, and Jorgenson was called into cabinet on 24 October 1977 as government
House Leader and
Minister without Portfolio
A minister without portfolio is either a government minister with no specific responsibilities or a minister who does not head a particular ministry. The sinecure is particularly common in countries ruled by coalition governments and a cabinet w ...
. On 20 October 1978, he was promoted to
Minister of Consumer and Corporate Affairs with responsibility for the
Rent Stabilization Board and the
Office of Superintendent for Insurance. Following a cabinet shuffle on 16 January 1981, he was named
Minister of Government Services
Minister may refer to:
* Minister (Christianity), a Christian cleric
** Minister (Catholic Church)
* Minister (government), a member of government who heads a ministry (government department)
** Minister without portfolio, a member of government w ...
with responsibility for the
Manitoba Public Insurance Corporation. He was known in the legislature as an aggressive debater.
He was not a candidate in the
1981 election, and did not seek public office again.
During his final years, Warner Jorgenson had
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 ...
. He died at Winnipeg's
Deer Lodge Centre on 30 July 2005 at the age of 87.
Electoral record
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jorgenson, Warner
1918 births
2005 deaths
Canadian people of Norwegian descent
Farmers from Manitoba
Farmers from Saskatchewan
Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba MLAs
Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Manitoba
People from Eastman Region, Manitoba
Progressive Conservative Party of Canada MPs
Neurological disease deaths in Manitoba
Deaths from Alzheimer's disease
Canadian military personnel of World War II
Members of the Executive Council of Manitoba
People from Canora, Saskatchewan