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Gregory Francis Selinger (born February 16, 1951) is a former Canadian politician who served as the 21st
premier of Manitoba The premier of Manitoba () is the first minister (i.e., head of government or chief executive) for the Canadian province of Manitoba—as well as the ''de facto'' President of the province's Executive Council. In formal terms, the premier rec ...
from 2009 until 2016, leading an NDP government. From 1999 to 2009 he was the
Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...
in the government of his immediate predecessor,
Gary Doer Gary Albert Doer (born 31 March 1948) is a former Canadians, Canadian politician and diplomat from Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. He served as Canada's List of Canadian ambassadors to the United States, ambassador to the United States from 19 Octo ...
. Selinger was the member of the
Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba () is the deliberative assembly of the Manitoba Legislature in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly at List of Manitoba genera ...
for St. Boniface from 1999 until his resignation in early 2018. His party was defeated by Brian Pallister and the Progressive Conservatives in the
2016 Manitoba general election The 2016 Manitoba general election was held on April 19, 2016, to elect members to the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba, Canada. The New Democratic Party of Manitoba, led by Greg Selinger, were defeated by the Progressive Conservative Party of Ma ...
.


Early life and education

Selinger was born in Regina, Saskatchewan, the son of Margaret Eva (Crawford) and Nicodemus Selinger. He came to Manitoba from
Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...
as a child with his single mother, who ran a small clothing store in
Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...
. Selinger received a
Bachelor of Social Work A bachelor is a man who is not and never has been married.Bachelors are, in Pitt & al.'s phrasing, "men who live independently, outside of their parents' home and other institutional settings, who are neither married nor cohabitating". (). Etymo ...
from the
University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...
, a
Master of Public Administration A Master of Public Administration (MPA) is a specialized professional graduate degree in public administration that prepares students for leadership roles, similar or equivalent to a Master of Business Administration but with an emphasis on the ...
from Queen's University, and a
PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...
from the
London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), established in 1895, is a public research university in London, England, and a member institution of the University of London. The school specialises in the social sciences. Founded ...
. Before entering politics, he worked as an associate professor in the Faculty of Social Work at the University of Manitoba, and sat on the boards of the St. Boniface Hospital, the St. Boniface Museum, the Community Income Tax Service Boards, and as president of the Old St. Boniface Residents Association.


Municipal politics

After joining an alliance of progressive municipal politicians called Winnipeg into the '90s in the late 1980s, Selinger was elected to the
Winnipeg City Council The Winnipeg City Council () is the governing body of the city of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. The Council is seated in the Council Building of Winnipeg City Hall. as a candidate of the alliance in St. Boniface, defeating incumbent Guy Savoie. During his time as a city councillor, Selinger was a member of the Executive Policy Committee and was the chair of the Committee on Finance and Administration. In 1992, Selinger ran for
Mayor of Winnipeg The mayor of Winnipeg is a member of Winnipeg City Council, but does not represent a ward. The position of mayor was created in 1873 following the incorporation of Winnipeg. Since 1998, the term of office has been for four years. The 44th and ...
and came in second place, losing to Susan Thompson. Some have attributed his loss to his refusal to accept
corporate A corporation or body corporate is an individual or a group of people, such as an association or company, that has been authorized by the state to act as a single entity (a legal entity recognized by private and public law as "born out of s ...
and union donations, which he based on principle. The 1992 civic election had 17 nominated candidates running for Mayor which resulted in votes getting split amongst several candidates similarly aligned on the political spectrum.


Post municipal career

Following his failed mayoral bid, Selinger stepped back from politics and returned to teaching at the
University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...
.


Provincial politics


Minister of Finance

Selinger was easily elected to the
Manitoba legislature The Manitoba Legislature is the legislature of the province of Manitoba, Canada. Today, the legislature is made of two elements: the lieutenant governor of Manitoba, lieutenant governor (representing the King of Canada) and the unicameral assemb ...
in the provincial election of 1999, defeating his closest opponent, Liberal Jean-Paul Boily, by 5439 votes to 2994 in the
Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...
riding of St. Boniface. Selinger was appointed
Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...
, after the 1999 election, in Gary Doer's first cabinet, and was also given responsibility for French Language Services, the administration of the Crown Corporations Review and Accountability Act and the administration of the Manitoba Hydro Act. In his ten years as Minister of Finance, Selinger balanced every budget. On January 17, 2001, he was also given responsibility for the Civil Service. Following a cabinet shuffle on September 25, 2002, he was charged with the administration of the Liquor Control Act, while being relieved of his duties for the Manitoba Hydro Act. In 2003, Selinger supported Bill Blaikie's campaign to lead the federal
New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * * The Editors of ''Encyclopædia Britann ...
. Selinger was re-elected in the provincial election of 2003 with almost 75% of the vote in his riding. On November 4, 2003, he was relieved of responsibilities for the Liquor Control Act. In January 2005, Selinger announced that his government would change its system of accounting for expenditures and revenues. This followed a request from
Auditor General An auditor general, also known in some countries as a comptroller general or comptroller and auditor general, is a senior civil servant charged with improving government accountability by auditing and reporting on the government's operations. Freq ...
Jon Singleton, who criticized the government for listing crown corporation losses and other matters as off-budget spending. Selinger is considered a strong performer in the Doer Cabinet. He was re-elected in the 2007 provincial election. On June 28, 2007, Selinger regained responsibility for the administration of the Liquor Control Act and was charged with the administration of The Manitoba Lotteries Corporation Act.


Premier

On September 8, 2009, Selinger resigned from his cabinet position and announced his candidacy for the leadership of the
New Democratic Party of Manitoba The New Democratic Party of Manitoba (Manitoba NDP; ), branded as Manitoba's NDP, is a social democratic political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is the provincial section of the federal New Democratic Party, and is a successor to the Manitoba ...
. He was running against fellow cabinet ministers Steve Ashton and Andrew Swan until Swan dropped out of the race on September 28. The
leadership convention {{Politics of Canada In Politics of Canada, Canadian politics, a leadership convention is held by a political party when the party needs to choose a leadership, leader due to a vacancy or a challenge to the incumbent leader. Overview In Canada, ...
took place on October 17, 2009. Rosann Wowchuk replaced Selinger as interim
Minister of Finance A ministry of finance is a ministry or other government agency in charge of government finance, fiscal policy, and financial regulation. It is headed by a finance minister, an executive or cabinet position . A ministry of finance's portfolio ...
. He defeated his leadership rival, Steve Ashton, taking 1,317 votes among delegates, to Ashton's 685. Selinger was sworn in as
Premier of Manitoba The premier of Manitoba () is the first minister (i.e., head of government or chief executive) for the Canadian province of Manitoba—as well as the ''de facto'' President of the province's Executive Council. In formal terms, the premier rec ...
by the
Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba The lieutenant governor of Manitoba (, (if male) or (if female) ) is the representative in Manitoba of the monarch, who operates distinctly within the province but is also shared equally with the ten other jurisdictions of Canada. The lieuten ...
on October 19, 2009, the same day that Gary Doer was sworn in as Canadian Ambassador to the United States. Despite predictions of defeat, Selinger led the NDP to its fourth straight majority government in the October 2011 general election, surpassing Doer's record and winning 37 seats. In April 2013, the Selinger government reneged on an earlier promise to not increase sales taxes by implementing a 1% increase in the provincial sales tax rate from 7% to 8%, which resulted in a precipitous decline in popular support for the government and, ultimately, a caucus revolt against Selinger's leadership culminating in the resignation of five cabinet ministers. Due, in part, to the unpopularity of the tax increase, the NDP fell far behind the Progressive Conservatives in public opinion polls and never recovered. In the fall of 2014 several cabinet ministers privately asked Selinger to resign in hopes that the party would recover under a new leader, but he declined. In September 2014, during a caucus retreat, several MLAs openly told Selinger he needed to resign but he refused. A month later, at the end of October Minister of Finance Jennifer Howard (Fort Rouge), Minister of Municipal Government Stan Struthers (Dauphin), Minister for Jobs and the Economy Theresa Oswald (Seine River), Andrew Swan (Minto), Minister of Health Erin Selby (Southdale), and several senior party officials went public with their call for Selinger's resignation. Selinger asked ministers, labeled the "gang of five" in the media, to either disavow their public statements or quit. The five resigned on Monday, November 3. The same day Selinger said in a statement he was saddened by their decisions but had made it clear they could either "focus on the priorities of Manitoba families as part of our team, or resign." Selinger accepted the resignations of the five senior cabinet ministers and installed their replacements hours later. On November 9, Selinger asked the party executive to hold a leadership election during the party's annual convention scheduled for March 6–8, 2015, stating his intention to be a candidate. The party executive subsequently agreed. Theresa Oswald, one of the five rebel ex-ministers, challenged Selinger for the leadership as did Minister of Infrastructure and Transportation Steve Ashton who had not protested against Selinger but who resigned from cabinet to enter leadership contest. At the March 8, 2015 leadership election, Ashton was eliminated on the first ballot and Selinger prevailed on the second ballot with 50.93% of ballots cast, defeating Oswald by 33 votes. Selinger's popularity never recovered after his party raised the PST in 2013. By the time the writs were dropped for the 2016 provincial election, the NDP had been well behind the Tories in opinion polling for almost four years. The NDP was heavily defeated, falling to only 14 seats, its smallest seat count in three decades.


After politics

Selinger resigned as party leader following his government's defeat and returned to the backbench. Selinger announced on February 20, 2018, that he was resigning his seat in the legislature effective March 7, 2018. He continues to reside in Winnipeg.


Electoral record


References


External links

*
Official New Democratic Party profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Selinger, Greg 1951 births Alumni of the London School of Economics Living people Ministers of finance of Manitoba Leaders of the Manitoba CCF/NDP Members of the Executive Council of Manitoba Premiers of Manitoba Queen's University at Kingston alumni University of Manitoba alumni Winnipeg city councillors Canadian social work academics Politicians from Regina, Saskatchewan 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba New Democratic Party of Manitoba MLAs Members of the Order of Manitoba 21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba