Art Lee

Arthur John Lee (born September 30, 1947) is a politician and lawyer in British Columbia (BC), Canada.

Arthur John Lee
Member of the Canadian Parliament for Vancouver East
In office 1974–1979
Preceded by	Paddy Neale
Succeeded by	Margaret Mitchell
Leader of the British Columbia Liberal Party
In office 1984–1987
Preceded by	Shirley McLoughlin
Succeeded by	Gordon Wilson
Personal details
Born	(1947-09-30) September 30, 1947 Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada
Political party	Liberal
Portfolio	Parliamentary Secretary to the Solicitor General of Canada (1976–1977) Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Consumer and Corporate Affairs (1975–1976)

Career

Lee was elected to the House of Commons of Canada as a candidate of the Liberal Party of Canada to represent the electoral district of Vancouver East (BC) in the 1974 federal election. He lost the subsequent election in 1979 and again in 1980.

From 1984 to 1987, he served as the leader of the British Columbia Liberal Party at a time when the party was very unpopular because of its association with the federal Liberal Party. He was the first Chinese Canadian leader of a party in Canada. The party had no seats in the British Columbia Legislative Assembly during his leadership. In the 1986 election, however, the party won 6.74% of the popular vote, more than double they had won in the previous election.

Election results

1980 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	New Democratic	Margaret Anne Mitchell	14,245	43.91	+1.21
	Liberal	Arthur John "Art" Lee	12,979	40.01	+0.97
	Progressive Conservative	David N. Kilbey	4,742	14.62	-1.92
	Rhinoceros	Dandy Randy Lyttle	198	0.61	–
	Communist	J. Fred Wilson	179	0.55	+0.02
	Independent	Paul Tetreault	61	0.19	–
	Marxist–Leninist	Chaouac Ferron	34	0.10	-0.03
Total valid votes			32,438	100.0
	New Democratic hold		Swing		+0.12

1979 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	New Democratic	Margaret Anne Mitchell	13,697	42.71	+6.44
	Liberal	Arthur John "Art" Lee	12,522	39.04	+2.57
	Progressive Conservative	Cecil H. Leng	5,304	16.54	-8.91
	Social Credit	Carlo Dallavalle	334	1.04	–
	Communist	J. Fred Wilson	170	0.53	-0.59
	Marxist–Leninist	Brian K. Sproule	44	0.14	-0.55
Total valid votes			32,071	100.0
	New Democratic gain from Liberal		Swing		+1.94

1974 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Arthur J. "Art" Lee	9,671	36.48	+5.13
	New Democratic	C.P. Paddy Neale	9,614	36.26	-12.55
	Progressive Conservative	Hartley Hubbs	6,747	25.45	+8.91
	Communist	Maurice Rush	298	1.12	+0.38
	Marxist–Leninist	Charles Boylan	181	0.68	–
Total valid votes			26,511	100.0
	Liberal gain from New Democratic		Swing		+8.84

References

• Art Lee – Parliament of Canada biography