Ralph Cowan (politician)

Ralph Bronson Cowan (May 6, 1902 – April 21, 1990) was a Canadian politician, who represented York—Humber in the House of Commons of Canada from 1962 to 1968.[1]

Ralph Cowan
Member of Parliament for York—Humber
In office 1962–1968
Preceded by	Margaret Aitken
Succeeded by	riding dissolved
Personal details
Born	(1902-05-06)May 6, 1902 Ottawa, Ontario
Died	April 21, 1990(1990-04-21) (aged 87)
Political party	Liberal
Residence	York, Toronto, Ontario

Federal political career

Born in Ottawa, Ontario, he was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the 1962 election, defeating Margaret Aitken.[2] A Liberal, he was re-elected in 1963 election and the 1965 election. In 1964 he filed a lawsuit against the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation after it converted its secondary Toronto station CJBC to an affiliate of the francophone Radio-Canada network, arguing that since the French language had no legal status outside of Quebec, the station's conversion to French was inappropriate and illegal;[3] however, his case was dismissed by the Ontario Supreme Court in 1965 on the grounds that Cowan did not have legal standing and could not show material harm from the format change.[4]

Although a Liberal, Cowan was considered a renegade and often voted against his own caucus;[5] most notably, he filibustered both Lawrence Pennell's 1967 bill to abolish capital punishment in Canada[6] and the 1968 Broadcasting Act,[7] and opposed Justice Minister Pierre Trudeau's 1968 revisions to the Criminal Code, including the decriminalization of homosexuality and abortion.[8] He was expelled from the Liberal Party caucus in March 1968 after voting against the government's tax bill,[9] but fought to retain his rights as a voting party member at the 1968 Liberal Party of Canada leadership convention,[10] and pledged that he would continue to support the government if it faced a motion of non-confidence.[11]

He ran in the 1968 federal election as an Independent Liberal in High Park after being expelled from caucus,[12] but was defeated by Liberal candidate Walter Deakon.[13]

Municipal politics

Following his federal defeat, Cowan attempted to intervene in the 1969 York municipal election, alleging that mayor Jack Mould had a personal financial interest in a construction company whose tax arrears had been written off by York's municipal council.[14] Mould filed a slander lawsuit against Cowan,[15] but the suit never went to court and Cowan later claimed that it had been filed solely to silence him.[16]

Following the death of York municipal councillor Robert Hewitt in 1971, Cowan applied for appointment to the seat;[17] he was not appointed, with council instead selecting Robert Waclawski.[18]

Electoral record

1962 Canadian federal election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Ralph Cowan	15,526
	Progressive Conservative	Margaret Aitken	14,864
	New Democratic Party	Charles Millard	11,622
	Social Credit	Ronald G. Sibbald	564

1963 Canadian federal election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Ralph Cowan	20,188
	Progressive Conservative	Douglas Morton	12,218
	New Democratic Party	Charles Millard	11,821

1965 Canadian federal election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Ralph Cowan	17,172
	New Democratic Party	Don Stevenson	12,792
	Progressive Conservative	Victor Colebourn	11,325
	New Capitalist Party	D. C. Tilley	235

1968 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Walter Deakon	16,260
	Progressive Conservative	Win McKay	10,743
	New Democratic	Don Stevenson	8,131
	Independent Liberal	Ralph Cowan	2,895
	Independent	Henry Formosa	215

References

1. Dick Beddoes, "Windmill tilter par excellence". The Globe and Mail, October 7, 1977.
2. "Metro Liberals Taste Sweet Success". The Globe and Mail, June 19, 1962.
3. "CBC to Fight Cowan On CJBC Switchover". The Globe and Mail, September 29, 1964.
4. "Bid to Outlaw CJBC By Cowan Dismissed". The Globe and Mail, June 24, 1965.
5. Geoffrey Stevens, "Cowan voted down: Broadcast bill clears Commons with aid from NDP". The Globe and Mail, February 8, 1968.
6. Geoffrey Stevens, "Hanging vote expected today after Cowan's delaying move". The Globe and Mail, November 23, 1967.
7. John Dafoe, "Judy LaMarsh offers Cowan $5.48 to shut off his CBC channel and shut up". The Globe and Mail, January 27, 1968.
8. "Cowan assails changes in Code". The Globe and Mail, January 29, 1968.
9. Michael Gillan, "Cowan ousted, fights for right to vote on leadership". The Globe and Mail, March 16, 1968.
10. Michael Gillan, "Turner wants Cowan to keep voting right". The Globe and Mail, March 22, 1968.
11. "Cowan to support Liberals". The Globe and Mail, February 28, 1968.
12. "Cowan states he will run in High Park". The Globe and Mail, April 25, 1968.
13. John Burns, "Style was catching: Metro ethnic groups rallied to Trudeau". The Globe and Mail, June 27, 1968.
14. "Charge by Cowan: Mould denies Council wrote off firm's taxes". The Globe and Mail, September 24, 1969.
15. "Writ filed by Mould charges libel, slander". The Globe and Mail, September 27, 1969.
16. "Launched to quash comment: Grys and Mould suits similar, Cowan says". The Globe and Mail, February 16, 1972.
17. "Council chooses on Monday: Cowan, Mrs. Gell rivals for vacant York seat". The Globe and Mail, March 17, 1971.
18. "Former alderman rejected: York Council appoints lawyer to vacant seat". The Globe and Mail, March 23, 1971.

External links

• Ralph Cowan – Parliament of Canada biography