Ralph Goodale

Ralph Edward Goodale, PC (born October 5, 1949) is a Canadian politician and former Minister of Public Safety under Justin Trudeau. He was Canada's Minister of Finance from 2003 to 2006, and leader of the Saskatchewan Liberal Party from 1981 to 1988. He was the Liberal Member of Parliament for Regina-Wascana from 1993 to 2019 (the riding was known as simply Wascana from 1997 to 2015), having previously served as the member for Assiniboia from 1974 to 1979. He was named Opposition House Leader by interim Liberal leader Bill Graham in 2006, and continued to serve in this role under the leadership of Stéphane Dion and Michael Ignatieff until September 2010 when he was promoted to Deputy Leader—a post he retained under Trudeau.

The Honourable Ralph Goodale PC
Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada
In office September 7, 2010 – November 3, 2015[1]
Leader	Michael Ignatieff Bob Rae (interim) Justin Trudeau
Preceded by	Michael Ignatieff
Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness
In office November 4, 2015 – November 19, 2019
Prime Minister	Justin Trudeau
Preceded by	Steven Blaney
Succeeded by	Bill Blair
Minister of Finance
In office December 11, 2003 – February 6, 2006
Prime Minister	Paul Martin
Preceded by	John Manley
Succeeded by	Jim Flaherty
Minister of Public Works and Government Services
In office May 26, 2002 – December 11, 2003
Prime Minister	Jean Chrétien
Preceded by	Don Boudria
Succeeded by	Stephen Owen
Minister of Natural Resources
In office June 11, 1997 – January 14, 2002
Prime Minister	Jean Chrétien
Preceded by	Anne McLellan
Succeeded by	Herb Dhaliwal
Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food
In office November 4, 1993 – June 10, 1997
Prime Minister	Jean Chrétien
Preceded by	Charles Mayer
Succeeded by	Lyle Vanclief
Member of the Canadian Parliament for Regina—Wascana
In office October 19, 2015 – October 20, 2019
Preceded by	Riding established
Succeeded by	Michael Kram
In office October 25, 1993 – June 2, 1997
Preceded by	Larry Schneider
Succeeded by	Riding dissolved
Member of the Canadian Parliament for Wascana
In office June 2, 1997 – October 18, 2015
Preceded by	Riding established
Succeeded by	Riding dissolved
Member of the Legislative Assembly for Assiniboia-Gravelbourg
In office October 20, 1986 – January 1, 1988
Preceded by	Allen Engel
Succeeded by	Jack Wolfe
Member of the Canadian Parliament for Assiniboia
In office July 8, 1974 – May 22, 1979
Preceded by	Bill Knight
Succeeded by	Leonard Gustafson
Personal details
Born	Ralph Edward Goodale (1949-10-05) October 5, 1949 Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada
Political party	Liberal
Spouse(s)	Pam Goodale
Alma mater	University of Regina University of Saskatchewan

Early life

Goodale was born in Regina, Saskatchewan and raised on a farm near Wilcox, Saskatchewan, the son of Winnifred Claire (Myers) and Thomas Henry Goodale.[2][3] He was a member of Scouts Canada and earned the rank of Queen's Scout.[4] He first attended the University of Saskatchewan, Regina Campus and then obtained a law degree from the University of Saskatchewan in Saskatoon, where he was awarded the Gold Medal for academic achievement.

Federal politics, 1974–1979

Active at politics from a young age, he was first elected to the Parliament of Canada in the 1974 election at the age of 24 from the seat of Assiniboia. He served as a government backbencher until the 1979 election, when he was defeated.

Provincial politics

In 1981, Goodale was named leader of the Saskatchewan Liberal Party.

He led that party to a very poor showing in the 1982 provincial election, in which the party received 4.51% of the popular vote and won no seats in the provincial legislature. However, Goodale was the only Liberal candidate to receive more than 1,000 votes.[5]

The party won 9.99% of the vote in the 1986 provincial election, but only Goodale was elected to the legislature. Goodale ran on a platform of fiscal responsibility in this election, arguing that both the Progressive Conservative and New Democrat (NDP) parties favoured excessive spending policies, typified by their proposals for a Keynesian-style stimulation of the provincial economy through subsidized home improvement and renovation schemes.

Return to federal politics

Defeated in 1988 election

Goodale resigned as leader to run for the federal Liberals in the 1988 election for the seat of Regina—Wascana, but he was narrowly defeated by former Regina mayor Larry Schneider, who later went on to serve briefly in Kim Campbell's cabinet. Beginning earlier that year and prior to his resignation, Goodale's executive assistant was Jason Kenney. Kenney would become a Conservative Party of Canada MP in a Calgary riding and later Premier of Alberta.

Goodale then spent five years in the private sector, working for companies such as the Pioneer Life Assurance Company, Pioneer Lifeco Inc., and Sovereign Life Insurance Co.; he has stated in interviews that he felt his political career had ended.

In government, 1993-2006

Goodale in 2004.

Goodale contested Regina-Wascana again in the 1993 federal election and was elected as part of the Liberal landslide that year. As a member of the new Chrétien cabinet, Goodale was named Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food. He has the prenominal "the Honourable" and the postnominal "PC" for life by virtue of being made a member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada on November 4, 1993.[6] He has been reelected for this riding, known as Wascana from 1997 to 2015, at every election since then.

In 1997, he became the Minister of Natural Resources. In May 2002, he was named Minister of Public Works and Government Services, a few weeks after the Auditor General Sheila Fraser issued a report accusing the department of inappropriate contracting practices.[7] This began the exposure of the Sponsorship scandal.

A close ally of Paul Martin, Goodale was appointed to the senior portfolio of Finance Minister when Martin became Prime Minister on December 12, 2003. In that capacity he tabled two consecutive balanced budgets and launched the Government's productivity agenda.

On December 28, 2005, a letter surfaced from Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) Commissioner Giuliano Zaccardelli confirming the force was launching a criminal investigation into whether details regarding government tax policies relating to income trust funds were leaked from the Finance Minister's office. Goodale said he would co-operate completely with any investigation, but would not step aside while the RCMP continued their probe. The investigation dealt only with the Department of Finance, and not the minister himself.[8] On February 15, 2007 the RCMP announced the conclusion of the income trust investigation and laid a charge of 'Breach of Trust' against Serge Nadeau, an official in the Department of Finance,[9] who pleaded guilty in 2010.[10] Goodale was cleared of any wrongdoing,[11] and blamed the NDP's Judy Wasylycia-Leis for sabotaging the Liberals in the 2006 election.[12]

In opposition, 2006-2015

Goodale was re-elected to the House of Commons in the general election on January 23, 2006 but lost his cabinet position with the Liberal defeat.

2006 Liberal Party leadership election

After the Liberals' defeat and Paul Martin's election night announcement that he would be resigning as party leader, Goodale initially indicated that he was not interested in succeeding Martin in that post. "I do not anticipate ever having to cross that bridge," he said. "I rule it out."[13] On March 13, 2006, the Toronto Star reported that Goodale was reconsidering his decision, and stated that he may enter the Liberal leadership election after all.[14] In the end, he declined, citing his inability to speak French as a key reason. On November 28, 2006, he endorsed Bob Rae to be the next leader of the Liberal Party.[15] After the third ballot, Bob Rae, who finished third, was eliminated. Goodale then endorsed Stéphane Dion, the eventual winner.

Goodale was opposed to David Orchard's candidacy in the by-election for Desnethé—Missinippi—Churchill River.[16] Dion terminated the nomination contest and appointed Joan Beatty as the candidate.

Proposed coalition government, 2008

Goodale was re-elected once more in the fall of 2008. One month later, in November 2008, the three opposition parties in the Canadian parliament indicated their intention to defeat the Stephen Harper government in a motion of no confidence, and expressed their desire for Governor General Michaëlle Jean to ask a member of the opposition to form a new government. While there was initially some speculation that Goodale would become Prime Minister of Canada as leader of the proposed coalition government,[17] the coalition agreement simply made "the leader of the Liberal Party" Prime Minister. The Liberals agreed shortly after that Stéphane Dion would lead the government on an interim basis until a new Liberal leader was chosen.[18] In the end, parliament was prorogued by Jean at the request of the prime minister before a confidence vote could be put to the house. By the time parliament resumed in January 2009, Michael Ignatieff had become interim leader of the party. He did not seek to bring down the government and agreed to support Harper's budget with amendments.

2011 election

Goodale was one of the 34 Liberal MPs who was returned in the 2011 federal election, the worst showing by the Liberal Party of Canada in history.

The NDP surpassed the Liberals in number of seats, becoming the official opposition, resulted in priority in choosing parliamentary offices. They requested that Goodale forfeit his suite in the coveted Central Block. The Liberals saw this as a measure of disrespect to Goodale, noting that he had seniority as a former cabinet minister and house leader, despite this being standard practice and noting the Conservatives had not asked any Liberals to give up their offices.[12]

In government, 2015-2019

The Liberals won a majority government in the 2015 federal election, and Goodale was re-elected to a ninth term in the House of Commons, once again representing Regina—Wascana as a consequence of redistricting. He was named Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.[19] He is the only MP to serve in government with both Pierre and Justin Trudeau.[20] Mr Goodale has announced that he will seek re election in the 2019 federal election.

An order in council on November 4, 2015,[21] places Goodale as first in line to assume the prime minister's powers & duties as acting prime minister, should Prime Minister Justin Trudeau become incapacitated. Trudeau did not appoint a deputy prime minister.

Despite having represented the riding since 1993, Goodale was defeated in the 2019 federal election by more than 16 percentage points.

Post politics

On March 31, 2020, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the appointment of Goodale as Special Advisor to the Government of Canada's response to Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crash.[22] Goodale will "examine lessons learned" from Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752, Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302, Air India Flight 182 and other air disasters and "develop a framework to guide Canada's responses to international air disasters."[23]

Electoral record

Regina—Wascana

2019 Canadian federal election: Regina—Wascana
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Conservative	Michael Kram	22,418	49.43	+19.16
	Liberal	Ralph Goodale	15,242	33.6	-21.53
	New Democratic	Hailey Clark	5,801	12.79	+0.24
	Green	Tamela Friesen	1,316	2.9	+0.84
	People's	Mario Milanovski	450	0.99	-
	Independent	Evangeline Godron	128	0.28	-
Total valid votes/Expense limit			45,355	100.0
Total rejected ballots			344
Turnout			45,699	76.28
Eligible voters			59,907
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing		+20.46
Source: Elections Canada[24][25]

2015 Canadian federal election: Regina—Wascana
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Liberal	Ralph Goodale	23,552	55.13	+13.37	$96,786.47
	Conservative	Michael Kram	12,931	30.27	-5.44	$89,000.81
	New Democratic	April Bourgeois	5,362	12.55	-7.53	$21,735.49
	Green	Frances Simonson	878	2.06	-0.4	$4,601.01
Total valid votes/Expense limit			42,723	100.0		$193,043.93
Total rejected ballots			176	–	–
Turnout			42,889	75.4	–
Eligible voters			56,656
Source: Elections Canada[26][27][28]

2011 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Liberal	(x) Ralph Goodale	15,823	40.8	-5.2	$65,366
	Conservative	Ian Shields	14,291	36.9	+2.3	$74,976
	New Democratic	Marc Spooner	7,681	19.8	+5.1	$25,821
	Green	Bill Clary	954	2.5	-2.1	$755
Total valid votes			38,749	100.0	–
Total rejected ballots			106	0.3	0.0
Turnout			38,855	68.1	+3.9
Eligible voters			57,034	–	–

2008 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Liberal	(x) Ralph Goodale	17,028	46.0	-5.7	$66,057
	Conservative	Michelle Hunter	12,798	34.6	+4.4	$66,686
	New Democratic	Stephen Moore	5,418	14.7	+0.2	$19,393
	Green	George Wooldridge	1,706	4.6	+1.1	$4,204
Total valid votes/Expense limit			36,950	100.0	$77,030
Total rejected ballots			121	0.3	+0.1
Turnout			37,071	64.2	-6

2006 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Liberal	(x) Ralph Goodale	20,666	51.8	-5.4	$66,648
	Conservative	Brad Farquhar	11,990	30.0	+5.8	$67,579
	New Democratic	Helen Yum	5,880	14.7	-1.3	$30,123
	Green	Nigel Taylor	1,378	3.5	+0.9	$1,653
Total valid votes			39,914	100.0
Total rejected ballots			94	0.2	0.0
Turnout			40,008	70	+7

2004 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Liberal	(x) Ralph Goodale	20,567	57.2	+16.0	$43,226
	Conservative	Doug Cryer	8,709	24.2	-11.9	$57,802
	New Democratic	Erin M.K. Weir	5,771	16.0	-5.5	$29,783
	Green	Darcy Robilliard	928	2.6
Total valid votes			35,975	100.0
Total rejected ballots			80	0.2	-0.1
Turnout			36,055	63.1	+0.9

2000 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Liberal	(x) Ralph Goodale	14,244	41.2	-0.7	$56,685
	Alliance	James Rybchuk	12,492	36.1	+7.2	$59,667
	New Democratic	Garth Ormiston	7,446	21.5	-6.8	$58,098
	Canadian Action	Wayne Gilmer	401	1.2	+0.4	$1,619
Total valid votes			34,583	100.0
Total rejected ballots			98	0.3	-0.1
Turnout			34,681	62.3	-4.0

1997 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Liberal	(x) Ralph Goodale	14,077	41.9	-2.4	$54,021
	New Democratic	John Burton	9,530	28.4	+7.2	$37,942
	Reform	Glen Blager	7,261	21.6	+5.9	$39,285
	Progressive Conservative	Michael Morris	2,477	7.4	-8.4	$18,266
	Canadian Action	Walter P. Sigda	264	0.8	–	$1,822
Total valid votes			33,609	100.0
Total rejected ballots			136	0.4
Turnout			33,745	66.2

1993 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	(x) Ralph Goodale	19,555	44.3	+11.5
	New Democratic	Donna Shire	9,323	21.1	-11.8
	Progressive Conservative	Larry Schneider	6,943	15.7	-18.3
	Reform	Andrew Jackson	6,935	15.7	–
	National	John Keen	734	1.7	–
	Natural Law	C. Angus Hunt	228	0.5	–
	Christian Heritage	Hugh Owens	192	0.4	–
	Independent	Barry James Farr	185	0.4	–
	Canada Party	Walter P. Sigda	64	0.1	–
Total valid votes			44,159	100.0

1988 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Progressive Conservative	(x) Larry Schneider	15,339	34.0
	New Democratic	Dickson Bailey	14,829	32.9
	Liberal	Ralph Goodale	14,804	32.8
	Communist	Kimball Cariou	76	0.2
	Libertarian	Ian Christopher Madsen	65	0.1
Total valid votes			45,113	100.0

Assiniboia-Gravelbourg

Saskatchewan General Election 1986: Assiniboia-Gravelbourg

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Ralph Edward Goodale	3,246	41.01	+8.66
	New Democratic	Allen Willard Engel	2,395	30.26	-3.43
	PC	Bill Fancourt	2,273	28.72	+0.14
Total			7,914	100.00

Saskatchewan General Election 1982: Assiniboia-Gravelbourg

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	New Democratic	Allen Willard Engel	2,875	33.69	-4.80
	Liberal	Ralph Edward Goodale	2,760	32.34	-0.43
	PC	Rene Archambault	2,438	28.57	-0.13
	Western Canada Concept	Hugh Clarke	459	5.37	-
Total			8,532

Assiniboia

1980 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Progressive Conservative	Len Gustafson	11,251
	Liberal	Ralph Goodale	10,167
	New Democratic	Randy MacKenzie	9,710
	Social Credit	Walton Eddy	178

1979 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Progressive Conservative	Len Gustafson	12,365
	New Democratic	Bill Knight	11,183
	Liberal	Ralph Goodale	9,955
	Social Credit	Walton Eddy	292

1974 Canadian federal election
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Liberal	Ralph Goodale	9,986
	New Democratic	Bill Knight	9,441
	Progressive Conservative	Tom Hart	7,105
	Social Credit	Rod McRae	246

References

1. Library of Parliament
4. Archived November 28, 2009, at the Wayback Machine
5. Archived September 28, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
6. Biodata Archived August 12, 2004, at the Wayback Machine
7. Martin, Lawrence Iron Man, Toronto: Viking, 2003 page 358
8. "RCMP to investigate allegations of income trust leak". CBC News. 2005-12-29. Retrieved 2015-11-10.
9. "RCMP investigation conclusion". News.gc.ca. 2011-04-20. Retrieved 2011-12-17.
10. "Former Finance Department bureaucrat pleads guilty to illegal stock trades". www.guelphmercury.com. Guelph Mercury. 7 May 2010. Retrieved 5 March 2019.
11. "Goodale cleared in trust case". Canada.com. 2007-02-16. Archived from the original on 2012-02-14. Retrieved 2011-12-17.
12. Taber, Jane (May 31, 2011). "First went their colleagues, now the Grits are losing office space". The Globe and Mail. Toronto. Retrieved 2015-11-10.
13. "Ralph Goodale rules out run for Liberal leadership | CBC News". CBC News. April 21, 2006. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
14. Gordon, Sean (March 13, 2006). "Rae speaks today, and Liberals are listening; Ex-NDP premier not expected to formally announce leadership bid yet But Winnipeg address raises profile in a crowded field of potential rivals". The Toronto Star.
15. Whittington, Les (November 29, 2006). "Goodale backing boosts Rae bid". The Toronto Star. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
16. Delacourt, Susan (January 5, 2008). "Dion accused of snubbing Orchard". The Toronto Star. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
17. Whittington, Les; Tonda MacCharles; Bruce Campion-Smith (November 30, 2008). "Tories blink first in showdown". Toronto Star. Retrieved December 14, 2018. One prominent name being mentioned is former Liberal finance minister Ralph Goodale.
18. "Liberals, NDP, Bloc sign deal on proposed coalition". CBC News. December 1, 2008. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
19. "Saskatchewan MP Ralph Goodale sworn in as minister of public safety". CBC News. November 4, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
20. Cassidy, Tiffany (October 21, 2015). "Ralph Goodale only MP to serve under both Trudeau prime ministers". CBC News. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
21. Office, Government of Canada Privy Council. "Orders in Council - Search". www.pco-bcp.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-03-25.
22. "Ralph Goodale named special advisor to feds on Iran plane crash". globalnews.ca. March 31, 2020. Archived from the original on March 31, 2020.
23. "The Prime Minister announces Special Advisor for Canada's ongoing response to the Ukraine International Airlines tragedy" (Press release). PMO. March 31, 2020. Archived from the original on March 31, 2020.
24. "List of confirmed candidates". Elections Canada. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
25. "Election Night Results". Elections Canada. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
26. Elections Canada – Confirmed candidates for Regina—Wascana, 30 September 2015
27. Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates

External links

• Ralph Goodale – Parliament of Canada biography

26th Ministry – Cabinet of Jean Chrétien
Cabinet posts (4)
Predecessor	Office	Successor
Don Boudria	Minister of Public Works and Government Services 2002–2003	Stephen Owen
	Minister of State 2002 NB: no portfolio specified (while House Leader)
Anne McLellan	Minister of Natural Resources 1997–2002	Herb Dhaliwal
Charlie Mayer	Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food 1993–1997 NB: "Minister of Agriculture" before 1995	Lyle Vanclief
Special Cabinet Responsibilities
Predecessor	Title	Successor
New office	Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board 1997–2003	Reg Alcock
Anne McLellan	Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians 1997–2003	Denis Coderre
Special Parliamentary Responsibilities
Predecessor	Title	Successor
Don Boudria	Leader of the Government in the House of Commons 2002	Don Boudria
27th Ministry – Cabinet of Paul Martin
Cabinet post (1)
Predecessor	Office	Successor
John Manley	Minister of Finance 2003–2006	Jim Flaherty
Political offices
Preceded by Jay Hill	Leader of the Opposition in the House of Commons 2006–2010	Succeeded by David McGuinty
29th Ministry – Cabinet of Justin Trudeau
Cabinet post (1)
Predecessor	Office	Successor
Steven Blaney	Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness 2015–2019	Bill Blair