Ray Martin (politician)

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Ray Martin
Ray Martin NDP.jpg
Leader of the Official Opposition in Alberta
In office
November 6, 1984 June 14, 1993
OccupationTeacher

Raymond James Martin (born August 8, 1941) is a Canadian politician in Alberta who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta from 1982 to 1993 and from 2004 to 2008.

Contents

Martin served four terms as an Alberta MLA and two terms as an Edmonton Public School Board Trustee. In 2018, Martin published his memoir, Made in Alberta: The Ray Martin Story. [1]

Early life

Born in 1941 in Delia, Alberta, Martin attended the University of Alberta in Edmonton. He was a member of Kappa Sigma fraternity. He later attended the University of Calgary in order to earn his master's degree.

He taught in Edmonton public schools.

Provincial politics

Martin ran for a seat in the 1975 Alberta general election in Calgary and in 1979 in Edmonton-Norwood but both times was unsuccessful.

Martin ran again in Edmonton-Norwood in 1982 provincial election. This time he was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta to join Grant Notley in a two-member Alberta New Democratic Party (NDP) caucus. At the time, the two NDP-ers and two Independent members were the only opposition MLAs in the Legislature, sitting in opposition to more than 70 Conservative MLAs. Martin was the first NDP MLA elected in Edmonton since the end of the use of single transferable voting in Edmonton back in 1956. [2]

He became leader of the Alberta NDP in 1984, succeeding Grant Notley after his death in a plane crash.

Martin led the party to a highwater mark (at the time) winning 16 seats in the 1986 provincial election, making him leader of the opposition in the legislature. [3] Still under Ray's leadership, the NDP took that same number of seats in the 1989 election.

In 1993, none of the party's sitting MLAs were re-elected. Martin was defeated in his constituency, Edmonton-Norwood, by Liberal Andrew Beniuk.

He quit the party's leadership in 1994, being replaced by former NDP MP Ross Harvey.

After an absence of eleven years, Martin returned to the Legislature as the NDP Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview in the 2004 general election.

He was defeated in 2008 by Progressive Conservative Tony Vandermeer.

Martin ran again for the NDP in the 2012 provincial election, in the riding of Edmonton-Glenora. He was defeated by Progressive Conservative Heather Klimchuk. [4]

Municipal politics

In the 2001 Edmonton municipal election, Martin won election as the Edmonton Public School Board Trustee for Ward D. He did not seek re-election to this role in the 2004 election.

In the 2013 Edmonton municipal election, Martin once again won election as the Edmonton Public School Board Trustee for Ward D. He did not seek re-election in the 2017 election.

Federal politics

In 2003, Martin supported Bill Blaikie's unsuccessful campaign to become leader of the federal New Democratic Party.

Ray Martin has run and lost in four federal elections, each time as an NDP candidate. He ran in the 1997, 2000, 2008, and 2011 federal elections, in Edmonton North, Edmonton Centre-East, and Edmonton East (twice), respectively.

Electoral record

Provincial

1979 Alberta general election : Edmonton-Norwood
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Progressive Conservative Catherine Chichak 3,95047.15%-12.22%
New Democratic Ray Martin 3,19438.12%12.58%
Social Credit Mike Ekelund7038.39%-6.04%
Liberal Walter G. Coombs4865.80%
Communist Kimball Cariou450.54%-0.13%
Total8,378
Rejected, spoiled and declined97
Eligible electors / turnout16,23152.21%5.41%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing -12.40%
Source(s)
Source: "Edmonton-Norwood Official Results 1979 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
1982 Alberta general election : Edmonton-Norwood
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
New Democratic Ray Martin 4,85746.22%8.10%
Progressive Conservative Tony Falcone4,78245.51%-1.64%
Western Canada Concept John Hudson5695.41%
Independent Georg J.P. Wowk2632.50%
Communist David Wallis370.35%-0.19%
Total10,508
Rejected, spoiled and declined59
Eligible electors / turnout17,05061.98%9.85%
New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative Swing -4.15%
Source(s)
Source: "Edmonton-Norwood Official Results 1982 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
1986 Alberta general election : Edmonton-Norwood
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
New Democratic Ray Martin 5,27269.62%23.39%
Progressive Conservative Catherine Chichak 1,94225.64%-19.86%
Liberal David R. Long3594.74%
Total7,573
Rejected, spoiled and declined26
Eligible electors / turnout15,63248.61%-13.36%
New Democratic hold Swing 21.63%
Source(s)
Source: "Edmonton-Norwood Official Results 1986 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
1989 Alberta general election : Edmonton-Norwood
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
New Democratic Ray Martin 4,22957.60%-12.02%
Liberal Luis C. Baptista1,59421.71%16.97%
Progressive Conservative Dan Papirnik1,51920.69%-4.95%
Total7,342
Rejected, spoiled and declined16
Eligible electors / turnout15,06848.83%0.22%
New Democratic hold Swing -4.04%
Source(s)
Source: "Edmonton-Norwood Official Results 1989 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
1993 Alberta general election : Edmonton-Norwood
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Liberal Andrew Beniuk 4,94442.76%21.05%
New Democratic Ray Martin 3,74932.43%-25.17%
Progressive Conservative Fay Orr2,51721.77%1.08%
Social Credit Alan Cruikshank2642.28%
Natural Law Maury Shapka880.76%
Total11,562
Rejected, spoiled, and declined49
Eligible electors / turnout22,84450.83%2.00%
Liberal gain from New Democratic Swing -12.78%
Source(s)
Source: "Edmonton-Norwood Official Results 1993 Alberta general election". Alberta Heritage Community Foundation. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
2004 Alberta general election : Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
New Democratic Ray Martin5,25950.83%31.68%
Progressive Conservative Julius E. Yankowsky 3,04129.39%-16.26%
Liberal Sam Parmar1,16411.25%-20.49%
Alberta Alliance Philip Gamache4584.43%
Social Credit Ken Shipka2832.74%
Green Benoit Couture1411.36%
Total10,346
Rejected, spoiled and declined35531
Eligible electors / Turnout23,56944.05%-4.68%
New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative Swing 3.76%
Source(s)
Source: "00 - Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview, 2004 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta . Retrieved May 21, 2020.
Alberta. Chief Electoral Officer (2005). Report of the Chief Electoral Officer on the General Enumeration and General Election of the Twenty-sixth Legislative Assembly (Report). Edmonton: Alberta Legislative Assembly, Office of the Chief Electoral Officer.
2008 Alberta general election : Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Progressive Conservative Tony Vandermeer 4,18239.63%10.24%
New Democratic Ray Martin3,84536.44%-14.39%
Liberal Dawit Isaac1,99618.92%7.67%
Wildrose Alliance Brian Dell2892.74%-1.69%
Green Frédérique Pivot1831.73%0.37%
Social Credit Robin Porteous570.54%-2.20%
Total10,552
Rejected, spoiled and declined20213
Eligible electors / Turnout28,05737.69%-6.36%
Progressive Conservative gain from New Democratic Swing -9.12%
Source(s)
Source: "25 - Edmonton-Beverly-Clareview, 2008 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta . Retrieved May 21, 2020.
Chief Electoral Officer (2008). The Report on the March 3, 2008 Provincial General Election of the Twenty-Seventh Legislative Assembly (Report). Edmonton, Alta.: Elections Alberta . Retrieved April 7, 2021.
2012 Alberta general election : Edmonton-Glenora
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Progressive Conservative Heather Klimchuk 6,18338.24%-1.66%
New Democratic Ray Martin 4,14325.62%10.52%
Wildrose Alliance Don Koziak2,73216.90%14.51%
Liberal Bruce Miller 1,67010.33%-28.74%
Alberta Party Sue Huff 1,4418.91%
Total16,169
Rejected, spoiled and declined119556
Eligible electors / turnout29,26255.68%13.23%
Progressive Conservative hold Swing 5.89%
Source(s)
Source: "34 - Edmonton-Glenora, 2012 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta . Retrieved May 21, 2020.

Federal

1997 Canadian federal election: Edmonton North
PartyCandidateVotes%±Expenditures
Reform Deborah Grey 16,12444.30%$56,921
  Liberal Jonathan Murphy11,82032.47%$46,517
  New Democratic Party Ray Martin5,41314.87%$60,286
  Progressive Conservative Mitch Panciuk2,8117.72%$51,169
  Natural Law Ric Johnsen2260.62%
Total valid votes36,394100.00%
Total rejected ballots990.27%
Turnout36,49355.63%
2000 Canadian federal election : Edmonton Centre-East
PartyCandidateVotes%±%Expenditures
Alliance Peter Goldring 17,76842.43-2.14$58,345
Liberal Sue Olsen 14,32334.20-0.38$57,858
New Democratic Ray Martin7,30417.44+5.65$56,287
Progressive Conservative Kevin Mahfouz2,2525.37-1.93$1,688
Communist Naomi Rankin 2220.53$238
Total valid votes41,869100.00 
Total rejected ballots1560.37+0.15
Turnout42,02553.42+1.73
2008 Canadian federal election : Edmonton East
PartyCandidateVotes%±%Expenditures
Conservative Peter Goldring 21,48751.31+1.18$72,687
New Democratic Ray Martin13,31831.80+13.33$27,417
Liberal Stephanie Laskoski4,57810.93-15.23$9,666
Green Trey Capnerhurst2,4885.94+0.70$752
Total valid votes/Expense limit41,871100.00 $92,946
Total rejected ballots1510.36-0.01
Turnout42,02245.43-9.9
2011 Canadian federal election : Edmonton East
PartyCandidateVotes%±%Expenditures
Conservative Peter Goldring 24,11152.75+1.44$74,313
New Democratic Ray Martin17,07837.36+5.56$55,462
Liberal Shafik Ruda3,1766.95-3.98$17,634
Green Trey Capnerhurst1,3452.94-3.00$2,546
Total valid votes/Expense limit45,710100.00 $95,270
Total rejected ballots1940.42+0.06
Turnout45,90450.27+4.84
Eligible voters91,321

References

  1. "HOME - raymartinbook.ca". Archived from the original on 2018-10-12. Retrieved 2018-10-12.
  2. A Report on Alberta Elections, 1905-1982.
  3. "1986: Alberta's mixed legislature". Archived from the original on 2011-06-29. Retrieved 2011-02-05.
  4. "Alberta Election 2012: Klimchuk breathing easier as Edmonton-Glenora stays Conservative | Edmonton Journal". Archived from the original on 2015-09-19. Retrieved 2023-09-17.
Legislative Assembly of Alberta
Preceded by MLA Edmonton-Norwood
1982-1993
Succeeded by
Preceded by Leader of the Official Opposition in Alberta
1985-1993
Succeeded by
Preceded by MLA Edmonton Beverly-Clareview
2004-2008
Succeeded by