Jerald "Jerry" Yanover (January 3, 1947 – July 26, 2009) was a political advisor in

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

. For several decades, Yanover was the leading advisor to the

Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada (LPC; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia''. and generally sits at the Centrism, ...

House Leader. He was considered to be one of Canada's foremost experts on

parliamentary procedure Parliamentary procedures are the accepted Procedural law, rules, ethics, and Norm (sociology), customs governing meetings of an deliberative assembly, assembly or organization. Their object is to allow orderly deliberation upon questions of inte ...

. While not a public figure, he played a central role in Canadian politics for many years. ''

Maclean's ''Maclean's'' is a Canadian magazine founded in 1905 which reports on Canadian issues such as politics, pop culture, trends and current events. Its founder, publisher John Bayne Maclean, established the magazine to provide a uniquely Canadian ...

'' magazine once stated that "Yanover is to

Liberalism Liberalism is a Political philosophy, political and moral philosophy based on the Individual rights, rights of the individual, liberty, consent of the governed, political equality, the right to private property, and equality before the law. ...

what

Yoda Yoda () is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. He is a small, green humanoid alien who is powerful with the Force. He first appeared in the 1980 film '' The Empire Strikes Back'', in which he is voiced and puppeteered by F ...

is to the

Jedi Council Jedi (), Jedi Knights, or collectively the Jedi Order are fictional characters, and often protagonists, featured in many works within the ''Star Wars'' franchise. Working symbiotically alongside the Galactic Republic, the Jedi Order is depicte ...

." Born in

Erie Erie is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. It is the fifth-most populous city in Pennsylvania and the most populous in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania, officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a U.S. state, state spanning the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern United States, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes region, Great Lakes regions o ...

, the son of Gordon and Katherine Yanover, Yanover grew up in

Kingston, Ontario Kingston is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the northeastern end of Lake Ontario. It is at the beginning of the St. Lawrence River and at the mouth of the Cataraqui River, the south end of the Rideau Canal. Kingston is near the Thousand Islands, ...

. He was one of three siblings (sisters Judy and Gail). He first came to

Parliament Hill Parliament Hill (), colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern bank of the Ottawa River that houses the Parliament of Canada in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. It accommodates a suite of Gothic revival buildings whose ...

as a tour guide at age eighteen. After obtaining a political science degree from Queen's University, he returned to Parliament Hill in 1969 as assistant to Liberal House Leader Donald Macdonald. He continued to serve as an advisor to the House Leader. He planned to retire after the

2004 election The following elections occurred in the year 2004. Africa * 2004 Algerian presidential election * 2004 Botswana general election * 2004 Cameroonian presidential election * 2004 Comorian legislative election * 2004 Equatorial Guinean legislativ ...

, but chose to remain to help the minority government. One of his greatest successes was arranging the votes on the 2005 federal budget, and preventing the defeat of the government on numerous votes of non-confidence. As a result of Yanover's efforts, the Liberal government survived the turbulent spring of 2005. Yanover died in his

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

apartment where he lived with his

Norwich Terrier The Norwich Terrier is a breed of dog originating in England, and was bred to hunt small rodents. One of the smallest terriers, these dogs are relatively rare. Their drop-eared variety is the Norfolk Terrier. Description Appearance These ...

, Opie. He was 62. His funeral service was held at the Jewish Memorial Chapel in Ottawa on July 29, 2009, with interment in

Belleville, Ontario Belleville is a city in Ontario, Canada, situated on the eastern end of Lake Ontario, located at the mouth of the Moira River and on the Bay of Quinte. Its population as of the 2021 Canadian census was 55,071 (Census Metropolitan Area population 1 ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yanover, Jerry 1947 births 2009 deaths American emigrants to Canada Canadian political consultants Jewish Canadian politicians Liberal Party of Canada people People from Kingston, Ontario People from Erie, Pennsylvania Queen's University at Kingston alumni