The premier of Manitoba (french: premier ministre du Manitoba) is the

first minister A first minister is any of a variety of leaders of government cabinets. The term literally has the same meaning as "prime minister" but is typically chosen to distinguish the office-holder from a superior prime minister. Currently the title of '' ...

(i.e.,

head of government The head of government is the highest or the second-highest official in the executive branch of a sovereign state, a federated state, or a self-governing colony, autonomous region, or other government who often presides over a cabinet, a ...

or chief executive) for the

Canadian province Within the geographical areas of Canada, the ten provinces and three territories are sub-national administrative divisions under the jurisdiction of the Canadian Constitution. In the 1867 Canadian Confederation, three provinces of British Nor ...

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

—as well as the ''de facto'' President of the province's Executive Council. In formal terms, the premier receives a commission to form a government from the Lieutenant Governor of Manitoba, who represents the

monarch A monarch is a head of stateWebster's II New College DictionarMonarch Houghton Mifflin. Boston. 2001. p. 707. Life tenure, for life or until abdication, and therefore the head of state of a monarchy. A monarch may exercise the highest authority ...

at the provincial level. The 24th and current premier of Manitoba is Heather Stefanson ( Progressive Conservative Party), who was sworn in on November 2, 2021.

Status and role

The premier of Manitoba is the head of the government, in that they are the head of the provincial party capable of winning a

vote of confidence A motion of no confidence, also variously called a vote of no confidence, no-confidence motion, motion of confidence, or vote of confidence, is a statement or vote about whether a person in a position of responsibility like in government or m ...

in the

Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba (french: Assemblée législative du Manitoba) is the deliberative assembly of the Manitoba Legislature in the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly at provincial gen ...

. In this sense, the role of the premier is the same as the

prime minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is ...

, but at the provincial level. After being sworn in, the premier organises a provincial cabinet (the Executive Council), which is formally appointed by the

lieutenant governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

(lg). Together, the premier and lieutenant governor are comparable to U.S. state governors: the lieutenant governor performs functions of state and protocol, such as signing bills into law, as the Queen's representative to the province; while the premier is responsible for overseeing the operations of government as head of the cabinet. The premier also represents the province on a national level, and has talks with other premiers and the Prime Minister once a year.

Premiers of Manitoba

History

The Province of Manitoba was created on 12 May 1870 with the passing of the '' Manitoba Act''. The next month, on July 15, the Province was officially admitted into

Confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical iss ...

. On December 30th that year, the first election was held for the Manitoba's Legislative Assembly. From 1870 to 1874, Manitoba was governed by its first two Lieutenant Governors (LG), Adams Archibald and Alexander Morris.Ferguson, Barry, and Robert Alexander Wardhaugh. 2010. ''Manitoba Premiers of 19th and 20th Centuries''. Regina, SK: University of Regina Press
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As agents of the LGs,

Alfred Boyd Alfred Boyd (September 20, 1835 – August 16, 1908) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada, and is usually considered to have been the first premier of Manitoba (1870–1871)—though he was not recognized by that title at the time nor was he th ...

(1870–71) and Henry James Clark (1872–74), who are often named in various lists as the first Manitoba premiers, never actually held the title of "Premier."Premiers of Manitoba, 1870 to 1965
" ''Manitoba Pageant'' 11(2). Manitoba Historical Society. 1966 (rev. 18 July 2009). Accordingly, there has been debate as to whether the Office of Premier can be considered to have existed before Marc-Amable Girard's premiership that began in July 1874. Lieutenant Governor Morris recognized Girard as such in the following correspondence to the Secretary of State in Ottawa: Additionally, Wab Kinew, Leader of Manitoba's New Democratic Party (NDP), introduced a

bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Pla ...

in 2020 to formally recognize the founder of Manitoba, Louis Riel, as the province's first premier. Until 1888, the administrations of Manitoba were non-partisan. That year,

Thomas Greenway Thomas Greenway (March 25, 1838 – October 30, 1908) was a Canadian politician, merchant and farmer. He served as the seventh premier of Manitoba from 1888 to 1900. A Liberal, his ministry formally ended Manitoba's non-partisan government, al ...

would become the first partisan and first Liberal premier of Manitoba, followed by Conservative

Hugh John Macdonald Sir Hugh John Macdonald, (March 13, 1850 – March 29, 1929) was the only surviving son of the first prime minister of Canada, John A. Macdonald. He too was a politician, serving as a member of the House of Commons of Canada and a federal cabin ...

. Progressivism would finally make its way to Manitoba's government in 1922, under the non-partisan

United Farmers United Farmers may refer to: *The United Farmers' MPs in the Canadian House of Commons who founded the Progressive Party of Canada in 1920 *United Farmers of Alberta, a political party which governed Alberta from 1921 to 1935 and also elected membe ...

leader John Bracken, who held office for 20 years under various political and non-partisan labels. Since the 1950s, Manitoba has alternated between governments led by the New Democrats (and predecessors) and by the Progressive Conservatives (PC; and predecessors).Manitoba: History and Politics
" '' The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia'' (6th ed.). Columbia University Press. 2012. Moreover, throughout the province's history, all but one of its governments—Premier Sterling Lyon (1977–81)—have been elected to second terms.Thomas, Paul G. 2017 January 23.
Brian Pallister
" ''The Canadian Encyclopedia''. Historica Canada. (last edited 2019 September 18). In 2016, long-time conservative politician Brian Pallister became the 22nd premier of Manitoba, upending 17 years of NDP governance in the province. Pallister's

landslide victory A landslide victory is an election result in which the victorious candidate or party wins by an overwhelming margin. The term became popular in the 1800s to describe a victory in which the opposition is "buried", similar to the way in which a geol ...

would follow the premiership of NDP Greg Selinger (2009–16), who ''

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

'' says has been regarded as Canada's "least popular premier." Following his election, according to the Angus Reid Institute, Pallister was the 2nd-most-popular premier in the country; however, his popularity would steadily decline since (with an approval rating of 37% two years into his mandate).

References

External links

Premiers of Manitoba
" Memorable Manitobans. '' Manitoba Historical Society''.
A list of premiers since Manitoba became a province
" ''CTV News''. Canadian Press. 2016 April 17. Manitoba ministers {{canada-gov-stub

Status and role

Premiers of Manitoba

History

See also

Politics in Manitoba

Politics in Canada

References

Further reading

External links