Dennis Glen Patterson (born December 30, 1948) is a Canadian politician and lawyer who was

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or Legislative chamber, chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the Ancient Rome, ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior ...

from

Nunavut Nunavut is the largest and northernmost Provinces and territories of Canada#Territories, territory of Canada. It was separated officially from the Northwest Territories on April 1, 1999, via the ''Nunavut Act'' and the Nunavut Land Claims Agr ...

from 2009 until his retirement in 2023. He was the fifth

premier of the Northwest Territories The premier of the Northwest Territories is the first minister and head of government for the Canadian territory of the Northwest Territories. The premier is the territory's head of government, although the powers of the office are considerably ...

from 1987 to 1991. Patterson played a key role in the settlement of the

Inuvialuit final agreement The Inuvialuit Settlement Region, abbreviated as ISR (; ), located in Canada's western Arctic, was designated in 1984 in the Inuvialuit Final Agreement by the Government of Canada for the Inuvialuit (''the real people''). It spans , including ...

and the Nunavut final land claim agreement. Patterson was named to the Senate by Prime Minister

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. He is to date the only prime minister to have come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ser ...

, sitting as a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...

until 2022, when he joined the

Canadian Senators Group The Canadian Senators Group () is a parliamentary group of senators in the Senate of Canada founded in 2019. Its inaugural and current leader is Scott Tannas. History The caucus was formed on November 4, 2019, by eight senators from the Inde ...

(CSG).

Career

He served as a member of the

Legislative Assembly of Northwest Territories The Northwest Territories Legislative Assembly, or Legislative Council of the Northwest Territories (with Northwest hyphenated as North-West until 1906), is the legislature and the seat of government of Northwest Territories in Canada. It is a u ...

(MLA) for

Frobisher Bay Frobisher Bay is an inlet of the Davis Strait in the Qikiqtaaluk Region of Nunavut, Canada. It is located in the southeastern corner of Baffin Island. Its length is about and its width varies from about at its outlet into the Davis Strait ...

and

Iqaluit Iqaluit is the capital of the Canadian territory of Nunavut. It is the territory's largest community and its only city, and the northernmost city in Canada. It was known as Frobisher Bay from 1942 to 1987, after the large bay on the coast on ...

from 1978 to 1995, as minister of education, justice and municipal affairs, and was chosen as the fifth

premier of Northwest Territories The premier of the Northwest Territories is the first minister and head of government for the Canadian territory of the Northwest Territories. The premier is the territory's head of government, although the powers of the office are considerably ...

in 1987, serving to 1991. He headed the campaign that led to the creation of

in 1999. Patterson has served as a director of the Northwest Territories Law Foundation and as chair of the Northwest Territories and Nunavut Legal Services Board until 2000. He became a private consultant in 2001. Patterson was named to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada () is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, they compose the Bicameralism, bicameral le ...

on August 27, 2009. He represented

as a

until February 4, 2022, when he announced he would be leaving the Conservative Senators Group to join the

in protest over other Conservative members support of the "

Freedom Convoy The Canada convoy protest, known as the Freedom Convoy (French: ''Convoi de la liberté'') was a series of protests and blockades across Canada in early 2022, initially organized to oppose COVID-19 vaccination in Canada, COVID-19 vaccine man ...

" protests. Patterson retired from the Senate of Canada on December 29, 2023.

References

External links

*
Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Patterson, Dennis 1948 births Living people 21st-century members of the Senate of Canada Members of the United Church of Canada Politicians from Vancouver Premiers of the Northwest Territories Canadian senators from Nunavut Canadian Senators Group Conservative Party of Canada senators Canadian lawyers Lawyers in Nunavut People from Iqaluit 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories