Gerard Jennissen (born February 22, 1942) is an educator and former politician in

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 ...

, Canada. He was a member of the

Manitoba legislature The Manitoba Legislature is the legislature of the province of Manitoba, Canada. Today, the legislature is made of two elements: the lieutenant governor of Manitoba, lieutenant governor (representing the King of Canada) and the unicameral assemb ...

from 1995 to 2011. The son of Johannes Jennissen and Elizabeth Houben, he was born in Slek-Echt, in the province of

Limburg Limburg or Limbourg may refer to: Regions * Limburg (Belgium), a province since 1839 in the Flanders region of Belgium * Limburg (Netherlands), a province since 1839 in the south of the Netherlands * Diocese of Limburg, Roman Catholic Diocese in ...

in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

. His family emigrated to Selnac,

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Western Canada. It is bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and to the south by the ...

in 1952, where his father worked as a farmer. Jennissen graduated from the

University of Saskatchewan The University of Saskatchewan (U of S, or USask) is a Universities in Canada, Canadian public university, public research university, founded on March 19, 1907, and located on the east side of the South Saskatchewan River in Saskatoon, Saskatch ...

in 1966 with degrees in Arts and Education, and received a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree in Communication in 1969. He taught English at Rose Valley High School in Saskatchewan for three years, and worked for

Frontier Collegiate Institute A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. Australia The term "frontier" was frequently used in colonial Australia in the meaning of country that borders the unknown or uncivilised, the ...

from 1972 to 1994. In 1970, he married Lisa Sonnen. He has also been involved in several peace and justice organizations operating in the third world. Jennissen became involved in the

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * * The Editors of ''Encyclopædia Britann ...

in the early 1960s, after hearing

Tommy Douglas Thomas Clement Douglas (20 October 1904 – 24 February 1986) was a Scottish-born Canadian politician who served as the seventh premier of Saskatchewan from 1944 to 1961 and leader of the New Democratic Party from 1961 to 1971. A Bap ...

speak in Saskatchewan. He continued his NDP affiliation after moving to Manitoba. In the 1995 election, Jennissen was elected to the Manitoba Legislature for the northern Manitoba constituency of

Flin Flon Flin Flon (pop. 5,185 in 2016 census; 4,982 in Manitoba and 203 in Saskatchewan) is a mining city, located on a correction line on the border of the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Saskatchewan, with the majority of the city located withi ...

, defeating Progressive Conservative Scott Merrell, 2732 votes to 2017. Also in 1995, he supported

Lorne Nystrom Lorne Edmund Nystrom (born April 26, 1946) is a Canadian politician and was a member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1968 to 1993 and again from 1997 to 2004. He is a member of the New Democratic Party. Parliamentary career Nystrom was ...

's bid to lead the federal

. He was re-elected by a wider margin in the 1999 election, and received over 73% support in the 2003 election. Jennissen was the NDP critic for Highways and Transportation between 1995 and 1999, but was not appointed to cabinet when the NDP formed government in 1999. In 2000, he was appointed to the

Manitoba Hydro The Manitoba Hydro-Electric Board (), operating as Manitoba Hydro, is the electric power and natural gas public utility, utility in the province of Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1961, it is a provincial Crown Corporation, governed by the Manitoba ...

Board. In 2003, he supported

Bill Blaikie William Alexander "Bill" Blaikie (June 19, 1951 – September 24, 2022) was a Canadian politician. He served as a member of Parliament (MP) from 1979 to 2008, representing Elmwood—Transcona and its antecedent ridings in the House of Commons ...

's campaign to lead the federal NDP. He was re-elected in the 2007 provincial election. Jennissen did not run for reelection in 2011.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jennissen, Gerard 1942 births Living people New Democratic Party of Manitoba MLAs Dutch emigrants to Canada University of Saskatchewan alumni People from Echt-Susteren 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba 21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba