Ginny Hasselfield is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

politician, and was the leader of the

Manitoba Liberal Party The Manitoba Liberal Party () is a political party in Manitoba, Canada. Its roots can be traced to the late 19th century, following the province's creation in 1870. History Origins and early development (to 1883) Originally, there were no off ...

between 1996 and 1998. A former Manitoba teacher and principal, she was also president and co-founder of Cross Cultural Communications International Inc. a company that provided diversity training and education throughout Canada. In 1995, she was awarded the Manitoba YM/YWCA Woman of Distinction award. Although Hasselfield had never run for provincial office, she was known 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 ...

as a prominent organizer for the Liberal Party and was supported by the party's establishment against

Kevin Lamoureux Kevin Lamoureux (born January 22, 1962) is a politician in Manitoba, Canada. On November 29, 2010, he was elected to the House of Commons of Canada for the constituency of Winnipeg North in a by-election. He was re-elected during the 2011 ele ...

, a maverick MLA from north-end

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

. Hasselfield and Lamoureux had a very poor personal relationship during the 1996 leadership contest. The voting was determined by a "weighted" balloting process (i.e. every party member could vote in his/her home constituency, and the votes from each constituency were averaged out to provide an equal number of "points" for the total). Lamoureux received more membership votes, but the concentration of his support in north

meant that Hasselfield was able to attain a 21-point victory. After the federal election of

1997 Events January * January 1 – The Emergency Alert System is introduced in the United States. * January 11 – Turkey threatens Cyprus on account of a deal to buy Russian S-300 missiles, prompting the Cypriot Missile Crisis. * January 1 ...

, Lamoureux and Gary Kowalski left the Liberal caucus to sit as "Independent Liberals" (this left

Neil Gaudry Neil Gaudry (September 19, 1937 – February 18, 1999) was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1988 until his death, sitting as a Liberal. The son of Véronique Chartrand and Ernest ...

as the only official Liberal MLA in the Manitoba legislature). With the party's internal organization crumbing, Hasselfield was persuaded to stand down as party leader on February 4, 1998. While she never stood for election to the legislature, she was leader during one by-election in

Portage la Prairie Portage la Prairie () is a small city in the Central Plains Region of Manitoba, Canada. In 2016, the population was 13,304 and the land area was . Portage la Prairie is approximately west of Winnipeg, along the Trans-Canada Highway (exactly ...

. Hasselfield later moved to

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

, and continued her active involvement in 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, ...

. Her roles included chairing the Federal Liberal President's Council of British Columbia and co-chair of the Liberal Laurier Club. In 2006, she was appointed a Director of the Fraser River Port Authority and was involved in developing plans that eventually amalgamated the Port of Vancouver with the North and South Fraser ports. She is currently on the Board of the South Coast British Columbia Transit Police Authority.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hasselfield, Ginny Female Canadian political party leaders Manitoba political party leaders Women in Manitoba politics Living people Year of birth missing (living people)