Mark G. Smerchanski (November 1, 1914 – September 21, 1989) was 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 A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

. He was a member of the

Legislative Assembly of Manitoba The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba () is the deliberative assembly of the Manitoba Legislature in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly at List of Manitoba genera ...

from 1962 to 1966, and a member of the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada () is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the Bicameralism, bicameral legislature of Ca ...

from 1968 to 1972. Smerchanski was a member of 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, ...

and 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 ...

Early life and Career

Born in Malonton,

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 ...

, the son of Anton Smerchanski and Dora Huley, both of Ukrainian descent, Smerchanski was educated at the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Founded in 1877, it is the first university of Western Canada. Both by total student enrolment and campus area, the University of ...

and the Virginia Polytechnical Institute, graduating in 1938. In 1940, Smerchanski married Patricia N. Paget. He worked as a professor of Engineering before entering politics, and was a member of the Canadian Institute for Mining and Metallurgy, the American Institute of Mining and Metallurgical Engineers, the Pan-American Institute of Mining Engineers and the Society of Economic Geologists. In 1953, he was appointed to the inaugural Board of Commissioners of the Winnipeg Transit System.

Provincial politics

Smerchanski was a successful businessman, and was a leading organizer in the Manitoba Liberal Party long before he first ran for office himself. When Douglas Campbell resigned as Liberal leader in 1961, Smerchanski entered the race to succeed him and initially emerged as the frontrunner. He resigned on the weekend of the convention, however, and allowed

Gildas Molgat Gildas Laurent Molgat, CD (January 25, 1927 – February 28, 2001) was a Canadian politician. He served as leader of the Manitoba Liberal Party from 1961 to 1969, and was subsequently appointed to the Senate of Canada, where he served as Spea ...

to take his place as a candidate. Molgat won the contest on the first ballot, and it is likely that Smerchanski's last-minute withdrawal was arranged well in advance. He first ran for the Manitoba legislature in the 1962 provincial election, and defeated NDP incumbent John Hawryluk by 289 votes in the 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 ...

constituency of Burrows. He served in the parliamentary opposition for the next four years, but lost his seat by almost 1,000 votes to NDP candidate

Ben Hanuschak Ben Hanuschak (born April 29, 1930) is a Canadian politician from the province of Manitoba. He was a cabinet minister in the government of New Democratic Premier Edward Schreyer, and was subsequently a founding member of the Progressive Party ...

in the 1966 election.

Federal Politics

He was elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the "

Trudeaumania Trudeaumania was the term used throughout 1968 to describe the excitement generated by Pierre Elliott Trudeau's entry into the April 1968 Liberal Party of Canada leadership election. Trudeau won the leadership election and was sworn in as prim ...

" election of 1968, defeating Progressive Conservative incumbent Warner Jorgenson by 1,230 votes in the rural, southeastern riding of

Provencher Provencher is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1871. It is a largely rural constituency in the province's southeast corner. Its largest community is the city of ...

. He served as a backbench supporter of Pierre Trudeau's government for four years, and lost to PC candidate

Jake Epp Arthur Jacob "Jake" Epp, (born September 1, 1939) is a Canadians, Canadian executive and former politician. Life and career Born into a Mennonite family in Manitoba, Epp was a high school history teacher in Steinbach, Manitoba before entering ...

in the federal election of 1972.

Return to provincial politics

He sought a return to the Manitoba legislature in the 1973 election, running in the rural constituency of Emerson. He did not win, but took enough votes away from the Progressive Conservative candidate to give the NDP a victory in the riding for the first and (to date) only time. He did not run again after this.

Death

Smerchanski died in Winnipeg at the age of 74.

Legacy

There is currently a Mark Smerchanski Memorial Prize in Women's Studies offered by the University of Manitoba, and the Mark G. Smerchanski Prize in geology/geophysics.

Electoral history

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smerchanski, Mark 1914 births 1989 deaths Canadian people of Ukrainian descent Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Manitoba Liberal Party of Canada MPs Manitoba Liberal Party MLAs University of Manitoba alumni Virginia Tech alumni 20th-century members of the House of Commons of Canada 20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba