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Pierre Poilievre, politician, Member of Parliament 2004–present, Cabinet minister, leader of the official opposition 2022–present (born 3 June 1979 in Calgary, AB). Pierre Poilievre has been the Member of Parliament (MP) for the Ottawa riding of Carleton (formerly Nepean-Carleton) since 2004. After serving as the youngest MP in Parliament, Poilievre became a cabinet minister in the government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper. Long known as a pugnacious partisan, Poilievre has been a fierce critic of the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. Poilievre became the leader of the Conservative Party and of the Official Opposition in September 2022.

Andrew John Weaver, OBC, FRSC, climate scientist, leader of the BC Green Party 2015–20 (born 16 November 1961 in Victoria, BC). Andrew Weaver is a leading climate change researcher who made historic gains for the Green Party of British Columbia in his second career as a politician. In 2013, he was elected the province’s first Green MLA. In 2017, he led the Greens to three seats. After the 2017 election, he engineered a power-sharing deal with the BC New Democratic Party and toppled the Liberal government of Christy Clark to help John Horgan become premier.

Canadian Prime Ministers as Seen by Their Loyal Cartoonists

John Graves Simcoe, army officer, lieutenant-governor of Upper Canada (born 25 February 1752 in Cotterstock, Britain; died 26 October 1806 in Exeter, Britain). Simcoe served as an officer with the British army in the American Revolutionary War, but is best known to Canadians as the first lieutenant-governor of the new British colony of Upper Canada, which later became Ontario.

Balarama Holness, professional football player, jurist, political activist, social entrepreneur (born 20 July 1983 in Montreal, QC). Balarama Holness put a wayward youth behind him to become a Grey Cup-winning professional football player with his hometown Montreal Alouettes. He then pursued a career as a jurist and political organizer and ran for mayor of the borough of Montréal-Nord in 2017. His community organizing efforts led to two separate reports (in 2019 and 2020) that acknowledged the existence and extent of systemic racism in the province, while also recommending solutions. In 2021, Holness ran to become mayor of Montreal but was defeated.

Ken Sim, entrepreneur, politician, mayor of Vancouver 2022– (born 18 October 1970 in Vancouver, BC). Ken Sim worked as an accountant and investment banker before co-founding two successful businesses: Nurse Next Door and Rosemary Rocksalt bagels. Sim made an unsuccessful bid to become mayor of Vancouver in 2018, losing to Kennedy Stewart by 957 votes. In 2022, he and his A Better City (ABC) Party won a majority government with a platform that stressed law and order and public safety. Sim is the first Chinese Canadian to be elected mayor of Vancouver.

William Richards (Bill) Bennett, businessman, politician, premier of BC (born 14 April 1932 in Kelowna, BC; died 3 December 2015 in Kelowna). After leaving high school, Bill Bennett, whose father was W.A.C. BENNETT, devoted his efforts to a career in business and with his brother made a success of various real-estate and other speculative ventures.

Henry Perrin Beatty, politician (b at Toronto 1 June 1950). After graduating from Toronto's Upper Canada College, Beatty received a general BA at University of Western Ontario in 1971.

Emily Murphy (née Ferguson, pen name Janey Canuck), writer, journalist, magistrate, political and legal reformer (born 14 March 1868 in Cookstown, ON; died 27 October 1933 in Edmonton, AB). Emily Murphy was the first woman magistrate in the British Empire. She was also one of the Famous Five behind the Persons Case, the successful campaign to have women declared persons in the eyes of British law. A self-described rebel, she was an outspoken feminist and suffragist and a controversial figure. Her views on immigration and eugenics have been criticized as racist and elitist. She was named a Person of National Historic Significance in 1958 and an honorary senator in 2009.

Pierre Laporte, journalist, lawyer, politician (born 25 February 1921 in Montreal, Quebec; died 17 October 1970). In October of 1970, Laporte was abducted and subsequently murdered by the Chénier cell of the Front de Libération du Québec (FLQ). This series of events intensified the October Crisis in Quebec. Laporte is one of very few politicians to be assassinated in Canada (see Thomas D’Arcy McGee).

In 2002, Queen Elizabeth II celebrated the 50th anniversary of her accession to the throne of the United Kingdom, Canada and other Commonwealth realms. The occasion was the focus of widespread popular celebrations in the United Kingdom and Commonwealth, as well as increased discussion and debate concerning the monarchy and its future. In October 2002, the Queen and her consort, Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, travelled across Canada for 12 days to celebrate the Golden Jubilee with Canadians.

His Royal Highness (HRH) Prince Arthur William Patrick Albert, Duke of Connaught and Strathearn, third son of Queen Victoria and governor general of Canada from 1911 to 1916 (born 1 May 1850 in London, United Kingdom; died 16 January 1942 in Surrey, United Kingdom). As governor general, Connaught was involved in military recruitment and philanthropy in Canada during the First World War. He also established the Connaught Cup for marksmanship in the RCMP and made extensive renovations to Rideau Hall. His daughter, Princess Patricia, was the first honorary colonel-in-chief of Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry.

John George Edward Henry Douglas Sutherland Campbell, 9th Duke of Argyll, Marquess of Lorne from 1847 to 1900, governor general of Canada from 1878 to 1883, author (born 6 August 1845, in London, United Kingdom; died 2 May 1914 in Cowes, Isle of Wight, United Kingdom). As governor general of Canada, Lorne founded the Royal Canadian Academy of Arts and the National Gallery of Canada and undertook extensive tours of western Canada, proposing the names Alberta and Lake Louise in honour of his wife, Princess Louise Caroline Alberta. Lorne’s patronage of Canadian artists set precedents for future governors general and his books promoted Canadian landscapes, culture and history to a wide international audience.

Her Royal Highness Princess Victoria Patricia Helena Elizabeth of Connaught (born 17 March 1886 in London, United Kingdom; died 12 January 1974 in Windlesham, Surrey, United Kingdom). Patricia resided in Canada from 1911 to 1916 and acted as hostess for her father, the Duke of Connaught, during his term as governor general. She gave her name to Princess Patricia’s Canadian Light Infantry and became honorary colonel-in-chief in 1918. A talented artist inspired by Canadian landscapes, she exhibited her paintings in Canadian art exhibitions, and examples of her work remain part of Canadian collections.

Christina Joan “Christy” Clark, 35th premier of British Columbia (2011–2017), radio broadcaster, political staffer (born 29 October 1965 in Burnaby, BC). Clark was a fiscal conservative with a populist flourish, often compared to legendary premier W.A.C. Bennett. She was the first female premier to be re-elected in Canadian history.

Henry “Harry” Herbert Stevens, businessman, politician, federal cabinet minister (born 8 December 1878 in Bristol, England; died 14 June 1973 in Vancouver, BC). Henry Herbert Stevens was a Vancouver city councillor, a long-serving member of parliament (MP) and a federal cabinet minister. He was a key figure in the King-Byng Affair and in the turning away of the Komagata Maru. Stevens was outspoken in his opposition to immigration, Vancouver’s Chinese community and BC’s First Nations, and in his efforts to preserve Canada as “a white man’s country.” (See also Racism; Prejudice and Discrimination in Canada.) He was also the founder and leader of the short-lived Reconstruction Party.