Bob Rae
Robert Keith (Bob) Rae,
PC ,
OC,
O.Ont ,
QC ,
LL.B ,
LL.D (born
August 2,
1948, in
Ottawa,
Ontario) is a candidate for the
leadership of the
Liberal Party of Canada. Rae, a former member of the
New Democratic Party (NDP), was the 21st
Premier of Ontario from
October 1,
1990, to
June 28,
1995, and the only leader of the
Ontario New Democratic Party to serve in that capacity.
Rae's father,
Saul, was an eminent career diplomat who had postings in Washington, Geneva, New York, Mexico and The Hague. He spent a year in Vietnam as part of the Canadian team in the three country transitionary government in 1955 (following the
battle of Dien Bien Phu). He was on the first plane to land in France after the liberation in 1945.
Rae's brother,
John, is a Vice-President of
Power Corporation, and is a prominent member of the Liberal Party. He was also an adviser to
Jean Chrétien from the 1970s until Chrétien retired in 2003. Rae's younger brother, David, was diagnosed with
lymphatic cancer in
1987. Despite a bone marrow transplant from his brother, David died in
1989 at age 32.
Rae's sister, Jennifer, worked for many years for the IMAX Corporation but has now retired. She dated
Pierre Trudeau for a time in the late 1960s.
Rae attended
Crichton Street Public School in Ottawa,
Horace Mann Public School in Washington (
Julie Nixon was in his class), and the
International School of Geneva. He graduated with honours from
University of Toronto, where he also later received his law degree. Rae was
Michael Ignatieff's roommate while at the
University of Toronto. He first became involved in politics by volunteering on Trudeau's
1968 Liberal leadership campaign[
1]. He subsequently worked on Liberal
Charles Caccia's campaign in the
1968 federal election. Rae and Caccia remained personal friends through their political careers.
As a result of his strong student record, Rae was awarded a
Rhodes Scholarship to
Oxford University, where he studied under
Isaiah Berlin. His Bachelor's thesis criticized the
cultural imperialism of early
Fabian socialists in the
United Kingdom, such as
Sidney and
Beatrice Webb. During his period in Britain he became involved with social work, helping squatters find rental accommodation in
London. He attributes the experience with helping him develop a deepened commitment to social justice and, on his return to Canada in
1974 Rae joined the
social democratic NDP[
2].
He was elected to the
Canadian House of Commons in a
1978 by-election, defeating
Progressive Conservative Tom Clifford by 420 votes in the
Toronto riding of
Broadview. He was re-elected in the new riding of
Broadviewâ€"Greenwood in the
1979 federal election, and gained national prominence as the NDP's finance critic. It was the vote on Rae's
motion of no confidence that brought down the Progressive Conservative government of
Joe Clark in December 1979.
Rae was re-elected to the federal parliament in the
1980 election. During the same period, the
Ontario New Democratic Party was suffering from internal disunity under the leadership of the left-leaning
Michael Cassidy. Cassidy resigned as leader after a poor performance in the
1981 provincial election, and a movement began to draft Rae as his replacement.
In
1981, a provincial delegation led by
Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP)
Dave Cooke tried to convince Rae to seek the provincial leadership. He initially declined, but reconsidered after further entreatments from former Ontario NDP leader
Stephen Lewis, and many others. Rae, the most centrist candidate in the race, easily defeated
Richard Johnston and
Jim Foulds at a leadership convention in early
1982.
Although supported by the party establishment, Rae was initially unpopular with some members of the NDP caucus. Eleven of the party's 21 MPPs had endorsed his candidacy, but he had few strong allies apart from Cooke and former leader
Donald C. MacDonald.
Elie Martel, who had supported Rae for the leadership, later became a prominent rival in caucus. There was a delay of several months before MacDonald resigned his seat in
York South to force a by-election, so that Rae could enter the
Legislative Assembly of Ontario. It is traditional practice in parliamentary systems for a legislator holding a
safe seat to resign in favour of a newly elected party leader if he doesn't already hold a seat. Rae defeated
Liberal John Nunziata, a
York councillor, in a by-election on
November 4,
1982; earlier Rae had clinched the provincial NDP nomination over Nunziata which prompted the latter switch parties and run under the Liberal banner. Counting the leadership contest, this was Rae's fifth election in as many years.
Opposition to Liberals
Ontario, at the time, had been governed by the
Progressive Conservative Party since
1943. The opposition Liberals were led by the inexperienced
David Peterson, and many senior NDP strategists believed their party could surpass the Liberals for second place. The NDP took two seats from the Liberals in late
1984 by-elections, and polling by Decima Research from this period put the NDP slightly ahead of the Liberals (although still well behind the PCs).
Viewed in this light, the results of the
1985 provincial election were disappointing for many in the party. The party won 25 seats out of 125, only a modest improvement from their 1981 showing. The Progressive Conservative Party lost considerable support after selecting
Frank Miller as their new leader before the election, but it was the Liberals rather than the NDP who reaped the benefits of this change.
Rae nonetheless played a pivotal role in bringing the Progressive Conservative Party's 42-year dynasty to an end. The 1985 election resulted in a minority parliament, in which the Tories were 11 seats short of a majority. They held only four more seats than David Peterson's Liberals, who had actually won a plurality of the popular vote. After a series of negotiations Rae and Peterson signed a "Liberal-NDP Accord" in which the NDP agreed to support a Liberal government in office for two years. The Liberals, in return, agreed to implement some policies favoured by the NDP. There was some discussion that the NDP could receive cabinet representation in a formal coalition, but this was rejected by all concerned.
The Progressive Conservatives were defeated in a no-confidence motion on
June 18, 1985, and
Lieutenant-Governor John Black Aird asked Peterson to form a government shortly thereafter. With support from Rae, Peterson's government implemented socially progressive legislation on such matters as pay equity, and an end to extra-billing by doctors.
In
1986,
Ian Orenstein challenged Rae for the leadership of the Ontario NDP. Orenstein's campaign was a symbolic protest against the party's centrist tilt under Rae's leadership. Rae won the challenge without difficulty.
The Liberals won a landslide majority government in the
1987 provincial election, called after the conclusion of the Liberal-NDP accord. The NDP were reduced to nineteen seats (down six from 1985). Rae himself was nearly swept under the Liberal tide, defeating Liberal challenger
Alan Tonks (well known
mayor of
York and a future Chair of Metro Council and federal MP) by only 333 votes. The Progressive Conservatives fell to only sixteen seats, however, making the NDP the
Official Opposition in the Legislative Assembly for the third time ever.
There was considerable speculation that Rae would resign the leadership of the provincial NDP to seek the leadership of the federal party, following the resignation of popular leader
Ed Broadbent in
1989. High-profile party members such as former Ontario NDP leader Stephen Lewis,
Allan Blakeney and
Roy Romanow of
Saskatchewan,
Gary Doer of
Manitoba and
Alexa McDonough of
Nova Scotia all encouraged him to run. Expecting Rae to resign,
Bud Wildman,
Ruth Grier and Richard Johnston prepared to succeed him as leader of the Ontario NDP. On
October 5,
1989, however, Rae announced that he would not return to federal politics and would remain as provincial leader.
1990 Election Upset
Peterson called a
snap election for
1990. The NDP entered the campaign with low expectations, as the Liberals still held a significant lead in opinion polls. Reports from this period indicate that the party expected to lose seats, and that Rae was planning to retire as party leader after the election. A number of prominent MPPs, including Johnston,
Marion Bryden,
Michael Breaugh and
David Reville, chose not to seek re-election.
Floyd Laughren was planning to retire as well, but had not finalized his plans when Peterson
dropped the writ.
Contrary to expectations, the Liberal Party's support base declined significantly in mid-campaign. The Progressive Conservatives were led by the inexperienced
Mike Harris, who did not have a strong public profile at the time -- as such, Rae's NDP was the primary beneficiary of the Liberal slide. Polls taken late in the campaign showed the NDP holding a slight lead over the Liberals.
In the
September 6 election, the NDP, much to its surprise, won a landslide majority government, taking 74 seats in the Legislative Assembly. There were several reasons for this surprising victory. Peterson had called an early election less than three years into his mandate. The snap election was interpreted by many voters as a sign of arrogance. Although Peterson and Rae both supported the
Meech Lake Accord, Peterson's prominent role in drafting it likely hurt his popularity as opposition to the Accord grew. This, combined with a weak campaign, the
Patti Starr affair and scandal over redevelopment of Toronto's Harbourfront, resulted in Rae and the NDP being vaulted into office with just 37 per cent of the popular vote, only three above the Liberals. However, the NDP took over a large number of Liberal seats in and around Toronto. It may have helped that Rae was the only major party leader from the
Greater Toronto Area. As a result, the Liberals suffered their worst defeat ever, falling from 95 seats to 36--a distant second place finish. The 59-seat loss surpassed the 48-seat loss in 1943 that began the Tories' long rule over the province. The NDP even managed to unseat Peterson in his own riding.
On October 1, Rae was sworn in as the first NDP premier of Ontario. He was extremely popular for his first six months as Premier, with one early poll showing his personal approval rating at over 70%. The federal NDP were also improving their standing in the polls during this period. In the
1988 federal election, the NDP had won 44 seats, more than it had ever won before, and hopes were high for another breakthrough in the next election.
The Rae government was unable to sustain its popularity, however, and by late
1992 had fallen to third place in public opinion polls. The party's popularity continued to ebb throughout
1993, followed by only a modest recovery in the next two years. This, combined with the unpopularity of
Michael Harcourt's
New Democratic Party government in
British Columbia, led to a significant loss in support for the federal party.
There are many reasons for the Rae government's loss of popularity between 1991 and 1993. The NDP had never governed Ontario before, and Ontario was experiencing its worst
recession since the
Great Depression. The government backtracked on several campaign promises, most notably the introduction of public
auto insurance, which caused disagreements among the party and supporters, especially left-wingers such as cabinet ministers
Howard Hampton and
Shelley Martel (Elie's daughter). A number of scandals in cabinet and caucus also cut into the government's popularity.
In addition, the Rae government initially underestimated the extent of the North American recession. Their first budget projected a deficit of almost ten billion dollars, and enacted a series of spending programs to mitigate the worst effects of an economic lag. Some have described this budget as following a
Keynesian orthodoxy, spending money in the public sector to stimulate employment and productivity. Unfortunately, the monies provided for in the budget were insufficient against the recession, and did not create enough productivity. Thomas Walkom described the budget as "the worst of both worlds" -- angering the business community, but not doing enough to provide for public relief. For some, the budget reinforced a popular stereotype of the NDP as irresponsible spenders.
The government changed its economic focus after 1991, and implemented budget cutbacks to control the province's mounting deficit. His government also brought in the
Social Contract, austerity legislation which reopened collective bargaining agreements with the province's public sector unions. This legislation imposed a wage freeze and introduced what became known as "
Rae days", giving civil servants (including teachers, doctors, nurses, etc.) ten days off without pay per year. These cutbacks led to a falling-out with both the public sector unions, most notably
Ontario Public Service Employees Union (OPSEU), and the
Canadian Auto Workers (CAW) and its leader
Buzz Hargrove.
Sid Ryan, Ontario President of the
Canadian Union of Public Employees, referred to the
Social Contract as the worst labour legislation he had ever seen.
This breach between the NDP and the
labour movement struck at the party's foundations. The NDP was founded as an alliance between the old
Cooperative Commonwealth Federation and the labour movement, and Rae's policy decisions alienated many traditional NDP voters. Thousands of members resigned from the party, and several unions turned against the NDP and vowed to defeat the government in the next election. The Rae government later attempted to regain labour support by passing Bill 40, a measure which (among other things) introduced anti-scab provisions to the province. This was not enough to bridge the gap with organized labour, however, and the party was unable to regain significant union support.
In the
1993 federal election, the NDP fell to a historic low of 6% support in Ontario. All 10 NDP MPs from Ontario lost their seats to Liberal challengers as the Liberals won all but one seat in the province. Besides many NDP supporters nationwide voting Liberal to ensure that the Conservatives would be defeated (to avoid the vote-splitting in the 1988 election), Rae's unpopularity was a major factor in the federal NDP's losses. On the day after the election, defeated MP
Steven Langdon called on Rae to resign. Langdon had openly campaigned against the Rae government's austerity measures. Although he lost by 13,000 votes to the Liberal candidate, he received a higher percentage of votes than any other NDP candidate in the province.
Rae's government attempted to introduce a variety of socially progressive measures during its time in office, though its success in this field was mixed. In
1994, the government introduced legislation which would have provided for same-sex partnership benefits in the province. At the time, this legislation was seen as a revolutionary step forward for same-sex recognition; it was defeated, however, when twelve NDP MPPs (including two junior ministers) voted against it.
The Rae government's affirmative action measures also proved controversial. In
1993, the government sought to improve the numbers of women, non-whites, aborginals and disabled persons working in the public sector. It was assumed by many that this would be accomplished through preferential hiring methods. This policy would likely not have occasioned much controversy in a better economic climate; in the middle of a recession, however, many unemployed workers regarded it as threatening. There is little doubt that the controversy cost the NDP support among its working-class base. In addition, there were some on the political left who believed the NDP was unduly emphasizing ethnicity ahead of class considerations.
Notwithstanding its setbacks, the Rae government achieved some positive accomplishments during its time in office. It saved many jobs in northern Ontario through its bailout of
Algoma Steel, and negotiated a similar contract for workers in
Kapuskasing. The government also opened several negotiations with aboriginal groups toward self-government. Other popular initiatives included the
TTC Eglinton subway extension in Toronto (although the project was terminated a year later), support for public housing, and the Jobs Ontario job creation program. Rae's decision to approve
casino gambling for the province was also opposed by many in the party but it provided a steady source of revenue.
Rae's popularity recovered slightly by
1995. However, by the time the
writs were dropped for that year's
provincial election, it was obvious that the NDP would not be re-elected. Having led in opinion polls since 1992, the official opposition Liberals were expected to the the primary benefactors of the NDP's unpopularity. However, several unpopular policy reversals and mistakes by Liberal leader
Lyn McLeod allowed
Mike Harris and the Tories to benefit from the swing in support away from the NDP. While the NDP polled considerably better in northern Ontario than it did in 1990, it lost much of its support in rest of the province, especially the
905 region. In addition, several working-class ridings who had long voted NDP shifted to the Tories in response to Harris' populism. Ending up, the Tories shot from third place to a landslide majority government, sweeping the NDP from power. The NDP fell to only seventeen seats and third place in the Legislative Assembly.
Rae himself was reelected in his own riding by over 3,000 votes. However, on
February 29,
1996; he resigned as NDP leader and MPP for York South and moved to positions in law, academia and the private sector. He was eventually succeeded as party leader by
Howard Hampton, who was formerly
Natural Resources Minister in Rae's cabinet and a longtime left-wing rival.
Gerard Kennedy won the riding of
York South.
Rae resigned from the New Democratic Party in the late 1990s, due to his appointment to Security Intelligence Review Committee. There was some speculation that
Prime Minister Jean Chrétien would appoint him
Governor-General in
1999, but he was passed over in favour of
Adrienne Clarkson. There was further speculation that Rae would return to the federal Liberals and run under their banner in the
2000 election, though nothing came of this at the time.
Rae was made an Officer of the
Order of Canada in
2000, and in
2004 he was awarded the
Order of Ontario. He was appointed the sixth chancellor of
Wilfrid Laurier University on
July 2,
2003, and was installed at that school's fall
convocation in October. Rae is currently a partner of
Goodmans LLP, a
Toronto-based corporate law firm, an adjunct professor at the
University of Toronto, and a Senior Fellow of
Massey College. He has written two books:
From Protest to Power: personal reflections on a life in politics (1996) and
Three Questions: Prosperity and the Public Good (1998). He is the national spokesperson for the Leukemia Research Foundation.
Rae returned to active politics on
April 16,
2002, two days after
Mike Harris announced his resignation as premier, with an opinion piece in the
National Post newspaper. In an article entitled, "Parting Company with the NDP", Rae strongly criticized what he perceived as a bias against
Israel in the federal party, and also criticized the NDP for rejecting
Tony Blair's
Third Way socialism and for refusing to accept
globalization and open markets. He suggested that the party's economic policies were insufficient for the 21st century, and that the party as a whole was no longer "worthy of support".
The Ontario NDP has distanced itself from Rae's policies under Hampton. During the
2003 provincial election, Hampton argued that Rae was wrong to reverse the NDP's commitment to public auto insurance. The party's relations with the labour movement have not completely healed, although the situation has improved since 1993. Relations with the CAW remain especially fraught, and memories of the social contract have hurt the NDP's credibility with a new generation of public sector workers, despite the party's efforts to distance itself from the measure. Nonetheless, the Ontario NDP has never come close to the popularity it enjoyed in the early 1990s, and is still in third place in the Legislative Assembly. Under Hampton, it actually lost
official party status in the 2003 election.
Rae worked with great success on the Red Cross tainted blood issue and also worked towards a resolution of the fishing conflict in Burnt Church New Brunswick. His efforts are considered instrumental in the saving and restructuring of the Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Rae became widely known as a powerful speaker, frequently addressing the challenges facing Canada.
In
2005, Rae wrote a report for the Liberal government of
Dalton McGuinty on post-secondary education, commonly referred to as the
Rae Report. While his report called for increased government funding to colleges and universities, and enhanced student aid especially for low-income students, his proposals on student tuition fees were more controversial. Rae's report suggested that individual institutions ought to be able to determine what rate of tuition fees to charge, free from government controls. Student groups have objected, noting the significant recent increases in tuition fees in Ontario under the government of
Mike Harris, and the 57 per cent increase in tuition fees during his tenure as premier. Rae defended his report, arguing that low income non-university individuals would not benefit from a tuition freeze/lowering, as well as being forced to bear the tax burden needed sustain a freeze/lowering
Rae has also become involved with international issues in recent years. In 2002 and 2003, as chair of the Forum of Federations he helped oversee constitutional discussions between the government of
Sri Lanka and
Tamil Tiger rebels. On
April 26,
2005, he was appointed to advise Deputy
Prime Minister Anne McLellan on whether or not there should be a government inquiry into the 1985
Air India disaster. He has worked to help the constitution makers in Iraq, and worked towards civil society developments in India, Nigeria, and various other countries.
In July 2005,
The Globe and Mail and the
National Post both reported that Rae was again being considered for appointment to the position of Governor General. However, Rae was passed over again, this time in favour of
Michaëlle Jean.
In a July
2005 interview with
Michael Valpy, Rae indicated that he was still committed to public life and public service. He never attempted a reconciliation with the NDP since his 2002 letter. Valpy's feature on Rae included a comment by Arlene Perly Rae that he could return to politics if there was a
national unity crisis.
On
November 23 2005, Rae presented his recommendations that there should be a formal but focused inquiry into the
Air India disaster. Two days later,
Deputy Prime Minister Anne McLellan announced Rae's appointment to conduct a limited inquiry into
Air India under a government
order-in-council. Rae, with a team of young lawyers and advisors led by
Taleeb Noormohamed and
Benjamin Zarnett, produced a comprehensive report outlining the key issues that could be addressed, leaving Air India Victims' families spokeswoman
Lata Pada "encouraged that demands for answers will be addressed".
On
August 24 2005, the
Toronto Star reported that Rae was under "mounting pressure" to run for the federal Liberals in the
2006 general election. Though it was unclear how long the Air India inquiry was to last, Rae's appointment precluded any possibility of his running as a candidate in the January 23rd election. A poll by SES Research suggested that Rae was tied for second place behind
Frank McKenna as a prospective candidate to lead the federal Liberals. McKenna decided afterwards not to contest the leadership.
The new government of
Stephen Harper appointed a judge to handle the Air India inquiry in March 2006 thus releasing Rae from his previous commitment and freeing him for a possible run for the
Liberal Party leadership.
In a speech to the Canadian Club of
Winnipeg on
March 13,
2006, Rae expressed his interest in uniting the 'progressive' forces of
Canada in order to regain a majority government in the
Canadian House of Commons. "There's a progressive record that's shared by a majority of Canadians, but so far, we have not succeeded in becoming a majority in the House of Commons, so we must think a bit about how that can happen."
On
April 5, 2006, it was reported that Rae applied for membership in the Liberal Party. His candidacy for the party leadership is supported by
Greg Sorbara and
George Smitherman of the
Ontario Liberal Party[
3], former Chretien aides
Eddie Goldenberg and Rae's brother John[
4], as well as former top Martin advisor John Webster and others associated with the Martin camp[
5]. He officially announced his candidacy on
April 24,
2006. At his campaign launch he responded to his critics by saying ""I made mistakes before I was in politics, I made mistakes when I was in politics, I made mistakes as premier... I can only tell you I have learned from those mistakes and I am the wiser for them.''[
6]
On
May 12,
2006, venerable Trudeau era cabinet minister
Allan MacEachen backed Rae's leadership bid becoming honourary campaign chair.[
7] On
June 16, former Ontario Liberal Party leader and provincial treasurer
Robert Nixon, who sat as leader of the opposition to Rae's Ontario government for a time, endorsed Rae[
8]. He has also been endorsed by
MPs Irwin Cotler,
Ujjal Dosanjh,
Lawrence MacAulay, and
Brian Murphy, as well as several
Senators.[
9]
*
Bob Rae's Homepage*
Astonishing victory for the NDP*
Hour.ca – Bob versus the students
*
Western News – Western Applauds Rae Report
*
Liberals want Rae to join the fold by
Robert Benzie,
Toronto Star, August 24, 2005.
*
Political Biography from the Library of Parliament*
Bob Rae's Order of Canada Citation
