– March 7, 2001 in Mexico

Mexico

The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...

) was a politician

Politician

A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...

 in Ontario

Ontario

Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

. He was a Progressive Conservative

Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario

The Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario , is a right-of-centre political party in Ontario, Canada. The party was known for many years as "Ontario's natural governing party." It has ruled the province for 80 of the years since Confederation, including an uninterrupted run from 1943 to 1985...

 member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario

Legislative Assembly of Ontario

The Legislative Assembly of Ontario , is the legislature of the Canadian province of Ontario, and is the second largest provincial legislature of Canada...

 from 1995 until his death, and was a cabinet minister in the government of Mike Harris

Mike Harris

Michael Deane "Mike" Harris was the 22nd Premier of Ontario from June 26, 1995 to April 15, 2002. He is most noted for the "Common Sense Revolution", his Progressive Conservative government's program of deficit reduction in combination with lower taxes and cuts to government...

.

Before entering political life, Palladini was the owner of the Pine Tree Ford Lincoln automobile dealership in Woodbridge, Ontario

Woodbridge, Ontario

Woodbridge is a large suburban community in the City of Vaughan, just north of Toronto in Southern Ontario. It was once an independent town before being amalgamated with nearby communities to form the city in 1971. Its traditional downtown core is the Woodbridge Ave...

 (becoming locally famous for the slogan, "Any Palladini is a pal of mine" and a series of ads created by a young Rick Moranis

Rick Moranis

Frederick Allan "Rick" Moranis is a Canadian comedian, actor, musician, and a magician. Moranis came to prominence in the late 1970s on the sketch comedy show Second City Television, and later appeared in several Hollywood films including Strange Brew; Ghostbusters; Spaceballs; Little Shop of...

). He was named Canadian World Auto Marketer of the Year in 1994, and was the Vaughan Outstanding Business Achievement Award the same year. Palladini also served as Chair of the York-Finch General Hospital Foundation, and was a Director of the York University Scholarship Alliance Board.

He was elected for the riding

Electoral district (Canada)

An electoral district in Canada, also known as a constituency or a riding, is a geographical constituency upon which Canada's representative democracy is based...

 of York Centre in the provincial election of 1995

Ontario general election, 1995

The Ontario general election of 1995 was held on June 8, 1995, to elect members of the 36th Legislative Assembly of the province of Ontario, Canada...

, defeating Liberal

Ontario Liberal Party

The Ontario Liberal Party is a provincial political party in the province of Ontario, Canada. It has formed the Government of Ontario since the provincial election of 2003. The party is ideologically aligned with the Liberal Party of Canada but the two parties are organizationally independent and...

 Mario Ferri by more than 8,000 votes (the riding had previously been held by high-profile Liberal Greg Sorbara

Greg Sorbara

Gregory Sam "Greg" Sorbara, MPP a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for Vaughan. Sorbara served as the Minister of Finance in the Ontario Liberal Party government of Premier Dalton McGuinty from 2003 to 2007.He resigned on October 11, 2005, following a police investigation involving...

). On June 26, 1995, he was named Minister of Transportation. Following a cabinet shuffle on October 10, 1997, he was named Minister of Economic Development, Trade and Tourism.

Palladini was re-elected in the provincial election of 1999

Ontario general election, 1999

An Ontario general election was held on June 3, 1999, to elect members of the 37th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada....

, defeating Liberal Tony Genco by about 7,500 votes in the redistributed riding of Vaughan—King—Aurora

Vaughan—King—Aurora

Vaughan—King—Aurora was a federal electoral riding in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1997 to 2004, and was a provincial electoral riding represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1999 to 2007....

. After the election, his portfolio was restricted as "Economic Development and Trade".

Palladini resigned from cabinet on February 7, 2001, citing personal difficulties (he was going through extremely stressful divorce proceedings at the time). One month later, he unexpectedly died of a heart attack on a golf course.

In office, Palladini presented himself as a populist

Populism

Populism can be defined as an ideology, political philosophy, or type of discourse. Generally, a common theme compares "the people" against "the elite", and urges social and political system changes. It can also be defined as a rhetorical style employed by members of various political or social...

while presenting legislation which reduced government services. He was often accused of anti-intellectualism. When he cut back on snowplowing budgets for provincial highways, he suggested that stranded drivers could simply use their cell phones to call for help.

His family continues to operate his car dealership. There is also an Al Palladini Community Centre in Vaughan, named in his honour.