Alan Gray Martin was a Liberal party

Liberal Party of Canada

The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...

 member of the Canadian House of Commons

Canadian House of Commons

The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...

. He was a major in the Royal Canadian Artillery (Militia) from 1947 to 1965 and was later a chartered accountant by career.

Martin was born in Quebec City

Quebec City

Quebec , also Québec, Quebec City or Québec City is the capital of the Canadian province of Quebec and is located within the Capitale-Nationale region. It is the second most populous city in Quebec after Montreal, which is about to the southwest...

 and attended secondary school there. He then studied at the University of Toronto

University of Toronto

The University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...

 and Carleton University

Carleton University

Carleton University is a comprehensive university located in the capital of Canada, Ottawa, Ontario. The enabling legislation is The Carleton University Act, 1952, S.O. 1952. Founded as a small college in 1942, Carleton now offers over 65 programs in a diverse range of disciplines. Carleton has...

. He served with the Royal Canadian Artillery Militia

Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery

The Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery is the artillery personnel branch of the Canadian Forces .-History:...

 from 1947 to 1965, reaching the rank of Major.

He was elected at the Scarborough West

Scarborough West

Scarborough West was a federal electoral district represented in the Canadian House of Commonsfrom 1968 to 1997. It was located in the province of Ontario...

 riding in the 1974 general election

Canadian federal election, 1974

The Canadian federal election of 1974 was held on July 8, 1974 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 30th Parliament of Canada. The governing Liberal Party won its first majority government since 1968, and gave Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau his third term...

 and served one term, the 30th Parliament

30th Canadian Parliament

The 30th Canadian Parliament was in session from September 30, 1974 until March 26, 1979. The membership was set by the 1974 election on July 8, 1974, and was only changed somewhat due to resignations and by-elections before it was dissolved prior to the 1979 election.It was controlled by a...

. Martin was narrowly defeated at Scarborough West by William Wightman

William Wightman

William Hannum Wightman was a member of the Canadian House of Commons during the 31st Canadian Parliament.He was elected a Progressive Conservative Member of Parliament at the Scarborough West riding in May 1979 to serve in the short-lived minority government of Joe Clark. Wightman served as...

 of the Progressive Conservative party

Progressive Conservative Party of Canada

The Progressive Conservative Party of Canada was a Canadian political party with a centre-right stance on economic issues and, after the 1970s, a centrist stance on social issues....

 in the 1979 federal election

Canadian federal election, 1979

The Canadian federal election of 1979 was held on May 22, 1979 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 31st Parliament of Canada. It resulted in the defeat of Liberal Party of Canada after 11 years in power under Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. Joe Clark led the Progressive...

. He made further close, but unsuccessful attempts to win the Simcoe North

Simcoe North

Simcoe North is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada. It was established as a federal riding in 1867. Its population was 119,400 in 2006.-Demographics:Ethnic groups: 92.3% White, 5.9% Native Canadian...

 riding (a primarily conservative riding) in the 1980

Canadian federal election, 1980

The Canadian federal election of 1980 was held on February 18, 1980 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 32nd Parliament of Canada...

, 1984

Canadian federal election, 1984

The Canadian federal election of 1984 was held on September 4 of that year to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 33rd Parliament of Canada...

, and 1988 election

Canadian federal election, 1988

The Canadian federal election of 1988 was held November 21, 1988, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 34th Parliament of Canada. It was an election largely fought on a single issue: the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement ....

s. Alan served as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Finance (October 1978 to March 1979) as well as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Consumer and Corporate Affairs (October 1977 to September 1978).

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