John Henry McConnell was a politician in Manitoba

Manitoba

Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...

, 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 served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba

Legislative Assembly of Manitoba

The Legislative Assembly of Manitoba and the lieutenant governor form the Legislature of Manitoba, the legislature of the Canadian province of Manitoba. Fifty-seven members are elected to this assembly in provincial general elections, all in single-member constituencies with first-past-the-post...

 from 1914 to 1922, as a member of the Liberal Party

Manitoba Liberal Party

The Manitoba Liberal Party is a political party in Manitoba, Canada. Its roots can be traced to the late nineteenth-century, following the province's creation in 1870.-Origins and early development :...

.

McConnell was educated at common school in St. Mary's, Ontario. He worked as an implement agent, auctioneer, undertaker and real estate agent. During his political career, McConnell lived in Hamiota, Manitoba

Hamiota, Manitoba

Hamiota is a growing community located on Provincial Trunk Highway 21 in Manitoba, Canada, midway between the Trans-Canada Highway and the Yellowhead Highway....

.

He first ran for the Manitoba legislature in the 1899 provincial election

Manitoba general election, 1899

This was the tenth Manitoba general election and was held on December 7, 1899....

, in the riding of Saskatchewan. He lost to Conservative

Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba

The Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba is the only right wing political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is also the official opposition party in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba.-Origins and early years:...

 candidate William Ferguson

William Ferguson (Manitoba politician)

William Ferguson was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1899 to 1903 and from 1907 to 1914, as a member of the Conservative Party.Ferguson was a farmer, and lived in Hamiota during his political career...

 by fifteen votes. He ran again in the 1914 election

Manitoba general election, 1914

Manitoba's general election of July 10, 1914 was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada.The result was a fifth consecutive majority government for the Conservative Party, led by premier Rodmond P. Roblin...

, and defeated Ferguson by 398 votes in the renamed Hamiota constituency. The election was won by Rodmond Palen Roblin

Rodmond Palen Roblin

Sir Rodmond Palen Roblin, KCMG was a businessman and politician in Manitoba, Canada .Roblin was born in the town of Sophiasburgh, in Prince Edward County, Canada West . The Roblin family were descended from Dutch American Loyalist farmers Philip and Elizabeth Roblin from Smith's Cove in Orange...

's Conservatives, and McConnell sat in the legislature as a member of the opposition.

The Roblin administration was forced to resign amid a serious corruption scandal in 1915. Another general election

Manitoba general election, 1915

Manitoba's general election of August 6, 1915 was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada.This election was held only one year after the previous general election of 1914. In that election, the governing Conservatives of premier Rodmond P. Roblin were...

 was held in August 1915, which the Liberals won with a landslide majority. McConnell was easily re-elected, and served in the legislature as a backbench supporter of Tobias C. Norris's government.

The Liberals were reduced to a minority government

Minority government

A minority government or a minority cabinet is a cabinet of a parliamentary system formed when a political party or coalition of parties does not have a majority of overall seats in the parliament but is sworn into government to break a Hung Parliament election result. It is also known as a...

 in the 1920 provincial election

Manitoba general election, 1920

Manitoba's general election of 29 June 1920 was held to elect members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada.-Background:...

, amid the rise of organized farmer and labour groups. McConnell was personally re-elected in Hamiota, defeating Ferguson by 347 votes. He ran again in the 1922 election

Manitoba general election, 1922

Manitoba's general election of July 18, 1922 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada.As in the previous election of 1920, the city of Winnipeg elected ten members by the single transferable ballot...

, but lost to Thomas Wolstenholme

Thomas Wolstenholme

Thomas Wolstenholme was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1922 to 1936.Wolstenholme was born and educated in Manchester, England, and came to Canada in 1889...

 of the United Farmers of Manitoba by 403 votes.