Sidney Spivak
Encyclopedia
Sidney Spivak was a Manitoba
politician. He was a Cabinet Minister in the governments of Dufferin Roblin
, Walter Weir
and Sterling Lyon
, and was himself leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba
from 1971 to 1975.
Spivak was born to a Jewish family in Winnipeg, and was educated at the University of Manitoba
and Harvard University
. He worked as a barrister, and also became Vice-President of Golden Age Beverages Limited and Mathers Investments Limited.
Spivak was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the provincial election of 1966
, in the upscale west-Winnipeg riding of River Heights. A Progressive Conservative
, Spivak was appointed Minister of Industry and Commerce in Dufferin Roblin's government. He continued to hold this position after Walter Weir
became Premier in 1967.
Weir's Progressive Conservatives were defeated in the election of 1969
, although Spivak was easily re-elected in his own riding. Two years later, he defeated Harry Enns
by 46 votes to become the party's leader.
Ideologically, Spivak was a Red Tory
. He represented an urban and progressive wing within the party, and did not have the complete confidence of his caucus (which was dominated by more right-wing figures). In the election of 1973
, Spivak presented himself as being to the right of Edward Schreyer
's New Democrats
, but to the left of the Liberals
under Israel Asper. He specifically rejected Asper's laissez-faire economic policies, and promised to govern as a centrist.
The Progressive Conservatives won 21 seats in the 1973 election, up one from their position at the dissolution of parliament. Schreyer's New Democrats, however, were re-elected with a majority, and Spivak was blamed for the party's loss by many in the Progressive Conservative ranks. (Some have suggested that the Tory defeat was due in part to anti-Semitism
. This interpretation has never been verified, however, and has been rejected by some prominent Jewish figures in Manitoba
.)
In 1975, Spivak was challenged for the leadership of his party by former Cabinet Minister Sterling Lyon
. This challenge was extremely divisive, pitting Spivak's left-leaning ideology against Lyon's conservatism and dividing the Progressive Conservative membership accordingly. There have also been suggestions that some of Lyon's supporters conducted an anti-Semitic "whispering campaign" against Spivak, suggesting that the party would be unable to form government under a Jewish leader. Lyon had several prominent Jews on his leadership campaign team.
When the delegates gathered on December 6, Lyon defeated Spivak by 57 votes. Shortly after the vote, Spivak claimed that the party would have difficulty being elected on a right-wing platform.
Lyon was able to win the 1977 election
, however, and Spivak was appointed as a Minister without Portfolio in the Lyon cabinet (also becoming Co-Chairman of a Task Force on Government Organization and Economy). On October 20, 1978, he became the Minister of Government Services. These were fairly low-ranking positions for an ex-leader. It is possible that Spivak did not want to serve at a higher level in a ministry from which he was ideologically disengaged.
Spivak resigned from the Manitoba legislature in 1979, to run for the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
in the federal riding of Winnipeg—Fort Garry
. He was narrowly defeated by Liberal
Lloyd Axworthy
, later a high-ranking federal cabinet minister.
Spivak returned to the business world after this defeat. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, he served as chair of the Canada-Israel Committee
; this organization opposed the Oslo Peace Accord of 1993, although Spivak himself was subsequently a promoter of peace in the Middle East
. He also served on the Churchill Regional Health Authority Board in the late 1990s. Spivak wanted to be appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Manitoba in 1993, but was passed over in favour of Yvon Dumont by Canadian
Prime Minister
Brian Mulroney
.
Sidney Spivak died in 2002. His widow Mira Spivak
was a member of the Canadian Senate
from Manitoba from 1986-2009.
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...
politician. He was a Cabinet Minister in the governments of Dufferin Roblin
Dufferin Roblin
Dufferin "Duff" Roblin, PC, CC, OM was a Canadian businessman and politician. Known as "Duff," he served as the 14th Premier of Manitoba from 1958 to 1967. Roblin was appointed to the Canadian Senate on the advice of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau. In the government of Brian Mulroney, he served as...
, Walter Weir
Walter Weir
Walter C. Weir was a politician who served as the 15th Premier of Manitoba from 1967 to 1969.Weir was born in High Bluff, Manitoba, and worked as a funeral director. He served as chairman of the Minnedosa Hospital Board from 1955 to 1957, and of the Minnedosa Town Council from 1958 to 1959...
and Sterling Lyon
Sterling Lyon
Sterling Rufus Lyon, PC, OC was a lawyer, cabinet minister, and the 17th Premier of Manitoba, Canada from 1977 to 1981. His government introduced several fiscally-conservative measures, and was sometimes seen as a local version of the government of Margaret Thatcher in the United Kingdom...
, and was himself leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba
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:...
from 1971 to 1975.
Spivak was born to a Jewish family in Winnipeg, and was educated at the University of Manitoba
University of Manitoba
The University of Manitoba , in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, is the largest university in the province of Manitoba. It is Manitoba's most comprehensive and only research-intensive post-secondary educational institution. It was founded in 1877, making it Western Canada’s first university. It placed...
and Harvard University
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
. He worked as a barrister, and also became Vice-President of Golden Age Beverages Limited and Mathers Investments Limited.
Spivak was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the provincial election of 1966
Manitoba general election, 1966
The Manitoba general election held on June 23, 1966, was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It resulted in a third consecutive majority win for the Progressive Conservative Party led by Dufferin Roblin...
, in the upscale west-Winnipeg riding of River Heights. A Progressive 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:...
, Spivak was appointed Minister of Industry and Commerce in Dufferin Roblin's government. He continued to hold this position after Walter Weir
Walter Weir
Walter C. Weir was a politician who served as the 15th Premier of Manitoba from 1967 to 1969.Weir was born in High Bluff, Manitoba, and worked as a funeral director. He served as chairman of the Minnedosa Hospital Board from 1955 to 1957, and of the Minnedosa Town Council from 1958 to 1959...
became Premier in 1967.
Weir's Progressive Conservatives were defeated in the election of 1969
Manitoba general election, 1969
The Manitoba General Election of June 25, 1969 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Canadian province of Manitoba. It was a watershed moment in the province's political history. The social-democratic New Democratic Party emerged for the first time as the largest party in...
, although Spivak was easily re-elected in his own riding. Two years later, he defeated Harry Enns
Harry Enns
Harry Enns was a Manitoba politician. He served as a Cabinet Minister in the governments of Dufferin Roblin, Walter Weir, Sterling Lyon and Gary Filmon, and was an unsuccessful candidate for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba in 1971...
by 46 votes to become the party's leader.
Ideologically, Spivak was a Red Tory
Red Tory
A red Tory is an adherent of a particular political philosophy, tradition, and disposition in Canada somewhat similar to the High Tory tradition in the United Kingdom; it is contrasted with "blue Tory". In Canada, the phenomenon of "red toryism" has fundamentally, if not exclusively, been found in...
. He represented an urban and progressive wing within the party, and did not have the complete confidence of his caucus (which was dominated by more right-wing figures). In the election of 1973
Manitoba general election, 1973
The Manitoba General Election of June 28, 1973 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the social-democratic New Democratic Party, which took 31 of 57 seats...
, Spivak presented himself as being to the right of Edward Schreyer
Edward Schreyer
Edward Richard Schreyer , commonly known as Ed Schreyer, is a Canadian politician, diplomat, and statesman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 22nd since Canadian Confederation....
's New Democrats
New Democratic Party of Manitoba
The New Democratic Party of Manitoba is a social-democratic political party in Manitoba, Canada. It is the provincial wing of the federal New Democratic Party, and is a successor to the Manitoba Co-operative Commonwealth Federation...
, but to the left of the Liberals
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 :...
under Israel Asper. He specifically rejected Asper's laissez-faire economic policies, and promised to govern as a centrist.
The Progressive Conservatives won 21 seats in the 1973 election, up one from their position at the dissolution of parliament. Schreyer's New Democrats, however, were re-elected with a majority, and Spivak was blamed for the party's loss by many in the Progressive Conservative ranks. (Some have suggested that the Tory defeat was due in part to anti-Semitism
Anti-Semitism
Antisemitism is suspicion of, hatred toward, or discrimination against Jews for reasons connected to their Jewish heritage. According to a 2005 U.S...
. This interpretation has never been verified, however, and has been rejected by some prominent Jewish figures 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...
.)
In 1975, Spivak was challenged for the leadership of his party by former Cabinet Minister Sterling Lyon
Sterling Lyon
Sterling Rufus Lyon, PC, OC was a lawyer, cabinet minister, and the 17th Premier of Manitoba, Canada from 1977 to 1981. His government introduced several fiscally-conservative measures, and was sometimes seen as a local version of the government of Margaret Thatcher in the United Kingdom...
. This challenge was extremely divisive, pitting Spivak's left-leaning ideology against Lyon's conservatism and dividing the Progressive Conservative membership accordingly. There have also been suggestions that some of Lyon's supporters conducted an anti-Semitic "whispering campaign" against Spivak, suggesting that the party would be unable to form government under a Jewish leader. Lyon had several prominent Jews on his leadership campaign team.
When the delegates gathered on December 6, Lyon defeated Spivak by 57 votes. Shortly after the vote, Spivak claimed that the party would have difficulty being elected on a right-wing platform.
Lyon was able to win the 1977 election
Manitoba general election, 1977
The Manitoba general election of October 11, 1977 was held to elect Members of the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Manitoba, Canada. It was won by the Progressive Conservative Party, which took 33 seats out of 57...
, however, and Spivak was appointed as a Minister without Portfolio in the Lyon cabinet (also becoming Co-Chairman of a Task Force on Government Organization and Economy). On October 20, 1978, he became the Minister of Government Services. These were fairly low-ranking positions for an ex-leader. It is possible that Spivak did not want to serve at a higher level in a ministry from which he was ideologically disengaged.
Spivak resigned from the Manitoba legislature in 1979, to run for the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada
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 federal riding of Winnipeg—Fort Garry
Winnipeg—Fort Garry
Winnipeg—Fort Garry was a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1979 to 1988.This riding was created in 1976 from parts of Winnipeg South riding....
. He was narrowly defeated by Liberal
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...
Lloyd Axworthy
Lloyd Axworthy
Lloyd Norman Axworthy, PC, OC, OM is a prominent Canadian politician, statesman and University President from Manitoba. He is best known for having served as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien...
, later a high-ranking federal cabinet minister.
Spivak returned to the business world after this defeat. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, he served as chair of the Canada-Israel Committee
Canada-Israel Committee
The Canada-Israel Committee was the official representative of the organized Canadian Jewish community on matters pertaining to Canada-Israel relations....
; this organization opposed the Oslo Peace Accord of 1993, although Spivak himself was subsequently a promoter of peace in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. He also served on the Churchill Regional Health Authority Board in the late 1990s. Spivak wanted to be appointed Lieutenant-Governor of Manitoba in 1993, but was passed over in favour of Yvon Dumont by Canadian
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...
Prime Minister
Prime minister
A prime minister is the most senior minister of cabinet in the executive branch of government in a parliamentary system. In many systems, the prime minister selects and may dismiss other members of the cabinet, and allocates posts to members within the government. In most systems, the prime...
Brian Mulroney
Brian Mulroney
Martin Brian Mulroney, was the 18th Prime Minister of Canada from September 17, 1984, to June 25, 1993 and was leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada from 1983 to 1993. His tenure as Prime Minister was marked by the introduction of major economic reforms, such as the Canada-U.S...
.
Sidney Spivak died in 2002. His widow Mira Spivak
Mira Spivak
Mira Spivak is a former member of the Canadian Senate representing the province of Manitoba.Born in Rivne, Ukraine , Spivak received a Bachelor of Arts, Honours Degree in Political Science and Philosophy from the University of Manitoba.She was appointed to the Senate on the recommendation of...
was a member of the Canadian Senate
Canadian Senate
The Senate of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the House of Commons, and the monarch . The Senate consists of 105 members appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister...
from Manitoba from 1986-2009.