Wes Penner is a businessman, religious organizer, and politician in the 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...

 province of 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...

.

Penner was raised on a farm in Landmark, Manitoba

Landmark, Manitoba

Landmark is a hamlet in the province of Manitoba, Canada, located about 30 km southeast of the provincial capital, Winnipeg in the Rural Municipality of Taché. It has a population of approximately 1500 people . Landmark serves largely as a dormitory community or exurb for people who work in...

. He has a Bachelor of Arts

Bachelor of Arts

A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...

 degree from St. John's College

St. John's College, University of Manitoba

St John's College is a small Anglican college located on the University of Manitoba campus in Winnipeg, Canada. It is home to the Institute for Anglican Ministry, a ministry of the Diocese of Rupert's Land that seeks to train Anglican lay people.-History:...

 and a Bachelor of Education

Bachelor of Education

A Bachelor of Education is an undergraduate academic degree which qualifies the graduate as a teacher in schools.-North America:...

 degree and Teaching Certificate from 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...

. He worked as a teacher for ten years before becoming a full-time entrepreneur.

After starting his business career in agricultural machinery sales, Penner founded Powerland Computers in 1985 with his son Kevin and nephew Mark Penner. The Winnipeg

Winnipeg

Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...

-based business grew into a success, and had generated sales of $8 million by 1993. In 2008, it was the largest computer service company in Manitoba. In 1999, Penner and his partners purchased the Pinawa

Pinawa, Manitoba

Pinawa is a small Canadian community of about 1500 residents located in southeastern Manitoba, 110 kilometres north-east of Winnipeg. The town is situated on the Canadian Shield within the western boundary of Whiteshell Provincial Park, which lies near the Manitoba-Ontario provincial boundary...

 Resort and Conference Centre (later renamed as the Wilderness Edge Retreat and Conference Centre).

As of 2008, Penner was the president of David Penner Development, a partner in the construction firm Woodmaster, an active member of the Historica Foundation of Canada and the Professional Development and Education Committee, and a founding director of The Technology Consortium.

Penner is a member of the Mennonite Central Committee

Mennonite Central Committee

The Mennonite Central Committee is a relief, service, and peace agency representing 15 Mennonite, Brethren in Christ and Amish bodies in North America. The U.S. headquarters are in Akron, Pennsylvania, the Canadian in Winnipeg, Manitoba.-History:...

 and has been involved in refugee assistance and anti-war causes through its Peace and Social Concerns Committee. In 2003, he tried to mobilize international support for an initiative to prevent the American-led invasion of Iraq

2003 invasion of Iraq

The 2003 invasion of Iraq , was the start of the conflict known as the Iraq War, or Operation Iraqi Freedom, in which a combined force of troops from the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Poland invaded Iraq and toppled the regime of Saddam Hussein in 21 days of major combat operations...

. Under this plan, Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

i President

President of Iraq

The President of Iraq is the head of state of Iraq and "safeguards the commitment to the Constitution and the preservation of Iraq's independence, sovereignty, unity, the security of its territories in accordance with the provisions of the Constitution." The President is elected by the Council of...

 Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein

Saddam Hussein Abd al-Majid al-Tikriti was the fifth President of Iraq, serving in this capacity from 16 July 1979 until 9 April 2003...

 would have turned over his weapons in return for protection by Russia

Russia

Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...

, France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

, and Germany

Germany

Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...

. The international contacts never materialized, however, and the plan ultimately came to nothing.

During the 2006 election, Penner opposed Conservative leader Stephen Harper

Stephen Harper

Stephen Joseph Harper is the 22nd and current Prime Minister of Canada and leader of the Conservative Party. Harper became prime minister when his party formed a minority government after the 2006 federal election...

's plans to revisit the issue of same-sex marriage

Same-sex marriage in Canada

On July 20, 2005, Canada became the fourth country in the world and the first country in the Americas to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide with the enactment of the Civil Marriage Act which provided a gender-neutral marriage definition...

 (which is legal in Canada). He was quoted as saying, "Gay Canadians have suffered a lot. All they want is some respect and (Harper) has to make a big deal out of it."

Penner has been a Liberal candidate in three elections and was a candidate for Mel Hurtig

Mel Hurtig

Mel Hurtig, is a Canadian publisher, author, political activist and former political candidate.He was born and raised in Edmonton, Alberta. He is the former president of the Edmonton Art Gallery.-Businessman and Publisher:...

's National Party of Canada

National Party of Canada

The National Party of Canada was a short-lived Canadian political party that contested the 1993 federal election. The party should not be confused by an earlier and unrelated National Party that was founded in 1979.-Formation:...

 in 1993

Canadian federal election, 1993

The Canadian federal election of 1993 was held on October 25 of that year to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 35th Parliament of Canada. Fourteen parties competed for the 295 seats in the House at that time...

.

Electoral record

Electoral record

Election	Division	Party	Votes	%	Place	Winner
1988 federal 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 ....	Provencher Provencher (electoral district) Provencher is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1871. It is largely a rural district, the largest community being the city of Steinbach, Manitoba.-Demographics:-History:...	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...	11,121	32.50	2/5	Jake Epp Jake Epp Arthur Jacob "Jake" Epp, PC, OC is an executive and former Canadian politician.Born into a Mennonite family in Manitoba, Jake Epp was a high school history teacher in Steinbach, Manitoba before entering politics... , Progressive Conservative 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....
1993 federal Canadian federal election, 1993 The Canadian federal election of 1993 was held on October 25 of that year to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 35th Parliament of Canada. Fourteen parties competed for the 295 seats in the House at that time...	Provencher Provencher (electoral district) Provencher is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1871. It is largely a rural district, the largest community being the city of Steinbach, Manitoba.-Demographics:-History:...	National National Party of Canada The National Party of Canada was a short-lived Canadian political party that contested the 1993 federal election. The party should not be confused by an earlier and unrelated National Party that was founded in 1979.-Formation:...	1,212	3.31	5/7	David Iftody David Iftody David Iftody was a Canadian politician. He served in the Canadian House of Commons from 1993 to 2000, representing the Manitoba riding of Provencher. Iftody was a member of the Liberal Party of Canada.-Early life and career:... , 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...
2006 federal Canadian federal election, 2006 The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...	Provencher Provencher (electoral district) Provencher is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1871. It is largely a rural district, the largest community being the city of Steinbach, Manitoba.-Demographics:-History:...	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...	6,077	15.84	2/4	Vic Toews Vic Toews Victor "Vic" Toews, PC QC MP is a Canadian politician. He has represented Provencher in the Canadian House of Commons since 2000, and currently serves in the cabinet of Prime Minister Stephen Harper as Minister of Public Safety. He previously served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from... , Conservative Conservative Party of Canada The Conservative Party of Canada , is a political party in Canada which was formed by the merger of the Canadian Alliance and the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada in 2003. It is positioned on the right of the Canadian political spectrum...
2008 federal Canadian federal election, 2008 The 2008 Canadian federal election was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 40th Canadian Parliament after the previous parliament had been dissolved by the Governor General on September 7, 2008...	Elmwood—Transcona Elmwood—Transcona Elmwood—Transcona is a federal electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1988. Its population in 2006 was 78,700....	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...	2,079	6.63	3/5	Jim Maloway Jim Maloway Peter James "Jim" Maloway is a Canadian politician. He was elected to the Canadian House of Commons for the Winnipeg division of Elmwood—Transcona in the 2008 federal election as a member of the New Democratic Party. He previously served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1986 to 2008,... , New Democratic Party New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...