Biography
Dean was born in Fruitland, Ontario, and educated at McMaster University in Hamilton. He worked as a fruit farmer, and had an extensive career in municipal politics before moving to the provincial legislature. He was reeve and deputy reeve of Saltfleet from 1965 to 1973, a warden in Wentworth in 1972, and mayor of Stoney Creek from 1974 to 1980. Dean served as president of the Association of Municipalities of Ontario in 1977-78.
He first campaigned for the provincial legislature in a by-election for the Wentworth constituency, held on April 5, 1979. He lost to New Democratic Party candidate Colin Isaacs by 543 votes. Two years later, he defeated Isaacs by 260 votes in the 1981 provincial election. Dean was named a minister without portfolio in Davis's government on July 6, 1983, and was appointed Provincial Secretary for Social Development on December 23 of the same year. He supported Dennis Timbrell to succeed Davis in the Progressive Conservative Party's 1985 leadership convention, and was retained in his portfolio when Frank Miller replaced Davis as Premier of Ontario on February 8, 1985.
Dean was re-elected by an increased margin in the 1985 provincial election, which saw the Progressive Conservatives reduced to a fragile minority government. He was appointed Minister of Revenue on May 17, 1985, but accomplished little in this position before Miller's government was defeated in the house the following month. In opposition, Dean served as his party's critic for Revenue and Senior Citizen's Affairs. He did not run for re-election in 1987.
He has remained an active member of the Progressive Conservative Party, the McMaster Alumni Association, and the United Church of Canada.
Read more about this topic: Gordon Howlett Dean
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