Michael Gravelle

Michael Gravelle (born January 23, 1949) is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He is the Minister of Minister of Natural Resources, and also a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the northern riding of Thunder Bay—Superior North for the Ontario Liberal Party.

Gravelle was born in Port Arthur, which is now a part of Thunder Bay, the son of Edmund Gravelle and Jan Shepherd. He was educated at the Port Arthur Collegiate Institute and Lakehead University, receiving a degree from the latter institution 1968. Before entering political life himself, he was an assistant to Liberal politicians Robert Andras, Stuart Smith and Joe Comuzzi. He also worked as a publicist for the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and was a founder of the North of Superior Film Association.

Gravelle was first elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1995 provincial election, defeating incumbent New Democrat Shelley Wark-Martyn by almost 7000 votes in the riding of Port Arthur. The election was won by the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, and Gravelle joined 29 other Liberals in the opposition benches. He supported Dwight Duncan for the party leadership in 1996.

Gravelle was easily re-elected for the new riding of Thunder Bay—Superior North in the 1999 provincial election, which his party also lost.

In the provincial election of 2003, Gravelle was re-elected with 72.5 per cent of the popular vote, the highest percentage total in the province. He was later acclaimed as caucus chair on November 25, 2003. In the 2007 election, he was returned by a much narrower margin, 46.8 to 38.3, against New Democrat candidate Jim Foulds.

On October 30, Gravelle was named Ontario Minister of Northern Development and Mines. In the summer of 2009, Gravelle's ministry was expanded, adding on the responsibility of forestry.