Frank Branch
Encyclopedia
Frank Richard Branch is a former Canadian politician
.
A Liberal
, he was first elected to the New Brunswick Legislature to the multi-member
riding for Gloucester County
in the 1970 provincial election
. He was re-elected to the legislature for the single member riding of Nepisiguit-Chaleur in 1974
, 1978
, 1982
, 1987
and 1991
. He served as speaker
from 1987-1991 but was neither elected speaker nor named to the cabinet
following the 1991 elections and thus did not run for re-election in 1995
.
While retired from politics, he chaired a regional forestry marketing board for eight years before he sought re-election in the new, though largely unchanged, riding of Nepisiguit
in 2003
, where he defeated incumbent Progressive Conservative
Joel Bernard
by a margin of nearly 2-to-1.
In October 2005, the North Shore Forest Products marketing board
, of which Branch is general manager
, was taken under investigation for unspecified reasons. On January 13, 2006, Branch left the Liberal caucus
to sit as an independent
pending the outcome of the investigation and on March 23, 2006, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
reported that he had been fired. http://www.cbc.ca/nb/story/nb_branch20060323.html
He served as chair of the legislature's Public Accounts Committee
from the 2003 election until he left the Liberal caucus to sit as an independent.
He did not seek re-election in 2006
.
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
.
A Liberal
New Brunswick Liberal Association
The New Brunswick Liberal Association , more popularly known as the New Brunswick Liberal Party or Liberal Party of New Brunswick, is one of the two major political parties in the Canadian province of New Brunswick...
, he was first elected to the New Brunswick Legislature to the multi-member
Plurality-at-large voting
Plurality-at-large voting is a non-proportional voting system for electing several representatives from a single multimember electoral district using a series of check boxes and tallying votes similar to a plurality election...
riding for Gloucester County
Gloucester County, New Brunswick
Gloucester County is located in the northeastern corner of New Brunswick, Canada. Fishing, mining and forestry are the major industries in the county...
in the 1970 provincial election
New Brunswick general election, 1970
The 27th New Brunswick general election was held on November 18, 1974, to elect 58 members to the 47th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada...
. He was re-elected to the legislature for the single member riding of Nepisiguit-Chaleur in 1974
New Brunswick general election, 1974
The 28th New Brunswick general election was held on November 18, 1974, to elect 58 members to the 48th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada...
, 1978
New Brunswick general election, 1978
The 29th New Brunswick general election was held on October 23, 1978, to elect 58 members to the 49th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada. Richard Hatfield's Progressive Conservative Party narrowly won its third term.In the lead up to...
, 1982
New Brunswick general election, 1982
The 30th New Brunswick general election was held on October 12, 1982, to elect 58 members to the 50th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada. It saw Richard Hatfield's Progressive Conservative Party win its largest majority ever to that time...
, 1987
New Brunswick general election, 1987
The 31st New Brunswick general election was held on October 13, 1987, to elect 58 members to the 51st New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada...
and 1991
New Brunswick general election, 1991
The 32nd New Brunswick general election was held on September 23, 1991, to elect 58 members to the 52nd New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada....
. He served as speaker
Speaker (politics)
The term speaker is a title often given to the presiding officer of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body. The speaker's official role is to moderate debate, make rulings on procedure, announce the results of votes, and the like. The speaker decides who may speak and has the...
from 1987-1991 but was neither elected speaker nor named to the cabinet
Executive Council of New Brunswick
The Executive Council of New Brunswick is the cabinet of that Canadian province....
following the 1991 elections and thus did not run for re-election in 1995
New Brunswick general election, 1995
The 33rd New Brunswick general election was held on September 11, 1995, to elect 55 members to the 53rd New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada. The election marked the debut of Bernard Valcourt as a provincial politician, and as leader of a...
.
While retired from politics, he chaired a regional forestry marketing board for eight years before he sought re-election in the new, though largely unchanged, riding of Nepisiguit
Nepisiguit (electoral district)
Nepisiguit is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, Canada. It was known as Nepisiguit-Chaleur from 1974 to 1995.-MLAs:*Frank Branch, Liberal *Alban Landry, Liberal...
in 2003
New Brunswick general election, 2003
The 35th New Brunswick general election was held on June 9, 2003, to elect 55 members to the 55th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada...
, where he defeated incumbent Progressive Conservative
Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick
The Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick is a centre-right political party in New Brunswick, Canada. It has its origins in the pre-Canadian confederation Conservative Party that opposed the granting of responsible government to the colony...
Joel Bernard
Joel Bernard
Joel Bernard is a Canadian politician.He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick, representing Nepisiguit, in the general election of 1999 and became deputy speaker of the Legislature. He was defeated in his bid for a second term in the 2003 election by former Member of the...
by a margin of nearly 2-to-1.
In October 2005, the North Shore Forest Products marketing board
Marketing board
A marketing board is an organization created by many producers to try to market their product and increase consumption and thus prices. They most commonly exist to help sell farm products such as milk, eggs, or beef and are funded by the farmers of those crops. Marketing boards often also receive...
, of which Branch is general manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
, was taken under investigation for unspecified reasons. On January 13, 2006, Branch left the Liberal caucus
Caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a political party or movement, especially in the United States and Canada. As the use of the term has been expanded the exact definition has come to vary among political cultures.-Origin of the term:...
to sit as an independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...
pending the outcome of the investigation and on March 23, 2006, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
reported that he had been fired. http://www.cbc.ca/nb/story/nb_branch20060323.html
He served as chair of the legislature's Public Accounts Committee
Public Accounts Committee
The Public Accounts Committee is a select committee of the British House of Commons. It is responsible for overseeing government expenditures to ensure they are effective and honest...
from the 2003 election until he left the Liberal caucus to sit as an independent.
He did not seek re-election in 2006
New Brunswick general election, 2006
The 36th New Brunswick general election was held on September 18, 2006, to elect 55 members to the 56th New Brunswick Legislative Assembly, the governing house of the province of New Brunswick, Canada....
.