Grant Mitchell (politician)
Encyclopedia
Early life
He received a B.A.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 the University of Alberta
University of Alberta
The University of Alberta is a public research university located in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. Founded in 1908 by Alexander Cameron Rutherford, the first premier of Alberta and Henry Marshall Tory, its first president, it is widely recognized as one of the best universities in Canada...
and an M.A.
Master of Arts (postgraduate)
A Master of Arts from the Latin Magister Artium, is a type of Master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The M.A. is usually contrasted with the M.S. or M.Sc. degrees...
degree from Queen's University
Queen's University
Queen's University, , is a public research university located in Kingston, Ontario, Canada. Founded on 16 October 1841, the university pre-dates the founding of Canada by 26 years. Queen's holds more more than of land throughout Ontario as well as Herstmonceux Castle in East Sussex, England...
. From 1976 to 1979, he worked as a public servant
Civil service
The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....
with the Government of Alberta. From 1979 to 1986, he worked in the financial sector as an executive with the Principal Financial Group
Principal Financial Group
Principal Financial Group is a publicly traded corporation based in Des Moines, Iowa, USA.The Principal Financial Group is a global financial services provider which offers a wide range of financial products and services, and is a U.S. leader in 401 plans. Headquartered in Des Moines, Iowa, the...
.
Political career
Mitchell was first elected to the Alberta legislature as the LiberalAlberta Liberal Party
The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time...
MLA for Edmonton Meadowlark
Edmonton Meadowlark
Edmonton Meadowlark is a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada. The district is one of 83 mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta using the first past the post method of voting....
in 1986. Following his re-election in 1989, he was re-elected in 1993 and 1997 in the new riding of Edmonton McClung
Edmonton McClung
Edmonton-McClung is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Canada.Edmonton-McClung was created in 1993, and was represented by Grant Mitchell from 1993 to 1998. Mitchell served as leader of the Alberta Liberal Party from 1994 to 1998.In 1998, following Mitchell’s...
.
After placing second in the 1988 Liberal
Alberta Liberal Party
The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time...
leadership contest to Edmonton
Edmonton
Edmonton is the capital of the Canadian province of Alberta and is the province's second-largest city. Edmonton is located on the North Saskatchewan River and is the centre of the Edmonton Capital Region, which is surrounded by the central region of the province.The city and its census...
mayor Laurence Decore
Laurence Decore
Laurence G. Decore, CM was a Ukrainian-Canadian lawyer and politician from Alberta. He was mayor of Edmonton, a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, and leader of the Alberta Liberal Party.- Early life :...
, he became leader of the party and opposition leader in Alberta in 1994 and served until 1998, when he left provincial politics. He was succeeded as Liberal
Alberta Liberal Party
The Alberta Liberal Party is a provincial political party in Alberta, Canada. Originally founded in 1905, when the province was created, it was the dominant political party until 1921 when it was defeated. It has never been in government since that time...
leader by Nancy MacBeth
Nancy MacBeth
Nancy MacBeth, née Elliott is a Canadian politician, who was the leader of the Alberta Liberal Party from 1998 to 2001.-Early life:...
.
Following his leave from politics, Mitchell joined CIBC Wood Gundy
CIBC Wood Gundy
CIBC Wood Gundy is the is the Canadian retail brokerage division of CIBC World Markets, a division of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce.CIBC Wood Gundy maintains a network of 1,400 brokers working in over 100 branches across Canada...
as an investment advisor. He has also served on the boards of the Canadian Commercial Corporation
Canadian Commercial Corporation
The Canadian Commercial Corporation is a crown corporation of the Government of Canada that facilitates Canadian exports by negotiating and executing government-to-government contracts...
,the Edmonton ITU World Cup Triathlon and the Edmonton Police Foundation.
On March 24, 2005, he was appointed to the Canadian Senate by Governor General
Governor General of Canada
The Governor General of Canada is the federal viceregal representative of the Canadian monarch, Queen Elizabeth II...
Adrienne Clarkson
Adrienne Clarkson
Adrienne Louise Clarkson is a Canadian journalist and stateswoman who served as Governor General of Canada, the 26th since Canadian Confederation....
, on the advice of Prime Minister
Prime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
, where he represents Edmonton for the Liberal Party of Canada
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...
.
Mitchell has served on three Senate committees: National Finance; Legal and Constitutional Affairs; and Agriculture and Forestry. He currently sits on the Senate committee for Human Rights and is deputy chair of the Senate Committee for Energy, the Environment and Natural Resources.
Grant Mitchell is married to Teresa Mitchell (née Flood), an Edmonton lawyer. They have two sons: Lucas, Liam, and one cuddly pup, Grady.