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Randy Hillier (politician)
Encyclopedia
Randy Hillier is a rural activist and politician in Ontario
, Canada. He was elected as a Progressive Conservative MPP for Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
during the 2007 Ontario general election
. Hillier serves as the party's critic for both Labour and Northern Development, Mines and Forestry in the provincial legislature.
Hillier is a licensed construction electrician with a diploma in electrical engineering technology from Algonquin College
and former employee of the Canadian federal government. He lives near Perth, Ontario
. In 2009, Hillier was a candidate in the provincial PC leadership election
. Although eliminated on the first ballot, he played the role of king-maker in the leadership race, successfully delivering most of his delegates to support eventual winner Tim Hudak
.
Landowners Association. He then assisted in creation of local landowner groups in other parts of Ontario, modeled on the Lanark Landowners. In 2006, he became the first president of the 15,000-member Ontario Landowners Association
, an umbrella group for these groups. The OLA was formed "...to preserve and protect the rights of property owners and to enshrine property rights within the Constitution of Canada and the laws of the Province of Ontario."
Under Hillier's leadership, the landowners groups initially engaged in acts of civil disobedience, including blocking highways, barricading government offices, staging illegal deer hunts, and publicly breaking laws that the Landowners regarded as unjust. This was primarily done as a tactic to draw media attention to perceived injustices, and thereby to pressure the provincial government to amend the laws or at least enforce them in a manner less injurious to the interests of rural landowners.
Hillier has explained the illegal actions of the landowners as follows:
In 2007, when he was seeking election to the provincial legislature, Hillier was challenged to justify his participation four years earlier in an illegal deer hunt. He responded by stating,
As well as acts of civil disobedience, the Landowners conducted demonstrations at Queen's Park and Parliament Hill
. Hillier's ability to attract media notice through the use of attention-grabbing rhetoric and tactics prompted one television commentator to describe him as "Don Cherry in plaid and rubber boots"--a reference to the colourful hockey personality. On one occasion in 2006, Hillier was arrested and detained (but not charged) for trespassing during a protest at a water quality meeting in Cornwall
.
After the creation of the OLA in 2006, acts of civil disobedience were replaced by attempts to influence the political system by more traditional means. Landowner-endorsed candidates ran for municipal office in many rural municipalities in the 2006 Ontario municipal elections. Hillier and other members of the OLA began to appear as witnesses before parliamentary hearings into issues affecting rural areas.
Since 2006, Hillier has been co-publisher and co-editor of the OLA's official organ, The Landowner magazine, which publishes bi-monthly. Hillier publishes an editorial in each issue of The Landowner.
In 2009, Hillier and Scott Reid co-founded the Lanark Society for the Advancement of Democracy, Property and the Common Law, which is intended "to help elected officials of a libertarian or classical liberal bent to take 'projects to expand the cause of freedom' beyond the conceptual stage."
in the upcoming provincial election. Some members of the party suggested that Hillier's activist past made him an unsuitable candidate, and the Toronto Star speculated that the party might disqualify him. Scott Reid, the federal MP for Lanark-Frontenac-Lennox and Addington, responded that he would be "very disappointed" if Hillier were prevented from running, adding "I can't think of anything more dangerous to our prospects [of winning in this riding]". On May 5, Hillier won a three-way nomination against Jay Brennan and Brent Cameron. He was elected MPP for the riding on October 10, 2007, capturing just under 41% of the vote and defeating Liberal candidate Ian Wilson by 924 votes.
During the election campaign, some observers questioned Hillier's fitness for elected office, given his history of civil disobedience. But this history won him some admirers as well. Similarly, his willingness to take contrarian positions (for example, announcing his skepticism about climate change
at a mid-election meeting of the editorial board
of the Ottawa Citizen
) earned him approval as well as opposition. Shortly after this meeting, the Citizens editorial board endorsed Hillier. An editorial in the paper advised voters to "Take a chance on Randy Hillier" and stated that "[T]he landowners'-rights activist is doing the right thing by running for the legislature and trying to change the system he's been battling for so very long."
However, it became increasingly clear that Hillier was unhappy with the leadership of PC leader John Tory
. In March 2008 an article in the Ottawa Citizen reported that Hillier was considering leaving the Progressive Conservative caucus and joining the small Reform Party of Ontario
. Hillier brushed aside this rumour as “void of fact.”
to succeed Tory. Few observers thought Hillier had a realistic chance of winning, but some media commentators speculated that he might fill the role of kingmaker.
Lacking in high-profile endorsements, Hillier instead focused his leadership bid on a series of policy announcements. These included:
Hillier placed fourth in the September 2009 leadership vote, with just under 10% of the vote. However, the initial vote-count showed no clear leader among the other three candidates: Tim Hudak
had won 33.9%, Frank Klees
had 29.9%, and Christine Elliott
had 26.4%. Because the election was structured as a preferential vote
, the ballots cast by Hillier supporters were then redistributed among the other candidates. This system meant that Hillier's prior public endorsement of Tim Hudak
as his own second choice for leader was important: two-thirds of the second-preference votes of Hillier supporters went to Hudak, doubling his lead over Klees.
Regarding Hillier's support of Jack Maclaren, former Ontario Landowner Association President to challenge sitting MPP Norm Sterling
at the Annual General Meeting of the Carleton-Mississippi Mills Ontario Progressive Conservative Party Riding Association, the Globe and Mail described Hillier as a "shrewd political operator"
(CRA) resulting from a dispute that he and his wife had with the agency related to the sale of land. CRA has placed liens on property owned by Hillier and his wife. Hillier said that they are working with CRA to resolve the dispute.
Hillier was reelected by a wide margin in 2011.
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada. He was elected as a Progressive Conservative MPP for Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington (provincial electoral district)
Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington is a provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario since 2007. The new riding was created in 2003 from parts of Hastings—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington and Lanark—Carleton ridings...
during the 2007 Ontario general election
Ontario general election, 2007
The Ontario general election of 2007 was held on October 10, 2007 to elect members of the 39th Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, Canada. The Liberals under Dalton McGuinty won the election with a majority government, winning 71 out of a possible 107 seats with 42.2% of the popular...
. Hillier serves as the party's critic for both Labour and Northern Development, Mines and Forestry in the provincial legislature.
Hillier is a licensed construction electrician with a diploma in electrical engineering technology from Algonquin College
Algonquin College
Algonquin College of Applied Arts and Technology is a publicly funded English-language college and member of Polytechnics Canada located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The college serves the National Capital Region and the outlying areas of Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec...
and former employee of the Canadian federal government. He lives near Perth, Ontario
Perth, Ontario
Perth is a town in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario, Canada . It is located on the Tay River, 83 km southwest of Ottawa, and is the seat of Lanark County.-History:...
. In 2009, Hillier was a candidate in the provincial PC leadership election
Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario leadership election, 2009
On March 6, 2009, Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario leader John Tory announced his intention to step down as leader following his defeat in a by-election. Tory was elected party leader in the party's 2004 leadership election, and led the party to defeat in the 2007 provincial election in...
. Although eliminated on the first ballot, he played the role of king-maker in the leadership race, successfully delivering most of his delegates to support eventual winner Tim Hudak
Tim Hudak
Timothy Patrick "Tim" Hudak is a politician in Ontario, Canada, and the Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario . He also serves as member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for the riding of Niagara West—Glanbrook.-Background:Tim Hudak was born in Fort Erie, Ontario...
.
Activist
In 2003, Hillier co-founded and served as the first president of the LanarkLanark County, Ontario
Lanark County is a county located in the Canadian province of Ontario. As of 2006, the population is 63,785. Its county seat is Perth.The county took its name from the town of Lanark in Scotland.-Geography:...
Landowners Association. He then assisted in creation of local landowner groups in other parts of Ontario, modeled on the Lanark Landowners. In 2006, he became the first president of the 15,000-member Ontario Landowners Association
Ontario Landowners Association
The Ontario Landowners Association is an organization which seeks to protect property rights in Ontario, Canada. The OLA was formed "...to preserve and protect the rights of property owners and to enshrine property rights within the Constitution of Canada and the laws of the Province of Ontario."...
, an umbrella group for these groups. The OLA was formed "...to preserve and protect the rights of property owners and to enshrine property rights within the Constitution of Canada and the laws of the Province of Ontario."
Under Hillier's leadership, the landowners groups initially engaged in acts of civil disobedience, including blocking highways, barricading government offices, staging illegal deer hunts, and publicly breaking laws that the Landowners regarded as unjust. This was primarily done as a tactic to draw media attention to perceived injustices, and thereby to pressure the provincial government to amend the laws or at least enforce them in a manner less injurious to the interests of rural landowners.
Hillier has explained the illegal actions of the landowners as follows:
In 2007, when he was seeking election to the provincial legislature, Hillier was challenged to justify his participation four years earlier in an illegal deer hunt. He responded by stating,
As well as acts of civil disobedience, the Landowners conducted demonstrations at Queen's Park and Parliament Hill
Parliament Hill
Parliament Hill , colloquially known as The Hill, is an area of Crown land on the southern banks of the Ottawa River in downtown Ottawa, Ontario. Its Gothic revival suite of buildingsthe parliament buildings serves as the home of the Parliament of Canada and contains a number of architectural...
. Hillier's ability to attract media notice through the use of attention-grabbing rhetoric and tactics prompted one television commentator to describe him as "Don Cherry in plaid and rubber boots"--a reference to the colourful hockey personality. On one occasion in 2006, Hillier was arrested and detained (but not charged) for trespassing during a protest at a water quality meeting in Cornwall
Cornwall, Ontario
Cornwall is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada and the seat of the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, Ontario. Cornwall is Ontario's easternmost city, located on the St...
.
After the creation of the OLA in 2006, acts of civil disobedience were replaced by attempts to influence the political system by more traditional means. Landowner-endorsed candidates ran for municipal office in many rural municipalities in the 2006 Ontario municipal elections. Hillier and other members of the OLA began to appear as witnesses before parliamentary hearings into issues affecting rural areas.
Editorialist
Hillier is the author of numerous editorials on a wide range of policy issues. Since 2003 he has been a periodic contributor to Le Québécois Libre, a bilingual libertarian online journal that is published in Montreal.Since 2006, Hillier has been co-publisher and co-editor of the OLA's official organ, The Landowner magazine, which publishes bi-monthly. Hillier publishes an editorial in each issue of The Landowner.
In 2009, Hillier and Scott Reid co-founded the Lanark Society for the Advancement of Democracy, Property and the Common Law, which is intended "to help elected officials of a libertarian or classical liberal bent to take 'projects to expand the cause of freedom' beyond the conceptual stage."
2007 election campaign
In January 2007, Hillier resigned as president of the OLA to seek the Progressive Conservative nomination in Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and AddingtonLanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington
Lanark—Frontenac—Lennox and Addington is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004....
in the upcoming provincial election. Some members of the party suggested that Hillier's activist past made him an unsuitable candidate, and the Toronto Star speculated that the party might disqualify him. Scott Reid, the federal MP for Lanark-Frontenac-Lennox and Addington, responded that he would be "very disappointed" if Hillier were prevented from running, adding "I can't think of anything more dangerous to our prospects [of winning in this riding]". On May 5, Hillier won a three-way nomination against Jay Brennan and Brent Cameron. He was elected MPP for the riding on October 10, 2007, capturing just under 41% of the vote and defeating Liberal candidate Ian Wilson by 924 votes.
During the election campaign, some observers questioned Hillier's fitness for elected office, given his history of civil disobedience. But this history won him some admirers as well. Similarly, his willingness to take contrarian positions (for example, announcing his skepticism about climate change
Climate change
Climate change is a significant and lasting change in the statistical distribution of weather patterns over periods ranging from decades to millions of years. It may be a change in average weather conditions or the distribution of events around that average...
at a mid-election meeting of the editorial board
Editorial board
The editorial board is a group of people, usually at a publication, who dictate the tone and direction the publication's editorial policy will take.- Board makeup :...
of the Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa Citizen
The Ottawa Citizen is an English-language daily newspaper owned by Postmedia Network in Ottawa, Canada. According to the Canadian Newspaper Association, the paper had a 2008 weekly circulation of 900,197.- History :...
) earned him approval as well as opposition. Shortly after this meeting, the Citizens editorial board endorsed Hillier. An editorial in the paper advised voters to "Take a chance on Randy Hillier" and stated that "[T]he landowners'-rights activist is doing the right thing by running for the legislature and trying to change the system he's been battling for so very long."
2007-2009: Early career as a Member of Provincial Parliament
Following the 2007 election, Hillier was appointed his party’s critic for rural affairs.However, it became increasingly clear that Hillier was unhappy with the leadership of PC leader John Tory
John Tory
John Howard Tory is a Canadian businessman, political activist, former leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, former Member of Provincial Parliament and broadcaster...
. In March 2008 an article in the Ottawa Citizen reported that Hillier was considering leaving the Progressive Conservative caucus and joining the small Reform Party of Ontario
Reform Party of Ontario
The Reform Party of Ontario is a political party in Ontario, Canada. Until the 1999 provincial election, the party ran one candidate each election merely to keep the party's name in the possession of the Reform Party of Canada....
. Hillier brushed aside this rumour as “void of fact.”
2009: Ontario PC leadership candidate
In early March 2009, John Tory resigned as leader of the Ontario PCs. On March 30, Hillier announced his candidacy in the leadership raceProgressive Conservative Party of Ontario leadership election, 2009
On March 6, 2009, Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario leader John Tory announced his intention to step down as leader following his defeat in a by-election. Tory was elected party leader in the party's 2004 leadership election, and led the party to defeat in the 2007 provincial election in...
to succeed Tory. Few observers thought Hillier had a realistic chance of winning, but some media commentators speculated that he might fill the role of kingmaker.
Lacking in high-profile endorsements, Hillier instead focused his leadership bid on a series of policy announcements. These included:
- Allowing Ontarians to vote to elect their senators;
- Enacting a law, which he proposed to call the Freedom of Association and Conscience Act, which would allow health care professionals and other government-paid individuals to refuse to provide services to which, for religious or moral reasons, they were personally opposed (such as doctors and nurses refusing to perform abortions and marriage commissioners refusing to perform same-sex marriages);
- Abolishing the Ontario Human Rights CommissionOntario Human Rights CommissionThe Ontario Human Rights Commission was established in the Canadian province of Ontario on March 29, 1961 to administer the Ontario Human Rights Code...
and allowing all legal proceedings under the province’s Human Rights Act to be dealt with in the regular court system. - Allowing the sale of beer and wine in corner stores;
- Restoration of the spring bear hunt;
- Ending the closed shopClosed shopA closed shop is a form of union security agreement under which the employer agrees to hire union members only, and employees must remain members of the union at all times in order to remain employed....
in unionized workplaces; - Reverse the ban on the cosmetic use of pesticides;
- abolition of the province's property taxProperty taxA property tax is an ad valorem levy on the value of property that the owner is required to pay. The tax is levied by the governing authority of the jurisdiction in which the property is located; it may be paid to a national government, a federated state or a municipality...
assessment agency (MPACMunicipal Property Assessment Corporation-About MPAC:The Municipal Property Assessment Corporation, or MPAC, administers property assessments and appeals of assessment in the Province of Ontario...
); - Increasing the speed limit on Ontario highways;
- Allowing the de-amalgamation of municipalities which had been forcibly amalgamated in the 1990s;
- Cracking down on the aboriginal occupations in places like Caledonia.
Hillier placed fourth in the September 2009 leadership vote, with just under 10% of the vote. However, the initial vote-count showed no clear leader among the other three candidates: Tim Hudak
Tim Hudak
Timothy Patrick "Tim" Hudak is a politician in Ontario, Canada, and the Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario . He also serves as member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for the riding of Niagara West—Glanbrook.-Background:Tim Hudak was born in Fort Erie, Ontario...
had won 33.9%, Frank Klees
Frank Klees
Frank Klees is a Canadian politician and the Progressive Conservative member of Provincial Parliament for the riding of Newmarket—Aurora north of Toronto. He was a candidate in the 2009 Progressive Conservative leadership election placing second behind victor Tim Hudak.-Early life:Klees was born...
had 29.9%, and Christine Elliott
Christine Elliott
Christine Janice Elliott is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in a byelection on March 30, 2006. Elliott was a candidate in the 2009 Progressive Conservative leadership election and came in third place behind winner Tim Hudak and runner-up Frank...
had 26.4%. Because the election was structured as a preferential vote
Instant-runoff voting
Instant-runoff voting , also known as preferential voting, the alternative vote and ranked choice voting, is a voting system used to elect one winner. Voters rank candidates in order of preference, and their ballots are counted as one vote for their first choice candidate. If a candidate secures a...
, the ballots cast by Hillier supporters were then redistributed among the other candidates. This system meant that Hillier's prior public endorsement of Tim Hudak
Tim Hudak
Timothy Patrick "Tim" Hudak is a politician in Ontario, Canada, and the Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario . He also serves as member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for the riding of Niagara West—Glanbrook.-Background:Tim Hudak was born in Fort Erie, Ontario...
as his own second choice for leader was important: two-thirds of the second-preference votes of Hillier supporters went to Hudak, doubling his lead over Klees.
2009-present: Political career after the leadership election
Following the election, Tim Hudak appointed Hillier as the party's critic for Labour, as well as Northern Development, Mines and Forestry in the provincial legislature.Regarding Hillier's support of Jack Maclaren, former Ontario Landowner Association President to challenge sitting MPP Norm Sterling
Norm Sterling
Norman William Sterling is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He is one of the longest-serving members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, having been first elected in 1977....
at the Annual General Meeting of the Carleton-Mississippi Mills Ontario Progressive Conservative Party Riding Association, the Globe and Mail described Hillier as a "shrewd political operator"
2011 election and controversy
During his 2011 re-election campaign, it was reported that Hillier owed $15,000 in back taxes to the Canada Revenue AgencyCanada Revenue Agency
The Canada Revenue Agency is a federal agency that administers tax laws for the Government of Canada and for most provinces and territories, international trade legislation, and various social and economic benefit and incentive programs delivered through the tax system...
(CRA) resulting from a dispute that he and his wife had with the agency related to the sale of land. CRA has placed liens on property owned by Hillier and his wife. Hillier said that they are working with CRA to resolve the dispute.
Hillier was reelected by a wide margin in 2011.