Mike Harris

Michael Deane Harris (born January 23, 1945) is a retired Canadian politician who served as the 22nd premier of Ontario from 1995 to 2002 and leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario (PC Party) from 1990 to 2002.

During his time as party leader, he heavily nudged the Ontario PC Party to Blue Toryism, advocating for the "Common Sense Revolution", his government's program of deficit reduction in combination with lower taxes and budget cuts.

Born in Toronto, Harris grew up in North Bay and worked as a ski instructor and schoolteacher before becoming a school board trustee in 1974.

Harris was elected to public office as a school board trustee in 1974.

In 1981, he became a member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for the riding of Nipissing.

He entered provincial politics in the 1981 election, and defeated Mike Bolan, the incumbent Liberal MPP in Nipissing.

Harris later suggested that he was motivated to enter politics by an opposition to the policies of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau.

Harris sat as a backbencher in Bill Davis's PC government from 1981 to 1985.

He supported Frank Miller's successful bid to succeed Davis as party leader in 1985 and took the role of rival candidate Dennis Timbrell to prepare Miller for the party's all-candidate debates.

Miller was sworn in as premier of Ontario on February 8, 1985, and appointed Harris as minister of natural resources.

The Tories were reduced to a minority government in the 1985 provincial election, although Harris was personally re-elected without difficulty.

He kept the natural resources portfolio after the election, and was also named minister of energy on May 17, 1985.

The Miller government was soon defeated on a motion of no confidence by David Peterson's Liberals and Bob Rae's New Democratic Party (NDP).

An agreement between the Liberals and the NDP allowed a Liberal minority government to govern for two years in exchange for the implementation of certain NDP policies.

This decision consigned the Tories to opposition for the first time in 42 years.

Miller resigned and was replaced by Larry Grossman, who led the party to a disastrous showing in the 1987 election and announced his resignation shortly thereafter.

Harris was again re-elected in Nipissing without difficulty.

Harris was chosen as PC house leader, and had become the party's dominant voice in the legislature by 1989.

He became leader of the Progressive Conservative Party in the 1990 leadership election.

That same year, a provincial election was called in which Harris carried the PCs to a modest boost in support, though they still remained in third place.

Grossman, who had lost his legislative seat, remained the leader of the party until 1990, while Sarnia MPP Andy Brandt served as "interim leader" in the legislature.

Harris entered the 1990 leadership race, and defeated Dianne Cunningham in a province-wide vote to replace Grossman as the party's official leader.

The 1990 provincial election was called soon after Harris became party leader.

However, five years later, he led the PCs to a strong majority government in the 1995 provincial election.

The Harris Government also faced the 1997 Ontario teachers' strike and gained criticism for its handling of the Walkerton E. coli outbreak and the Ipperwash crisis.

He later led the party to a second majority in 1999.

During his tenure as premier, Harris emphasized the Common Sense Revolution.

Although his policy of lower taxes grew the deficit, his deep cuts to social services, health care, education, and infrastructure spending were enough to eliminate the deficit and balance the budget in 1999.

In 2002, Harris retired as premier and PC leader, and was succeeded by Ernie Eves in both capacities.

After leaving office, Harris went into the private sector and became a fellow at the Fraser Institute, a conservative think tank.

Despite speculation about a potential foray into federal politics, Harris declined to run in the 2004 Conservative Party leadership election.

Harris was born in Toronto, Ontario, the son of Hope Gooding (born Robinson) and Sidney Deane Harris.

He grew up in North Bay, where his father operated the Wasi Falls Resort fishing camp.

Harris attended Waterloo Lutheran University (now Wilfrid Laurier University) but left after a year.

At the age of 21, following his father's purchase of a ski hill, Harris moved for two years to Sainte-Adèle, Quebec, where he became a ski instructor.

After the end of his first marriage, he enrolled at Laurentian University and North Bay Teacher's College where he received his teaching certificate.

He was employed as an elementary school teacher at W. J. Fricker Public School in North Bay where he taught grade seven and eight mathematics for several years in a new open-concept class of 120 students.

He continued in his previous occupation as a ski-instructor at Nipissing Ridge on weekends as well as working at his father's fishing camp during the summer season.

He eventually left the teaching profession as the success of the ski resort escalated.

After his father sold his ski-hill operation, Harris was hired to manage North Bay's Pinewood Golf Club.