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Christopher Mitchelmore

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The Honourable
Christopher Mitchelmore
MHA
Minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Labour
In office
September 6, 2019 – August 19, 2020[1]
Succeeded byposition abolished
Minister of Tourism, Culture, Industry and Innovation
In office
December 14, 2015 – September 6, 2019
Member of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly
for St. Barbe – L'Anse aux Meadows
In office
November 30, 2015 – January 15, 2021
Preceded bydistrict established
Succeeded byKrista Howell
Member of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly
for The Straits – White Bay North
In office
October 27, 2011 – November 30, 2015
Preceded byMarshall Dean
Succeeded bydistrict abolished
Personal details
Born (1985-10-23) October 23, 1985 (age 39)
St. Anthony, Newfoundland and Labrador
Political partyNew Democrat (2011-2013)
Independent (2013-2014)
Liberal (2014-present)
OccupationSmall Business Development Officer

Christopher Mitchelmore MHA (born October 23, 1985) is a Canadian politician, who represented St. Barbe-L'Anse aux Meadows in the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly from the 2011 provincial election[2] until the 2021 provincial election.

Background

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Mitchelmore is a native of Green Island Cove, a tiny fishing village on the Great Northern Peninsula. At 16 years of age he founded "Flower's Island Museum". He added a Newfoundland-themed miniature golf course, gift shop and summer festival. The business operated until 2005, when Mitchelmore focused on completing his post-secondary education.

After graduating from Canon Richards High School, Flower's Cove in 2003, Mitchelmore went on to complete a Bachelor of Commerce Honours (Co-op) from Memorial University of Newfoundland. His university experience enabled him to work for the Department of Innovation, Trade & Rural Development, Newfoundland & Labrador Board of Commissioners of Public Utilities (PUB) and London Offshore Consultants (LOC) Group. He studied, both in the UK and at the University of Economics, Prague, Czech Republic. In 2008, he received the James Barnes Award for Academic Excellence.

Mitchelmore was employed with the Association of Professional Engineers, Geologists, Geophysicists of Alberta (APEGGA) and Community Business Development Corporation (CBDC) Nortip as a Youth Ventures Coordinator and most recently as a Client Services Officer, a role focused on creating and maintaining employment through business services, financing, skill enhancements, technical assistance, counselling and community economic development.

He has been engaged at the local, regional, provincial and national level, serving as the vice-President of the Straits-St. Barbe Chronic Care Corporation; Junior Achievement, Regional Chair; Director and Member of the Canadian Community Economic Development Network; co-Chair of Emerging Leaders; and Director with Nordic Economic Development Corporation.

Politics

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Mitchelmore was elected to the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly in the 2011 provincial election for the district of The Straits – White Bay North representing the New Democratic Party (NDP).[2][3]

On October 29, 2013 Mitchelmore left the NDP caucus after himself and all other NDP caucus members signed a letter calling on Lorraine Michael to hold a leadership election and Michael only agreed to a leadership review. On January 27, 2014 Mitchelmore resigned his NDP membership and sat as an Independent MHA with no formal connections to any political party.[4]

On February 4, 2014 Mitchelmore and St. John's North MHA Dale Kirby joined the Liberal Party of NL.[5]

Mitchelmore served as a member on the Public Accounts Committee until February 2014.

On May 9, 2014, Jerome Ward, a long-time Liberal and Special Assistant to Humber-St. Barbe-Baie Verte Liberal MP Gerry Byrne, announced that he would be seeking the nomination for The Straits-White Bay North.[6] Mitchelmore won the nomination with 73 percent of the popular vote taking 1,127 votes and Ward receiving 423.[7]

Mitchelmore was re-elected in the 2015 provincial election in the redistributed district of St. Barbe-L'Anse aux Meadows as a Liberal candidate and was subsequently appointed to cabinet.[8][9][10] He served as Minister of Tourism, Culture, Industry and Innovation from 2015 to 2019.[11][12]

Mitchelmore was re-elected in the 2019 provincial election defeating PC candidate and Roddickton-Bide Arm mayor Sheila Fitzgerald.[13][14] On September 6, 2019, he was appointed Minister of Advanced Education, Skills and Labour following a cabinet shuffle.[15] On December 5, 2019 the House of Assembly voted to reprimand Mitchelmore for his hiring of Carla Foote, daughter of Judy Foote, at The Rooms despite her lack of qualifications and her political connections to the Liberals. The House of Assembly ordered that Mitchelmore apologize to the Board of Directors of The Rooms, to the House of Assembly, and also be suspended two-week without pay.[16][17][18]

On August 19, 2020, Mitchelmore announced that he is not seeking re-election and was concurrently dropped from cabinet.[19][20]

Mitchelmore was succeeded as MHA by Liberal candidate Krista Howell on March 25, 2021.[21]

Electoral history

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2019 Newfoundland and Labrador general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
  Liberal Christopher Mitchelmore 3,474 60.80
  Progressive Conservative Sheila Fitzgerald 2036 36.20
Unaffiliated Ford Mitchelmore 170 3.00
2015 Newfoundland and Labrador general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
  Liberal Christopher Mitchelmore 4,359 89.32 53.1
  NDP Genevieve Brouillette 117 2.40 -25.5
Progressive Conservative Ford Mitchelmore 404 8.28 -27.56
2011 Newfoundland and Labrador general election
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
  NDP Christopher Mitchelmore 1,537 36.74 28.81
  Liberal Marshall Dean 1,327 31.71 -15.87
Progressive Conservative Selma Pike 1,320 31.55 -12.92

References

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  1. ^ Bird, Lindsay (Aug 19, 2020). "New N.L. premier, new finance minister: Andrew Furey takes office and shuffles cabinet". CBC News. Retrieved Nov 21, 2020.
  2. ^ a b "NDP Leader Lorraine Michael re-elected". CBC News, October 11, 2011.
  3. ^ "Plenty of new faces heading to Confederation Building". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. 12 October 2011. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
  4. ^ "Dale Kirby, Christopher Mitchelmore cut NDP ties". CBC News. Retrieved February 2, 2014.
  5. ^ "Dale Kirby and Christopher Mitchelmore join Liberals". CBC News. Retrieved February 4, 2014.
  6. ^ "I made a commitment to do this". Northern Pen Newspaper. Archived from the original on 2014-07-14. Retrieved May 9, 2014.
  7. ^ "Mitchelmore holds". Northern Pen Newspaper. Archived from the original on August 30, 2014. Retrieved June 10, 2014.
  8. ^ "Dwight Ball, new Liberal cabinet sworn in at Government House". CBC News. 14 December 2015. Retrieved 9 June 2017.
  9. ^ Cooke, Ryan (Dec 4, 2018). "Carla Foote hiring forms leave 'Rationale for Staffing' section blank". CBC News. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
  10. ^ "Mitchelmore noncommittal on increasing artist funding". CBC News. Apr 11, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
  11. ^ Smellie, Sarah (Jan 24, 2019). "Mitchelmore's tourism ad intro unnecessary, awkward says specialist". CBC News. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
  12. ^ "Been there, done that: Tourism minister visits every town in N.L." CBC News. Jul 31, 2019. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
  13. ^ Roberts, Terry (May 7, 2019). "Chris Mitchelmore up against 'spit, fire and vinegar' in high-energy Northern Peninsula race". CBC News. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
  14. ^ "Sheila Fitzgerald, who quit to run for PCs, gets government job back". CBC News. 3 June 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  15. ^ Oliver, Kenn (Sep 6, 2019). "UPDATE: Unexpected provincial cabinet shuffle at Government House in St. John's". saltwire.ca. The Telegram. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
  16. ^ "Mitchelmore investigated for Carla Foote hiring, whistleblower report finds wrongdoing". CBC News. 2 December 2019. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  17. ^ "Controversial hire Carla Foote resigns from The Rooms". CBC News. 6 February 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  18. ^ Cooke, Ryan (December 8, 2019). "All you need to know about the Mitchelmore-Foote fiasco, from beginning to end". CBC News. Archived from the original on January 21, 2020. Retrieved January 22, 2020 – via CBC Newfoundland and Labrador.
  19. ^ "Newfoundland and Labrador's new premier doesn't clear the deck, but he certainly shuffled it". saltwire.ca. The Chronicle Herald. Aug 19, 2020. Retrieved May 15, 2021.
  20. ^ "Andrew Furey takes office as 14th premier of N.L., names cabinet". CBC News. 19 August 2020. Retrieved 19 August 2020.
  21. ^ "Here are all the MHAs elected in the Newfoundland and Labrador election". CBC News. March 27, 2021.
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