On This Day in Canada’s Political History: Frank Miller Wins Ontario PC leadership, Replacing William Davis.

It was on this date in 1985 that Ontario’s Tories elected Frank Miller their leader (and Premier).  He was from the more conservative wing of the party and only a few months later, under his leadership, Mr. Miller’s party barely squeaked by in the 1985 election that spring.  Shortly after that the unthinkable happened.  After 42 years in power, the party of Drew, Frost, Robarts and Davis, were consigned to the Opposition benches at Queen’s Park.  They would not taste power again for a full decade, when Mike Harris was elected Premier.Despite what happened, I retain a soft spot for Mr. Miller.  I was in high school back then and just days after he lost the job of Premier, I ran into him when I visited Queen’s Park.  Despite all that was going on around him, he took time out for a Scarborough student, sitting down with me for a few minutes and encouraging me in my education and interest in politics. Later, when I became a reporter, Mr. Miller sometimes granted me interviews and I remain in his debt.Looking back, I also admire that – like Ernest Drury, another Ontario Premier rarely invoked today – after reaching the lofty heights of Premier, he returned to his home community and served again in municipal office.caption id="attachment_536140" align="alignnone" width="500"Premier Frank Miller with Art Milnes, 1985 Premier Frank Miller with Art Milnes, 1985/captionArthur Milnes is an accomplished public historian and award-winning journalist.  He was research assistant on The Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney’s best-selling Memoirs and also served as a speechwriter to then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper and as a Fellow of the Queen’s Centre for the Study of Democracy under the leadership of Tom Axworthy.  A resident of Kingston, Ontario, Milnes serves as the in-house historian at the 175 year-old Frontenac Club Hotel.



Arthur Milnes is an accomplished public historian and award-winning journalist. He was research assistant on The Rt. Hon. Brian Mulroney’s best-selling Memoirs and also served as a speechwriter to then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper and as a Fellow of the Queen’s Centre for the Study of Democracy under the leadership of Tom Axworthy. A resident of Kingston, Ontario, Milnes serves as the in-house historian at the 175 year-old Frontenac Club Hotel.