1. David Christopherson was born on October 5,1954 and is a Canadian politician.
46 Facts About David Christopherson
1. 2.
David Christopherson previously served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 2003, and was a cabinet minister in the provincial government of Bob Rae.
3.
David Christopherson is self-educated, having dropped out of high school in the ninth grade.
4.
David Christopherson began working with International Harvester in Hamilton at age 19, and remained with the company for eleven years.
5.
David Christopherson was active with the United Auto Workers union, becoming plant chairman in 1978 and president of the Local 525 in 1979.
6.
David Christopherson was elected to Hamilton, Ontario City Council the following year for the city's fourth ward, and re-elected in 1988.
7.
David Christopherson became chairman of Hamilton's licensing committee, and made a concerted effort to reform the city's notorious regulatory practices.
8.
David Christopherson developed a reputation on as a hard worker, and was one of three councillors to decline a pay increase in 1988.
9.
David Christopherson was a constituency assistant for NDP Member of Parliament Ian Deans in the mid-1980s.
10.
David Christopherson sought the NDP nomination for Hamilton Mountain after Deans's retirement in 1986, but lost to Marion Dewar.
11.
David Christopherson was elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1990 provincial election, defeating Liberal cabinet minister Lily Oddie Munro in Hamilton Centre as the NDP won a majority government across the province.
12.
David Christopherson was chair of caucus and parliamentary assistant to Provincial Treasurer Floyd Laughren from 1990 to 1992.
13.
David Christopherson was respected by all parties for his legislative work ethic and contributions to the Standing Committee on Finance and Economic Affairs, and was widely considered as one of the most skilled backbenchers in the government caucus.
14.
David Christopherson's portfolio was extremely challenging, and was described by one journalist as "one of the worst jobs in government".
15.
David Christopherson supported former NDP leader Stephen Lewis's recommendations on race relations in the criminal justice system, and made efforts to address racism in Ontario prisons.
16.
On February 3,1993, David Christopherson was given additional cabinet responsibilities as Solicitor General of Ontario.
17.
David Christopherson has been credited with improving this situation, winning the respect of many in the police community.
18.
David Christopherson allowed semi-automatic weapons to be issued to officers in late 1993.
19.
David Christopherson introduced new guidelines for targeting hate crimes, and mandated stricter standards for police investigations of spousal assault.
20.
In May 1994, David Christopherson introduced a pilot project to reduce illegal gun ownership in Ontario.
21.
David Christopherson was widely respected for his abilities in cabinet, and often won praise from members of the opposition.
22.
David Christopherson served until the defeat of the Rae government in 1995.
23.
David Christopherson served in the next legislature as NDP critic for labour issues and the Workers' Compensation Board.
24.
Rae resigned as party leader in 1996, and there was considerable media speculation that David Christopherson would run to succeed him.
25.
David Christopherson decided against running and gave his support to Howard Hampton, the eventual winner.
26.
David Christopherson was a prominent supporter of Hamilton's amalgamation with neighbouring municipalities in the late 1990s.
27.
David Christopherson considered leaving politics to run for the leadership of the Ontario Federation of Labour in 1997, but ultimately declined.
28.
The Hamilton Centre riding was eliminated by redistribution in 1996, and David Christopherson chose to contest the expanded riding of Hamilton West for the 1999 provincial election against incumbent Progressive Conservative Lillian Ross.
29.
David Christopherson was re-elected, and became one of only nine New Democrats returned to the reduced 103-seat legislature.
30.
David Christopherson served as his party's Finance and Labour Critic, and was appointed as House Leader.
31.
David Christopherson considered campaigning for Mayor of Hamilton in 2000, but reluctantly declined.
32.
David Christopherson resigned as NDP House Leader in 2001, amid rumours of a rift with Hampton.
33.
David Christopherson continued to serve as his party's critic for Consumer and Business Services and the Management Board of Cabinet, and was a deputy speaker in the legislature from 2001 to 2003.
34.
David Christopherson did not seek re-election to the legislature in 2003.
35.
David Christopherson promised to reform the city's disclosure laws, requiring municipal politicians to declare their assets, debts and holdings.
36.
David Christopherson spoke out against plans to build an incinerator in the city for waste disposal.
37.
David Christopherson was supported by two teachers' unions and the city firefighters' union, as well as by Liberal MPP Dominic Agostino from Hamilton East.
38.
David Christopherson returned to political life a few months later, defeating Liberal cabinet minister Stan Keyes to win the Hamilton Centre riding in the 2004 federal election.
39.
The Liberal Party won a minority government, and David Christopherson served as NDP critic for cities, community infrastructure, labour and steel policy in the 38th parliament.
40.
David Christopherson was part of a Canadian delegation that observed presidential elections in Ukraine in late 2004.
41.
David Christopherson was re-elected in the 2006 federal election with an increased majority, as the Conservatives won a minority government nationally.
42.
David Christopherson has criticized the previous Liberal government for allowing billions in unpaid tax monies to remain uncollected.
43.
David Christopherson was re-elected to his federal seat again in the 2008 federal election, and the 2011 federal election.
44.
David Christopherson was appointed Defence Critic for the NDP after Jack Layton's death, and appointed one of the three deputy leaders, by Layton's successor Thomas Mulcair.
45.
David Christopherson was involved in the so-called 'Elbowgate' political confrontation on 18 May 2016.
46.
On July 5,2018, David Christopherson announced his plan to retire at the end of the 42nd Canadian Parliament, and to not seek re-election in the 2019 federal election.