# John Cannis

John Cannis (Greek: Γιάννης Κάννης; born November 4, 1951) is a Canadian politician. He was a former member of the House of Commons of Canada.

## Background

Born in Kalymnos, Greece, Cannis was raised and educated in Toronto, Ontario. A successful entrepreneur for 18 years, Cannis owned a Toronto-based international executive search firm and was a member in good standing of Association of Professional Placement Agencies and Consultants. He also served as a computer and human resource consultant.
Cannis and his wife of more than 40 years, Mary, have three children; Irene (Tony), Paul (Christina), Daniel and four grandchildren.

## Politics

Cannis ran as the Liberal candidate in the 1993 election in the riding of Scarborough Centre and was elected as a Member of Parliament. He continued to serve for 18 years before his defeat by Conservative Roxanne James in 2011.
From 1999 to 2001, Cannis served as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Industry. As Parliamentary Secretary, he successfully guided four pieces of legislation through the House of Commons and committee stages; specifically, the Privacy Act, the Space Agency Act, the Canadian Tourism Commission Act and the Patent Act.
Notable committee appointments included Vice-Chair of the Standing Committee on National Defence, Chair of the Standing Committee on National Defence and Veterans Affairs, Chair of the Subcommittee on International Trade, Trade Disputes and Investment (SINT) of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Trade (FAAE) and as Vice-Chair on the Standing Committee on Transport.
In 2004, when the Khadr family returned to Canada, they were met by a loud wave of public sentiment in favour of revoking their citizenship and deporting them. Cannis, as the Member of Parliament for their region, called for the entire family to be charged under the Canadian Anti-Terrorism Act for "aiding a terrorist organization with which Canada is at war". Prime Minister Paul Martin responded by saying that the Khadrs "have a right to their own opinions".
Cannis ran as an independent candidate in Scarborough Centre in the 2019 Canadian federal election and received 5.42% of the vote.

## Electoral record

vte2019 Canadian federal election: Scarborough Centre :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | Salma Zahid | 25,695 | 55.3 | +4.80 | $100,475.79 |
| | Conservative | Irshad Chaudhry | 10,387 | 22.3 | -10.40 | $88,298.94 |
| | New Democratic | Faiz Kamal | 5,452 | 11.7 | +0.10 | $11,622.00 |
| | Independent | John Cannis | 2,524 | 5.4 | | $49,981.60 |
| | Green | Dordana Hakimzadah | 1,336 | 2.9 | +0.80 | none listed |
| | People's | Jeremiah Vijeyaratnam | 1,162 | 2.5 | | none listed |
| Total valid votes/expense limit | Total valid votes/expense limit | Total valid votes/expense limit | 46,556 | 100.0 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 638 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,194 | 62.4 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 75,662 |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | Swing | +7.60 |
| Source: Elections Canada |||||||
vte2011 Canadian federal election: Scarborough Centre :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures |
| | Conservative | Roxanne James | 13,498 | 35.55 | +5.45 |
| | Liberal | John Cannis | 12,028 | 31.68 | -16.99 |
| | New Democratic | Natalie Hundt | 11,443 | 30.14 | +14.39 |
| | Green | Ella Ng | 998 | 2.63 | -2.83 |
| Total valid votes/expense limit | Total valid votes/expense limit | Total valid votes/expense limit | 37,967 | 100.00 | +3.10 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 217 | 0.57 | -0.07 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,184 | 54.34 | +2.21 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 70,274 | | -1.15 |
| Source(s) Elections Canada "Official Voting Results — Forty-First General Election 2011 — Voting results by electoral district". Retrieved 20 October 2015. "Official Voting Results — Forty-First General Election 2011 — List of candidates by electoral district and individual results". |||||||
2008 Canadian federal election: Scarborough Centre :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | John Cannis | 17,927 | 48.67 | -6.7 | $61,436 |
| | Conservative | Roxanne James | 11,088 | 30.10 | +2.8 | $74,654 |
| | New Democratic | Natalie Hundt | 5,801 | 15.75 | +1.8 | $1,449 |
| | Green | Ella Ng | 2,011 | 5.46 | +2.2 | $1,784 |
| Total valid votes/Expense limit | Total valid votes/Expense limit | Total valid votes/Expense limit | 36,827 | 100.00 | $81,313 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 235 | 0.63 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 37,062 | 52.13 |
2006 Canadian federal election: Scarborough Centre :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | John Cannis | 23,332 | 55.4 | +1.7 |
| | Conservative | Roxanne James | 11,522 | 27.3 | +5.3 |
| | New Democratic | Dorothy Laxton | 5,885 | 14.0 | -1.9 |
| | Green | Andrew Strachan | 1,396 | 3.3 | +0.6 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 42,135 | 100.0 |
2004 Canadian federal election: Scarborough Centre :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | John Cannis | 20,740 | 53.7 | -13.8 |
| | Conservative | John Mihtis | 8,515 | 22.0 | -0.2 |
| | New Democratic | Greg Gogan | 6,156 | 15.9 | +8.0 |
| | Green | Greg Bonser | 1,045 | 2.7 | |
| | Communist | Dorothy Sauras | 152 | 0.3 | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 36,608 | 100.0 |
Note: Conservative vote is compared to the total of the Canadian Alliance vote and Progressive Conservative vote in 2000 election.
2000 Canadian federal election: Scarborough Centre :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | John Cannis | 26,969 | 67.5 | +10.1 |
| | Alliance | Bill Settatree | 8,849 | 22.2 | +3.7 |
| | New Democratic | Ali Mallah | 3,171 | 7.9 | -0.3 |
| | Marijuana | Paul Coulbeck | 959 | 2.4 | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 39,948 | 100.0 |
Note: Canadian Alliance vote is compared to the Reform vote in 1997 election.
1997 Canadian federal election: Scarborough Centre :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | John Cannis | 25,185 | 57.4 | +4.9 |
| | Reform | Bill Settatree | 8,106 | 18.5 | -2.2 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Brian Shedden | 6,976 | 15.9 | -4.6 |
| | New Democratic | Chris Stewart | 3,619 | 8.2 | +4.2 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 43,886 | 100.0 |
vte1993 Canadian federal election: Scarborough Centre :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures |
| | Liberal | John Cannis | 21,084 | 52.50 | $ 48,715 |
| | Reform | John Pope | 8,415 | 20.95 | 16,324 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Pauline Browes | 8,154 | 20.30 | 43,354 |
| | New Democratic | Guy Hunter | 1,599 | 3.98 | 24,751 |
| | National | Jean Schilling | 320 | 0.80 | 1,152 |
| | Natural Law | David Gordon | 190 | 0.47 | 0 |
| | Independent | Steven Lam | 184 | 0.46 | 7,341 |
| | Libertarian | George Dance | 153 | 0.38 | 0 |
| | Marxist–Leninist | France Tremblay | 38 | 0.09 | 105 |
| | Abolitionist | Denis A. Mazerolle | 21 | 0.05 | 0 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 40,158 | 100.00 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 359 | 0.89 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 40,517 | 68.17 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 59,431 |
| Source(s) Thirty-fifth General Election, 1993: Official Voting Results, Chief Electoral Officer (Canada) "Official contributions and expenses". Elections Canada. |||||||