# Derek Blackburn

Derek Nigel Ernest Blackburn (June 16, 1934 – October 12, 2017) was a Canadian politician, who served as a Member of Parliament from 1971 to 1993. He represented the electoral district of Brant as a member of the New Democratic Party. Blackburn served for a period as the party's Defense critic.
He was raised in Stratford, Ontario, and was the son of John and Mabel Blackburn.
First elected in a by-election in 1971, Blackburn was reelected in every subsequent election up to and including the 1988 election. He retired from elected politics in 1993 when he was appointed to the federal Immigration and Refugee Board. Blackburn died on October 12, 2017, at the age of 83.

## Electoral record

vte1988 Canadian federal election: Brant :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures |
| | New Democratic | Derek Blackburn | 19,633 | 41.46 | $41,490 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Steve Bosanac | 14,084 | 29.74 | $45,061 |
| | Liberal | David J. Carll | 11,461 | 24.20 | $40,772 |
| | Christian Heritage | Geraldine de Vries | 1,786 | 3.77 | $10,857 |
| | Green | Jamie Legacey | 258 | 0.54 | $0 |
| | Libertarian | Helmut Kurmis | 95 | 0.20 | $299 |
| | Commonwealth of Canada | Barnabas Simon | 34 | 0.07 | $0 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 47,351 | 100.00 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 287 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 47,638 | 71.53 |
| Electors on the lists | Electors on the lists | Electors on the lists | 66,603 |
vte1984 Canadian federal election: Brant :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Derek Blackburn | 23,103 | 44.20 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Rick Sterne | 21,679 | 41.47 |
| | Liberal | Peter Hexamer | 7,286 | 13.94 |
| | Social Credit | Charley Harris | 207 | 0.40 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 52,275 | 100.00 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 266 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 52,541 | 73.16 |
| Electors on the lists | Electors on the lists | Electors on the lists | 71,821 | |
vte1980 Canadian federal election: Brant :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Derek Blackburn | 19,194 | 41.1 | -1.1 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Rick Sterne | 14,614 | 31.3 | +0.2 |
| | Liberal | Jo Brennan | 12,725 | 27.2 | +0.7 |
| | Social Credit | Winnifred M. Moyer | 103 | 0.2 | |
| | Marxist–Leninist | Malkit Randhawa | 93 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 46,729 | 100.0 |
| lop.parl.ca |||||||
vte1979 Canadian federal election: Brant :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Derek Blackburn | 20,908 | 42.2 | +0.1 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Arthur Tobey | 15,422 | 31.1 | +11.2 |
| | Liberal | Jack Bawcutt | 13,154 | 26.5 | -11.1 |
| | Marxist–Leninist | Malkit Randhawa | 93 | 0.2 | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 49,577 | 100.0 |
vte1974 Canadian federal election: Brant :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Derek Blackburn | 19,453 | 42.1 | -1.0 |
| | Liberal | Vern Young | 17,410 | 37.6 | +5.9 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Alex Keresturi | 9,228 | 20.0 | -5.3 |
| | Communist | Paul F. Jarbeau | 158 | 0.3 | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 46,249 | 100.0 |
| lop.parl.ca |||||||
vte1972 Canadian federal election: Brant :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Derek Blackburn | 20,002 | 43.1 | 0.0 |
| | Liberal | Dick Mundy | 14,730 | 31.7 | -0.5 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Alex Keresturi | 11,711 | 25.2 | +1.3 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 46,443 | 100.0 |
By-election on May 31, 1971 :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Derek Blackburn | 17,147 | 43.1 | +12.4 |
| | Liberal | Bob McIntosh | 12,831 | 32.2 | -7.6 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Emory Knill | 9,517 | 23.9 | -5.7 |
| | Social Credit | A.J. Sid Hamelin | 322 | 0.8 | |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 39,817 | 100.0 |
vte1968 Canadian federal election: Brant :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Liberal | James Elisha Brown | 16,029 | 39.8 |
| | New Democratic | Derek Blackburn | 12,333 | 30.6 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Geoff Styles | 11,901 | 29.6 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 40,263 | 100.0 |