# Manitoba Liberal Party candidates in the 1995 Manitoba provincial election

Voters elected three Manitoba Liberal Party candidates to the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba in the 1995 provincial election. Some of the party's candidates have their own biography pages; information about others may be found here.

## Burrows: Naty Yankech

Yankech first campaigned for the Manitoba legislature for the St. Johns division in a 1993 by-election. She was a 46-year-old licensed care giver, and ran a guest home for seniors with medical problems. She defeated Edson Sanecki to win the Liberal nomination, and lost to New Democratic Party candidate Gord Mackintosh in the general election.
Yankech charged her former campaign manager with sexual assault following this election. She said that her manager had attacked her in his van, pinning her to the seat and kissing and fondling her, and that she fought back by "pretending to relent and then striking back when he relaxed". She also said that she was initially in shock, and decided to remain silent about the matter. She went police with the urgings of her Husband Victor Yankech, in December 1993, and her manager was convicted after a two-day trial. Yankech had the legal right to remain anonymous, but chose to inform the media of her situation. Former Liberal leader Sharon Carstairs praised her for her "courage and strength".
Yankech defeated Sandi Funk to win the Liberal nomination for Burrows in the buildup to the 1995 election. Funk had actively sought the support of Yankech's former campaign manager, whom she believed to be innocent. After her victory, Yankech declared, "I defeated my assailant". She lost the general election to New Democratic Party incumbent Doug Martindale.
Electoral record :
| Election | Division | Party | Votes | % | Place | Winner |
| provincial by-election, 21 September 1993 | St. Johns | Liberal | 878 | 18.23 | 2/4 | Gord Mackintosh, New Democratic Party |
| 1995 provincial | Burrows | Liberal | 1,024 | 14.55 | 3/3 | Doug Martindale, New Democratic Party |

## Elmwood: John S. Petryshyn

Petryshyn was born in Berlin, Germany, and moved to Canada as a child in 1948. He was a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Manitoba, and is a lawyer with the Winnipeg firm Luk Law.
He was elected president of the Manitoba Liberal Party in 1979, at age 33, defeating rival candidate Beth Candlish by almost one hundred votes. He served in this capacity until 1982, and was appointed to the Immigration Appeal Board of Canada the following year. The board was eliminated by Brian Mulroney's government in 1989, and replaced with the Immigration and Refugee Board. Petryshyn and other Liberal-era appointees were offered two year "temporary appointments" on the new board if they agreed not to make any claims against the federal government for their lost positions. In 1993, a judge found that Petryshyn and the others had been treated in an unfair and coercive manner by the Mulroney government.
Petryshyn later served as vice-president of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress, and as chairman of the Canadian-Ukraine relations committee. He announced the creation of the Canada-Ukraine Foundation in 1994, to finance projects in Ukraine. He is also active with Heritage Winnipeg.
He sought election to the Manitoba legislature in 1995, and lost to New Democratic Party incumbent Jim Maloway. He also made an unsuccessful bid for election to the River East School Board later in the year. Petryshyn was president of the Liberal Party's Winnipeg—Transcona riding association in 2003, and was one of 259 presidents who endorsed Paul Martin's bid to seek the party leadership.
In 2001, Petryshyn represented several Royal Canadian Legions in Manitoba in a lawsuit against the province and the city of Winnipeg over education taxes.
He was an international observer for the 2004 Ukraine presidential election and 2006 Ukrainian parliamentary election, and has also overseen elections in Croatia, South Korea and Tajikistan.
Electoral record :
| Election | Division | Party | Votes | % | Place | Winner |
| 1995 provincial | Elmwood | Liberal | 1,227 | 15.26 | 3/3 | Jim Maloway, New Democratic Party |
| 1995 municipal | River East School Division, Ward One Trustee | n/a | 2,332 | | 5/7 | Helen Mayba, Wayne Richter and Gail Scheer |

## Fort Garry: Jim Woodman

Jim Woodman was a businessman and firefighter in Winnipeg. He was the general manager of Commission-Free Realty, which was involved in a bitter dispute with the rival Homeowners Private Sales Guide Inc. in 1999.
Woodman sought election to the Winnipeg City Council in 1992, and was defeated by Bill Clement in the division of Charleswood-Fort Garry. He attracted some controversy while seeking the Fort Garry Liberal nomination in 1994, after releasing a brochure that ridiculed Progressive Conservative incumbent Rosemary Vodrey. The brochure was written in the style of a school report card, and said that Vodrey was "liked by everyone and [...] considered Miss Congeniality by her classmates. Everyone agrees that she is a snappy dresser and a swell person to invite to a party". Many considered this to be patronizing, and party leader Paul Edwards agreed that it was inappropriate. Others believed that Woodman was unfairly criticized. During the election, he used an electronic system called "Pollstergeist" to reach a larger number of voters and obtain useful polling data. He finished second against Progressive Conservative incumbent Rosemary Vodrey. Woodman later served as Terry Duguid's campaign manager in the 1995 Winnipeg mayoral election.
Woodman died on April 22, 2004, from colon cancer caused by his work as a firefighter. His union, the United Fire Fighters of Winnipeg, sought to win retroactive workers compensation benefits for his family, noting that Woodman would have been covered had he lived in Alberta.
Electoral record :
| Election | Division | Party | Votes | % | Place | Winner |
| 1992 municipal | Winnipeg City Council, Charleswood-Fort Garry | n/a | 8587 | | 2/2 | Bill Clement |
| 1995 provincial | Fort Garry | Liberal | 4,434 | 35.93 | 2/4 | Rosemary Vodrey, Progressive Conservative |

## Point Douglas: Linda Cantiveros

Cantiveros is a prominent member of the Filipino community in Winnipeg. She has been an international division director of Agrif Global Training, Inc., has worked as editor of the Filipino Journal, and has served on the board of directors for the Philippine-Canadian Centre of Manitoba. She was a founding member of the Filipino-Canadian Business Council, and remains an active member of that organization. Cantiveros received 1,132 votes (23.05%) in 1995, finishing second against New Democratic Party candidate George Hickes.
In 2002, she endorsed Mike Pagtakhan's successful bid to represent Point Douglas on the Winnipeg City Council.

## Portage la Prairie: Bob Turner

A 2003 report from the Manitoba Association of Teachers of English lists Bob Turner as having thirteen years experience as an S2-S4 English teacher, and working at Arthur Meighen High School in Portage la Prairie. It is likely that this is the same person.
Turner received 2,117 votes (27.34%) in the 1995 election, finishing second against Progressive Conservative incumbent Brian Pallister.

## Rupertsland: Harry Wood

Wood emphasized the need to develop a regional economy in Churchill. He received 1,018 votes (23.00%), finishing second against New Democratic Party candidate Eric Robinson.
The Support Working Group of "Diabetes: A Manitoba Strategy" lists a Harry Wood of St. Theresa Point as a contributor. This is likely the same person.

## Sturgeon Creek: Bob Douglas

Douglas finished second against Progressive Conservative incumbent Gerry McAlpine.

## Transcona: Ingrid Pokrant

Pokrant was the leader of Alliance Action, a women's health group. During the 1995 election, she argued against the taxpayer funding of abortions. She refused to use campaign signs, describing them as environmentally wasteful and a visual blight on the neighbourhood. She received 1,216 votes (13.69%), finishing third against New Democratic Party incumbent Daryl Reid.

## Wellington: O.T. Anderson

Osmond Theodore "O.T." Anderson (died December 7, 2002) was a community activist, chemistry teacher and vice-principal in Winnipeg. He moved to Canada from Jamaica in 1959, and received a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Manitoba. Anderson worked in partnership with Les Latinecz to promote multicultural policies in Winnipeg during the 1960s, and became the first chair of the multicultural council on the Winnipeg One School Division in 1977. In 1984, he was appointed by Bill Norrie as chair of the mayor's race relations committee. Anderson was also chair of the Manitoba Multicultural Resources Centre, and a two-time president of the Caribbean Canadian Association.
In 1990, Anderson served on a provincial council that examined the state of race relations in Manitoba. The council's report recommended that judges and politicians be required to attend sensitivity training courses, and called for the Manitoba Human Rights Commission to be given more powers. He later criticized a proposal made by the federal Liberal government of Jean Chrétien in 1994, in which the number of immigrants allowed into Canada would be reduced on an annual basis. Anderson said that the federal party had drifted too far to the right with this plan.
Anderson received 1,996 votes (28.47%) in 1995, finishing second against New Democratic Party incumbent Becky Barrett. He later remarked that no political party in Manitoba had done an adequate job of recruiting candidates from minority communities.

## Footnotes

* ↑ Larry Kusch, "Health-care issue strikes responsive chord in riding", Winnipeg Free Press, 13 September 1993.
* ↑ "In the running", Winnipeg Free Press, 21 August 1993.
* ↑ Gerald Flood, "Sexual assault victim fights", Winnipeg Free Press, 8 April 1994.
* ↑ Treena Khan, "Grit nominee celebrates double win", Winnipeg Free Press, 21 July 1994.
* ↑ "Liberals pick leader ...", Globe and Mail, 5 March 1979, P9.
* ↑ Stephen Bindman, "Judge hits Tories over five Liberals who lost jobs", Globe and Mail, 17 June 1993, A14.
* ↑ Dan Lett, "G-7 summit on Ukraine here", Winnipeg Free Press, 8 September 1994.
* ↑ Paul McKie, "Foundation to foster close ties", Winnipeg Free Press, 27 October 1994.
* ↑ "Martin Nominated for Liberal Leader by Grassroots Party Members", Canada NewsWire, 6 March 2003.
* ↑ "Mba legions suing Wpg, province for 20 years of education taxes", Canadian Press, 8 January 2001, 23:49; Aldo Santin, "Tax suit splits veterans", Winnipeg Free Press, 12 March 2001, A1.
* ↑ Jen Skerritt, "Family returns to Ukraine to observe", Winnipeg Free Press, 19 January 2005, N4; Jen Skerritt, "Manitobans to observe election process in Ukraine", Winnipeg Free Press, 19 March 2006, A3.
* ↑ Murray McNeill, "Local home-sales guide publishers turn bitter feud into full-scale war", Winnipeg Free Press, 30 October 1999, B13.
* ↑ Alice Krueger, "Grit blasted for inappropriate' sexist leaflet", Winnipeg Free Press, 17 June 1994.
* ↑ R. Andrich, "Woodman type of person we need" [letter], Winnipeg Free Press, 24 June 1994.
* ↑ Bruce Owen, "Grit hoping idea computes", Winnipeg Free Press, 6 April 1995.
* ↑ Stevens Wild, "Duguid satisfied with team's efforts", Winnipeg Free Press, 24 October 1995, A3.
* ↑ Kevin Rollason, "Firefighter's struggle for benefits goes on", Winnipeg Free Press, 27 April 2004, B5; Kevin Rollson, "They will live on in memory", Winnipeg Free Press, 31 December 2004, B5; Jon Gerrard, "Firefighters and Muscular Dystrophy" Archived 2008-03-23 at the Wayback Machine [blog entry], 23 October 2005, accessed 18 November 2008.
* ↑ Bruce Owen, "Grits' abortion flip-flop", Winnipeg Free Press, 23 March 1995.
* ↑ "Candidate chooses no-blight campaign", Winnipeg Free Press, 16 April 1995.
* 1 2 Nick Martin, "A race that few can win", Winnipeg Free Press, 19 November 1996, A8.
* ↑ Nick Martin, "Freedom fighter recalls key struggle", Winnipeg Free Press, 25 February 1997, A6.
* ↑ Kevin Rollason, "Ethnic activist a pioneer", Winnipeg Free Press, 10 December 2002, A9.
* ↑ Tom Blackwell, "Racism thrives, report says", Kitchener-Waterloo Record, 10 November 1990, C9.
* ↑ Alice Kreuger, "Edwards attacks immigration plan", Winnipeg Free Press, 4 November 1994.