The Honourable David Peterson PC OOnt LLB BA |
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The Hon. David Peterson
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20th Premier of Ontario | |
In office June 26, 1985 – October 1, 1990 |
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Monarch | Elizabeth II |
Lieutenant Governor |
John Black Aird Lincoln Alexander |
Preceded by | Frank Miller |
Succeeded by | Bob Rae |
Member of Provincial Parliament | |
In office September 18, 1975 – September 6, 1990 |
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Preceded by | New riding |
Succeeded by | Marion Boyd |
Constituency | London Centre |
25th Ontario Liberal Party Leader | |
In office February 21, 1982 – September 6, 1990 |
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Preceded by | Stuart Smith |
Succeeded by | Robert Nixon |
23rd Leader of the Opposition in the Ontario Legislature | |
In office February 21, 1982 – June 26, 1985 |
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Preceded by | Robert Nixon |
Succeeded by | Frank Miller |
Chancellor of the University of Toronto | |
In office July 1, 2006 – June 30, 2012 |
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Preceded by | Vivienne Poy |
Succeeded by | Michael Wilson |
Personal details | |
Born |
David Robert Peterson December 28, 1943 Toronto, Ontario |
Political party | Liberal |
Spouse(s) | Shelley Peterson |
Children | 3 |
Residence | London, Ontario |
Alma mater |
University of Western Ontario University of Toronto Faculty of Law |
David Robert Peterson, PC OOnt (born December 28, 1943) was the 20th Premier of the Province of Ontario, Canada, from June 26, 1985 to October 1, 1990. He was the first Liberal premier of Ontario in 42 years.
Peterson was born to Clarence Marwin Peterson (1913–2009) and Laura Marie Scott, and has two siblings, former MPP Tim Peterson and former MP Jim Peterson. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Western Ontario in political science and philosophy and his law degree from the University of Toronto. He was called to the bar in 1969.
At the age of twenty-six, he became president of C.M. Peterson Company Limited, a wholesale electronics firm founded by his father. He holds four Honorary degrees including a doctor of laws from the University of Western Ontario and is a knight of the Order of the Legion of Honour of France and a member of the Order of La Pléiade. In 2009, he became a member of the Order of Ontario.
Peterson married actress Shelley Matthews in 1974 and they have since raised three children. He is the younger brother of Jim Peterson, formerly a federal Liberal MP and cabinet minister. Both his sister-in-law Deb Matthews and Tim Peterson, a third brother, were elected to the Ontario legislature in the 2003 provincial election while Deb Matthews was re-elected in 2007 and 2011.