Michael A. Brown
| Mike Brown | |
|---|---|
| Ontario MPP | |
|
In office 1987–2011 |
|
| Preceded by | John Gordon Lane |
| Succeeded by | Michael Mantha |
| Constituency | Algoma—Manitoulin |
| Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario | |
|
In office 2005–2007 |
|
| Preceded by | Alvin Curling |
| Succeeded by | Steve Peters |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
April 18, 1950 Sarnia, Ontario |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Residence | Kagawong, Ontario |
| Occupation | Funeral director |
Michael A. "Mike" Brown (born April 18, 1950) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada and was the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from October 2005 until October 2007. He sat in the Ontario legislature representing the northern riding of Algoma—Manitoulin for the Ontario Liberal Party from 1987 to 2011.
Brown was educated at the University of Western Ontario and Humber College, and worked as a funeral director before entering public life. He is a former member of the Manitoulin Planning Board, and is a past president of the Manitoulin Island Country Club.
Brown was elected to the Ontario legislature in the provincial election of 1987, defeating New Democrat Ron Boucher and Progressive Conservative Ben Wilson. The Algoma—Manitoulin riding had been held by the Progressive Conservatives for several years, and Brown's victory was part of a larger trend towards the Liberal Party in northern Ontario.
The Liberals were defeated by the NDP in the provincial election of 1990. Most ridings in northern Ontario were won by the NDP, and Brown was only able to defeat NDP candidate Lois Miller by 207 votes. He was re-elected by a larger margin in the provincial election of 1995, which was won by the Progressive Conservatives. In 1996, he endorsed Dwight Duncan's bid to lead the Ontario Liberal Party.
In 1996, the Tory government of Mike Harris introduced a measure to reduce the number of ridings in the province from 130 to 103. Brown's constituency of Algoma—Manitoulin was joined with the neighbouring constituency of Algoma to create a much larger riding bearing the Algoma—Manitoulin name. He faced New Democrat Lynn Watson and Progressive Conservative Keith Currie in the election of 1999. Although Currie actually received a plurality of votes in the old Algoma riding, Brown's dominance over the eastern corner of the constituency was such that he was able to win re-election without difficulty. The Tories again won the election; Brown served as Deputy Speaker from 2000 to 2001.
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