Ken James (politician)

Kenneth Albert James (5 August 1934 – 24 September 2014) was a Progressive Conservative member of the House of Commons of Canada. Born in Sarnia, Ontario, he was a businessman, farmer, marketing and sales manager by career. He attended Michigan State University where he graduated with a Bachelor of Arts in economics.^[1]

Ken James
Member of Parliament for Sarnia—Lambton
In office 1984–1993
Preceded by	Bud Cullen
Succeeded by	Roger Gallaway
Personal details
Born	(1934-08-05)5 August 1934 Sarnia, Ontario
Died	24 September 2014(2014-09-24) (aged 80) Sarnia, Ontario
Nationality	Canadian
Political party	Progressive Conservative
Spouse	Mary Ellen James
Profession	Entrepreneur, Farmer

James served as reeve and councillor for the Township of Sarnia for a decade.^[1]

In federal politics, he represented the Ontario riding of Sarnia—Lambton where he was first elected in the 1984 federal election and re-elected in 1988, therefore becoming a member in the 33rd and 34th Canadian Parliaments.

James left federal politics after his defeat in the 1993 federal election to Roger Gallaway of the Liberal Party. He served as chair of the Blue Water Bridge Authority from 2007 until 2012.^[1][2] He died on 24 September 2014 at the age of 80.^[3]

James' son, Brad James, was an Ontario New Democratic Party candidate in the 2007 Ontario provincial election.^[4]

Electoral record

Sarnia—Lambton

1993 Canadian federal election
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Roger Gallaway	20,331	47.5%	+15.7%
	Progressive Conservative	Ken James	9,706	22.7%	-22.4%
	Reform	Bruce Brogden	9,061	21.2%
	New Democratic	Julie Foley	2,634	6.2%	-16.1%
	Christian Heritage	Louis Duke	610	1.4%
	Independent	John Kenneth Elliot	192	0.4%	-0.5%
	Natural Law	Shannon M. Bourke	178	0.4%
	Independent	O'Doug Dell	68	0.2%
Total valid votes			42,780	100.0%

Source: Elections Canada

1988 Canadian federal election
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Progressive Conservative	Ken James	19,304	45.0%	-9.6%
	Liberal	Joe Foreman	13,624	31.8%	+6.1%
	New Democratic	Julie Foley	9,525	22.2%	+2.8%
	Rhinoceros	John Elliott	408	1.0%
Total valid votes			42,861	100.0%

Source: Elections Canada

1984 Canadian federal election
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Progressive Conservative	Ken James	24,066	54.6%	+19.8%
	Liberal	Michael Bradley	11,313	25.7%	-14.9%
	New Democratic	Julie Foley	8,538	19.4%	-5.1%
	Independent	Douglas O'Dell	90	0.2%
	Independent	Fred Kahanek	51	0.1%
Total valid votes			44,058	100.0%

Source: Elections Canada