Blair Longley

Blair Longley
Leader of the Marijuana Party
Incumbent
Assumed office
2004
Preceded byMarc-Boris St-Maurice
Chief Officer of the Marijuana Party
Incumbent
Assumed office
2019
Chief Agent of the Rhinoceros Party of Canada
In office
1985–1987
Personal details
Born
Blair Timmothy Longley

(1950-09-25) September 25, 1950 (age 74)
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Political partyMarijuana (2004–present)
Other political
affiliations

Blair Timmothy Longley (born September 25, 1950) is a Canadian politician and activist who has served as the leader of the Marijuana Party since 2004.

Early life

Blair Longley was born on September 25, 1950, in Vancouver, British Columbia, and grew up in North Vancouver.[1][2]

Career

Longley attended the founding meeting of the Green Party of Canada at Carleton University in November 1983. He went on to be an active member of the Rhinoceros Party of which he was an official agent from 1985 to 1987.

He joined the Marijuana Party shortly after its foundation and became the party's leader in 2004, following the resignation of Marc-Boris St-Maurice.[3]

He has been a candidate for the House of Commons of Canada on four occasions, for three different parties. He ran for the Green Party in the 1984 election in the riding of Burnaby placing a distant fourth of four candidates with 364 of 58,991 votes.[citation needed] In 1988, he ran against opposition leader John Turner, with no party affiliation, and placed ninth of twelve candidates with 52 of 54,654 votes.[citation needed]

Longley ran for the Bloc Pot in the 2003 Quebec provincial election.[citation needed] He later ran for the Marijuana Party in the riding of North Okanagan—Shuswap in 2004 and placed fifth of eight candidates with 492 of 51,765 votes,[citation needed] then in 2008 in the riding of Hochelaga, Quebec, placing eighth of nine with 183 of 45,683 votes.[citation needed]

Following the legalization of cannabis in Canada, Longley said it was "going to be harder than ever now for the Marijuana Party to exist".[4] Only four candidates ran for the Marijuana Party in the 2019 federal election.[5] As of 2018 Longley was the Marijuana Party's chief agent and leader, and so was ineligible to run in federal elections. Since legalization, Longley shifted the Marijuana Party's message towards scrutinizing the "rapid capitalization" of the drug.[6]

Electoral record

2008 Canadian federal election: Hochelaga
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
Bloc Québécois Réal Ménard 22,720 49.73 −5.85 $28,893
Liberal Diane Dicaire 9,442 20.67 +3.43 not listed
New Democratic Jean-Claude Rocheleau 6,600 14.45 +5.54 $21,479
Conservative Luc Labbé 4,201 9.20 −3.01 $8,586
Green Philippe Larochelle 1,946 4.26 −0.60 not listed
neorhino.ca Simon Landry 230 0.50 – not listed
Communist Marianne Breton Fontaine 184 0.40 $898
Marijuana Blair T. Longley 183 0.40 −0.32 not listed
Marxist–Leninist Christine Dandenault 177 0.39 −0.09 not listed
Total valid votes 45,683 100.00
Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots 644
Turnout 46,327 58.24 −0.07
Eligible voters 79,542
Sources: Official Results, Elections Canada and Financial Returns, Elections Canada.
2004 Canadian federal election: North Okanagan—Shuswap
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
Conservative Darrel Stinson 24,014 46.39% – $73,168
New Democratic Alice Brown 12,528 24.20% – $36,696
Liberal Will Hansma 11,636 22.47% – $51,772
Green Erin Nelson 2,333 4.50% – $960
Marijuana Blair Longley 492 0.95% – $400
Independent Gordon Campbell 401 0.77% –
Canadian Action Claire Foss 257 0.49% – $1,558
Independent K. No. Daniels 104 0.20% –
Total valid votes 51,765 100.00%
Total rejected ballots 174 0.34%
Turnout 51,939
Quebec provincial by-election, September 20, 2004: Nelligan
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Yolande James 7,812 52.58
Independent Michel Gibson 4,038 27.18
Parti Québécois Sahar Hawili 1,538 10.35
Action démocratique Tom Pentefountas 1,039 6.99
Green Ryan Young 251 1.69 –
UFP Josée Larouche 120 0.81 –
Bloc Pot Blair Longley 58 0.39
Total valid votes 14,856 100.00
Rejected and declined votes 62
Turnout 14,918 28.60
Electors on the lists 52,163
Sources: Official Results, Government of Quebec
2003 Quebec general election: D'Arcy-McGee
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Lawrence Bergman 23,968 91.29 +0.68
Parti Québécois Mathieu Breault 1,087 4.14 +1.02
Action démocratique Sylvain James Bowes 520 1.98 +0.73
Equality William F. Shaw 406 1.55 -2.81
Bloc Pot Blair T. Longley 274 1.04 –
1988 Canadian federal election: Vancouver Quadra
Party Candidate Votes
Liberal John Turner 24,021
Progressive Conservative Bill Clarke 16,664
New Democratic Gerry Scott 11,687
Reform J.R. Jack Ford 1,112
Rhinoceros John Turner (no relation) 760
Libertarian Walter Boytinck 129
Communist Bert Ogden 75
Independent Albert A. Ritchie 74
Independent Blair T. Longley 52
Confederation of Regions Nora Galenzoski 35
Commonwealth of Canada G.J. Joseph Jackman 23
Independent Allen Soroka 22
1984 Canadian federal election
Party Candidate Votes
New Democratic Svend Robinson 28,318
Progressive Conservative Bill Langas 20,697
Liberal Mike Hillman 9,612
Green Blair T. Longley 364

See also

References

  1. ^ "Leaders and Parties -Blair Longley Marijuana Party". CBC.ca. Archived from the original on March 30, 2016. Retrieved August 29, 2010.
  2. ^ Bio from the Marijuana Party website
  3. ^ Kassam, Ashifa (June 7, 2018). "One party is dreading marijuana legalization: the Marijuana party". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  4. ^ Harris, Kathleen (October 22, 2018). "Party's over? Legalization could spell the end of the Marijuana Party". CBC News. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  5. ^ McKenzie-Sutter, Holly (October 4, 2019). "N.L. Marijuana Party hopeful misses nomination deadline over paperwork confusion". CTV News Atlantic. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
  6. ^ Lum, Zi-Ann (October 27, 2018). "Canada's Marijuana Party Leader Is Pissed About Pot Legalization". HuffPost Canada. Retrieved June 12, 2020.
Preceded by Marijuana Party of Canada leaders
2004-present 		Succeeded by
incumbent