{{short description|Canadian politician}} {{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}} {{Infobox officeholder | image = Premier Joe Handley of NWT.jpg | caption = Hon. Joseph Handley | order = 10th Premier of the Northwest Territories | term_start = December 10, 2003 | term_end = October 16, 2007 | 1blankname = Commissioner | 1namedata = Glenna Hansen<br />Tony Whitford | predecessor = Stephen Kakfwi | successor = Floyd Roland | office1 = MLA for Weledeh | term_start1 = December 6, 1999 | term_end1 = October 1, 2007 | predecessor1 = first member | successor1 = Bob Bromley | birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1943|8|9}} | birth_place = Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan | death_date = | death_place = | party = Independent | spouse = Theresa Handley }}
'''Joseph "Joe" L. Handley''', MLA (born August 9, 1943), is a former teacher, politician and civil servant and was the tenth premier of the Northwest Territories.
==Early life== Handley was born in Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan in 1943.<ref name="birthday">[https://books.google.com/books?id=aYlWAAAAMAAJ&q=%22August+9%2C+1943%22 CIM Bulletin, Volume 94]</ref> Prior to moving to the Northwest Territories in 1985, he worked as an educator.
Handley joined the Northwest Territories government and served as Deputy Minister in a wide number of portfolios including Deputy Minister of Education, Deputy Minister for the Departments of Renewable Resources, the NWT Housing Corporation, Transportation and Resources, Wildlife, and Economic Development. He left his career as a Deputy Minister to run for election in 1999.
==Electoral career== Handley ran for election to the Northwest Territories Legislature in the electoral district of Weledeh in the 1999 Northwest Territories general election. He easily defeated incumbent MLA Roy Erasmus. In his first term in office he became Minister of Finance, Chairman of the Financial Management Board, Minister Responsible for the Workers Compensation Board, Minister of Transportation, and Minister Responsible for the Northwest Territories Power Corporation.
Handley was returned to his seat by acclamation, running unopposed in the 2003 territorial election. After the assembly convened to pick a new Premier following the retirement of Stephen Kakfwi, Handley ran unopposed for premier. His colleagues in the Legislature, acclaimed him to that position on December 10, 2003.<ref name="CBC"/>
Handley served one term as premier and did not run in the election held on October 1, 2007.<ref name="CBC">{{cite news|url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/election-race-underway-in-northwest-territories-1.661891 |title= Election race underway in Northwest Territories|publisher=CBC News|date=September 3, 2007 | accessdate=2015-08-04}}</ref>
In March 2009, Handley expressed an interest in running for the Liberals under Michael Ignatieff in the 2011 federal election in the Western Arctic riding.<ref>{{cite web |author=Northern News Services |url=http://www.nnsl.com/frames/newspapers/2009-03/mar11_09joe.html |title=Handley eyes Liberal nomination |publisher=Nnsl.com |date=2009-03-11 |accessdate=2015-08-04 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161011055135/http://www.nnsl.com/frames/newspapers/2009-03/mar11_09joe.html |archive-date=2016-10-11 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Handley ran for the Liberals and placed third, receiving 2,872 votes.
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * [https://web.archive.org/web/20031207093612/http://www.assembly.gov.nt.ca/Members/JoeHandley.html Joe Handley biography (Government of NWT)]
{{s-start}} {{s-par|ca-nt}} {{succession box| before=New District| title=MLA Weledeh| years=1999–2007| after=Bob Bromley| }} {{succession box| before=Stephen Kakfwi| title=Premier of Northwest Territories| after=Floyd Roland| years=2003–2007| }} {{s-end}}
{{NWTPremiers}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Handley, Joe}} Category:1943 births Category:Living people Category:People from Meadow Lake, Saskatchewan Category:Politicians from Yellowknife Category:Premiers of the Northwest Territories Category:Liberal Party of Canada candidates in the 2011 Canadian federal election Category:Members of the Executive Council of the Northwest Territories Category:Indspire Awards Category:20th-century members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories Category:21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories