{{Short description|Canadian politician}} {{Use Canadian English|date=January 2023}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Michael Prue | image = Michael Prue Oct 2009.jpg | image_size = 175px | caption = Michael Prue in 2022 as Mayor of Amherstburg. | office = [[Amherstburg|Mayor of Amherstburg]] | term_start = 2022 | term_end = | predecessor = Aldo DiCarlo | successor = | office1 = [[Member of Provincial Parliament (Ontario)|Ontario MPP]] | term_start1 = 2001 | term_end1 = 2014 | predecessor1 = [[Frances Lankin]] | successor1 = [[Arthur Potts (politician)|Arthur Potts]] | constituency1 = [[Beaches—East York (provincial electoral district)|Beaches—East York]] | office2 = Toronto City Councillor | constituency2 = Ward 32, Beaches—East York | term_start2 = 1998 | term_end2 = 2001 | predecessor2 = ''Ward created'' | successor2 = Michael Tziretas | office3 = 6th [[List of mayors of East York|Mayor of East York]] | term_start3 = 1993 | term_end3 = 1997 | predecessor3 = [[David Johnson (Canadian politician)|David Johnson]] | successor3 = ''Position abolished'' | party = [[Ontario New Democratic Party|New Democrat]] | birth_date = {{birth date and age |1948|07|14}} | birth_place = [[Toronto]], [[Ontario]] | occupation = Civil servant | spouse = Shirley Prue }} '''Michael David Prue''' (born July 14, 1948) is a politician in [[Ontario]], Canada. Prue was mayor of [[East York, Ontario]] to 1997 and subsequently represented the riding of [[Beaches—East York (provincial electoral district)|Beaches—East York]] in the [[Legislative Assembly of Ontario]] from 2001 to 2014 as member of the [[Ontario New Democratic Party|New Democratic Party]] (NDP)'s [[Queen's Park (Toronto)|Queen's Park]] caucus. He was a candidate in the [[2009 Ontario New Democratic Party leadership election|2009 Ontario NDP leadership election]], finishing in fourth place. In 2018, he was elected to the town council of [[Amherstburg, Ontario]],<ref name=town>{{Cite web|url=https://windsorstar.com/news/local-news/dicarlo-re-elected-amherstburg-mayor-calls-it-referendum-on-his-agenda|title = DiCarlo re-elected Amherstburg mayor, calls it referendum on his agenda}}</ref> and in 2022 he was elected its mayor.
==Background== Prue grew up in Toronto's [[Regent Park]] neighbourhood.<ref name="leader">{{cite news |last=Leslie |first=Keith |title=Former East York mayor Michael Prue launches bid to be Ontario NDP leader |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=July 18, 2007 |location=Toronto}}</ref> He has a [[Bachelor of Arts]] degree in [[political science]] and [[anthropology]] from the [[University of Toronto]], and a [[Master of Arts]] degree in [[Canadian Studies]] from [[Carleton University]]. After graduation, he worked as counsel for the Minister of Employment and Immigration.
During his time as a federal government employee, Prue was an activist in the Canada Employment & Immigration Union, a component of the [[Public Service Alliance of Canada]].
==Politics== ===Early political career=== In the [[1980 Canadian federal election|1980 federal election]], Prue ran as a [[New Democratic Party (Canada)|federal NDP]] candidate in [[Scarborough Centre (federal electoral district)|Scarborough Centre]] and received 9237 votes for a third-place finish.<ref name="1980 results">{{cite news |title=Federal general election results listed riding-by-riding |newspaper=The Ottawa Citizen |url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=ha4yAAAAIBAJ&sjid=fe4FAAAAIBAJ&pg=2698%2C1032477 |date=February 19, 1987 |pages=29–30}}</ref> He ran in the same riding in the [[1984 Canadian federal election|1984 election]], again placing third.<ref name="1984 results">{{cite web |title=How Canada voted |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |date=September 5, 1984 |pages=14–15}}</ref>
===Municipal politics and mayoralty=== Prue became a councillor in [[East York]] in 1988. In 1993 he was appointed [[mayor]] of the borough. The previous mayor [[David Johnson (Canadian politician)|David Johnson]] resigned when he won a provincial by-election. Rather than pay for the expense of a mayoral campaign, the East York council decided to choose a candidate from amongst themselves. Prue won the position after five ballots.{{efn|Six of East York's nine councilors were nominated on the mayoral ballot: Prue, [[Case Ootes]], George Vasilopoulos, Bob Dale, Lorna Krawchuk, and Jenner Jean Marie.<ref name="GardenofEden">{{cite book |last=Redway |first=Alan |date=2018 |title=East York: 1924-1997 Toronto's Garden of Eden |url= |location=Toronto |publisher=Friesen Press |page=420 |isbn=978-1-5255-2937-5 |access-date=}}</ref>}}<ref name="TOStar 19930408">{{cite news |last=Duncanson |first=John |title=East York appoints a new mayor |newspaper=The Toronto Star |date=April 8, 1993 |location=Toronto |page=A5}}</ref> The next year, he was elected mayor in the [[1994 Toronto municipal election|1994 municipal election]] and remained in the position until 1997, when East York and the other component municipalities of [[Metropolitan Toronto]] were merged into the single municipality of the city of [[Toronto]]. During his tenure as mayor, Prue brought in five consecutive budgets without a tax increase, while cutting East York's debt by $7.8 million.<ref>{{cite web |title=Michael Prue biography |url=https://www.toronto.ca/ext/digital_comm/inquiry/inquiry_site/gg/bio_pdf/Prue_Michael_bio.pdf |website=City of Toronto website |publisher=City of Toronto |accessdate=October 14, 2020}}</ref> His mayoral tenure also saw the first major restructuring of East York's bureaucracy since 1959.<ref name="GardenofEden2">{{cite book |last=Redway |first=Alan |date=2018 |title=East York: 1924-1997 Toronto's Garden of Eden |url= |location=Toronto |publisher=Friesen Press |page=425 |isbn=978-1-5255-2937-5 |access-date=}}</ref>
Before the 1998 municipal election, Prue successfully lobbied the provincial government to allot a third council seat for East York to improve its representation on [[Toronto City Council]]. Following amalgamation, Prue was elected to represent Ward 32 on [[Toronto City Council]].
===Provincial politics=== On September 20, 2001, Prue won a [[by-election]] to replace retiring NDP MPP [[Frances Lankin]] in the Ontario legislature. There was some controversy during the by-election. [[Ontario Liberal Party|Liberal]] candidate [[Robert Hunter (journalist)|Bob Hunter]] accused the NDP of smearing his reputation. He accused Prue of calling him a pedophile based on a book he wrote in 1988. Pages of the book, which portrayed sexual encounters with young prostitutes, were faxed to journalists during the campaign. Hunter launched a libel lawsuit against Prue and NDP leader [[Howard Hampton]] but dropped the suit after the election.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Boyle |first1=Teresa |first2=Caroline |last2=Mallan |date=September 21, 2001 |title=Prue off to Queen's Park as NDP wins by-election |newspaper=The Toronto Star |pages=F1, F4}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Benzie |first=Robert |date=September 19, 2001 |title=Liberal candidate suing NDP in melee over book: Greenpeace co-founder's 'satire' depicted sex with teenage girls |newspaper=National Post |location=Toronto |page=A15}}</ref> Prue won the by-election with 50% of the vote while Hunter received 36%.
He was re-elected in [[2003 Ontario general election|2003]],<ref name="2003 results">{{cite web |url=http://results.elections.on.ca/results/2003_results/valid_votes.jsp?e_code=38&rec=0&district=beaches-east+york&flag=E&layout=G |archive-url=https://archive.today/20140803112408/http://results.elections.on.ca/results/2003_results/valid_votes.jsp?e_code=38&rec=0&district=beaches-east+york&flag=E&layout=G |url-status=dead |archive-date=August 3, 2014 |title=Summary of Valid Ballots by Candidate |publisher=Elections Ontario |date=October 2, 2003 |accessdate=2014-03-02 }}</ref> [[2007 Ontario general election|2007]],<ref name="2007 results">{{cite web|url=http://elections.on.ca/NR/rdonlyres/AB409CCD-84F3-46FA-B3BD-39AB659EFC2D/0/SummaryofValidBallotsCastforEachCandidate.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091007160233/http://www.elections.on.ca/NR/rdonlyres/AB409CCD-84F3-46FA-B3BD-39AB659EFC2D/0/SummaryofValidBallotsCastforEachCandidate.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=October 7, 2009 |title=Summary of Valid Ballots Cast for Each Candidate |publisher=Elections Ontario |date=October 10, 2007 |accessdate=2014-03-02 |page=1 (x) }}</ref> and [[2011 Ontario general election|2011]],<ref name="2011 results">{{cite web|url=http://elections.on.ca/NR/rdonlyres/7849B894-4C4F-490E-9E8C-271BCF0C0D4D/5712/SummaryofvalidvotescastforeacndGE2011.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130330163815/http://elections.on.ca/NR/rdonlyres/7849B894-4C4F-490E-9E8C-271BCF0C0D4D/5712/SummaryofvalidvotescastforeacndGE2011.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-date=March 30, 2013 |title=Summary of Valid Ballots Cast for Each Candidate |publisher=Elections Ontario |date=October 6, 2011 |accessdate=2014-03-02 |page=1 }}</ref> with large pluralities.
In 2002 Prue undertook a week-long "welfare diet", trying to live on $12.05 for an entire week to draw attention to the condition of Ontario's poorest residents under the [[Mike Harris]] government.<ref>{{cite news |last=Benzie |first=Robert |date=September 24, 2002 |title=New Democrats mock Eves's 'Gucci shoes': NDP MPP Prue boasts of his week on welfare diet |newspaper=The Toronto Star |page=A8}}</ref> In 2004 during a debate over expenses charged by school trustees, Prue said that city councillors could do much of the work of trustees. He appeared to support combining the two roles.<ref>{{cite news |last=Boyle |first=Theresa |date=November 19, 2004 |title=Toronto trustees roll back expenses |newspaper=The Toronto Star |page=A12}}</ref> In 2007 he supported a push for more accountability for executive compensation packages. In May, 2007, he tabled a private member's bill called the ''Conrad Black Executive Compensation Abuse Act'' which sought to have pay packages put to binding shareholder votes.<ref>{{cite news |last=McFarland |first=Janet |date=June 11, 2007 |title='Say on pay' fight heads north |newspaper=The Globe and Mail |page=B3}}</ref>
He has also championed affordable housing in Toronto.<ref>{{cite news |last=Prue |first=Michael |date=August 2, 2002 |title=NDP supported non-profit housing (Letter to the Editor) |newspaper=The Toronto Star |page=A23}}</ref>
===2009 leadership convention=== On July 18, 2008, Prue announced his intention to seek the leadership of the Ontario NDP at its 2009 leadership convention.<ref name=leader/> At a press conference to announce his bid to replace [[Howard Hampton]] as leader of the Ontario NDP party, Prue made remarks on public funding for [[Separate school|Catholic schools]] in Ontario. "The NDP policy is there, it says that we support the dual system," he said. "It is time though, I think, that we take a look at that, but we need to leave that to [the] convention. It cannot be my position or an individual's position... rather it must be a party position and we must have an open and frank debate to get to that point." He insisted he wasn't trying to reopen the debate about religion and schools.<ref name="CBC 20080718">{{cite news|title=Prue opens NDP leadership bid with school funding controversy |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/prue-opens-ndp-leadership-bid-with-school-funding-controversy-1.702611 |accessdate=2012-01-13 |newspaper=CBC News |date=July 8, 2008 |author=The Canadian Press |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20121113113741/http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/story/2008/07/18/prue-ndp.html |archivedate=November 13, 2012 |location=Toronto |url-status=dead }}</ref>
Prue received 11.5% of the votes (weighted) on the first ballot, finishing in fourth place. According to the rules of the contest, as the last place finisher he was dropped off the next ballot. Prue gave his personal endorsement to [[Gilles Bisson]] who finished in third place on the first ballot with 23.7% of the weighted vote. After Bisson was eliminated on the next ballot, Prue endorsed [[Andrea Horwath]], who won the leadership on the third ballot with 60.4% over rival [[Peter Tabuns]].
Prue reported raising $79,411.74 for his leadership bid, the lowest of the four contestants. His expenses were the second highest at $222,320.94. His reported deficit was $142,909.20, the highest of the four contestants.<ref name="Elections Ontario 2009 NDP Leaders">{{cite web|title=2009 Leadership Contestant Contest Period Financial Statement CR-5: Michael Prue |url=http://www2.elections.on.ca/stats/09files/leadership/ndp/09ndppruecr5-1.htm |work=Elections Ontario |publisher=Queen's Printer for Ontario |accessdate=2012-01-13 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20110827171153/http://www2.elections.on.ca/stats/09files/leadership/ndp/09ndppruecr5-1.htm |archivedate=2011-08-27 |location=Toronto |date=2010-10-05 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
===Subsequent career===
Prue was narrowly defeated by [[Ontario Liberal Party|Liberal]] candidate [[Arthur Potts (politician)|Arthur Potts]] in the [[2014 Ontario general election|2014 provincial election]]. He lost by 431 votes.<ref>{{cite news |last=Simmie |first=Scott |title=Liberal Arthur Potts ousts NDP Michael Prue in tight race in Beaches-East York riding |url=https://www.thestar.com/news/ontario_election/riding_profiles/2014/06/12/tight_liberalndp_race_could_head_to_recount_in_beacheast_york_in_ontario_election.html |accessdate=June 13, 2014 |newspaper=CBC News |date=June 13, 2014}}</ref><ref name="2014 results">{{cite web |title=General Election by District: Beaches-East York |publisher=Elections Ontario |date=June 12, 2014 |url=http://wemakevotingeasy.ca/en/general-election-district-results.aspx?d=005 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20140614000715/http://wemakevotingeasy.ca/en/general-election-district-results.aspx?d=005 |archivedate=June 14, 2014 }}</ref>
==After Queen's Park== Following his defeat in 2014, Prue and his wife decided to sell their house in Toronto in order to fund their retirement in a smaller town, moving to [[Amherstburg]], outside of [[Windsor, Ontario|Windsor]], Ontario.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://windsorstar.com/opinion/columnists/henderson-essex-county-is-ontarios-best-kept-secret|title = Henderson: Essex County is Ontario's best-kept secret}}</ref> After sitting on the town's [[committee of adjustment]], Prue was elected to town council in 2018.<ref name=town/> He was elected as mayor of Amherstburg in the [[2022 Essex County municipal elections#Amherstburg|2022 municipal election]].
==Notes== {{notelist}}
==References== {{Reflist|2}}
==External links== {{Archival records|title=Michael Prue fonds|location=|inventory_number=Fonds 285|description_URL=http://gencat.eloquent-systems.com/torontodetail.html?key=275924|dates=|access_conditions=}} *{{Ontario MPP biography|id=michael-prue}}
{{EastYorkMayors}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Prue, Michael}} [[Category:1948 births]] [[Category:20th-century mayors of places in Ontario]] [[Category:Carleton University alumni]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Mayors of East York, Ontario]] [[Category:Metropolitan Toronto councillors]] [[Category:Ontario New Democratic Party MPPs]] [[Category:People from East York, Toronto]] [[Category:Toronto city councillors]] [[Category:University of Toronto alumni]] [[Category:People from Amherstburg, Ontario]] [[Category:21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario]] [[Category:Candidates in the 1980 Canadian federal election]] [[Category:Candidates in the 1984 Canadian federal election]] [[Category:Toronto candidates for Member of Parliament]] [[Category:New Democratic Party candidates for the Canadian House of Commons]]