Stanfield, Robert Lorne

▪ 2004

      Canadian politician (b. April 11, 1914, Truro, N.S.—d. Dec. 16, 2003, Ottawa, Ont.), was often referred to as “the best prime minister Canada never had.” As leader of the Progressive Conservative Party (PCP), Stanfield presented a dry, unassuming manner that contrasted dramatically with the charismatic Pierre Trudeau, who served as his arch political rival throughout Stanfield's 10-year career in federal politics. Stanfield, the grandson of a wealthy textile magnate, was later pegged with the unfortunate nickname “Underwear Man,” a reference to the trademark long johns produced by the family business. He studied at Dalhousie University, Halifax, N.S., and graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School in 1939. He then worked for the Wartime Prices and Trade Board and established his own law practice. In 1946 Stanfield started moving in Conservative political circles. Within two years he was the leader of the provincial party. At the time, the PCP did not hold a single seat in the legislature. By 1956, however, Stanfield's Conservatives had won enough seats to secure the majority and start his 11-year tenure as premier of Nova Scotia. He was elected to lead the national PCP in 1967, and his first House of Commons address was a no-confidence motion against Liberal Party Prime Minister Lester Pearson. It was Pearson's successor, Trudeau, who would prove to be Stanfield's chief adversary. The 1972 federal election brought the Conservatives within two seats of a majority—the closest Stanfield would come to inhabiting the prime minister's office. He resigned as party leader in 1976 and left Parliament in 1979. For his political achievements on the provincial and federal levels, Stanfield was granted the title of Right Honourable in 1992.

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