Jim Hillyer (politician)

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Jim Hillyer
MP
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner
Assumed office
October 19, 2015
Preceded by LaVar Payne
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Lethbridge
In office
May 2, 2011 – October 19, 2015
Preceded by Rick Casson
Succeeded by Rachael Harder
Personal details
Born (1974-07-08) 8 July 1974 (age 41)
Lethbridge, Alberta
Political party Conservative
Spouse(s) Livi Hillyer
Children 4
Residence Raymond, Alberta
Religion The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints

Jim Hillyer (born 8 July 1974) is a Canadian politician. He was elected to the House of Commons of Canada for the federal Conservative Party of Canada in the 2011 election, representing the electoral district of Lethbridge.

Education[edit]

Hillyer earned a master's degree in political economy from George Wythe University (a non-accredited university) in Cedar City, Utah, and took PhD courses in constitutional law.[1]

Personal life[edit]

Hillyer was born on 8 July 1974 in Lethbridge, Alberta,[2] and is a native of nearby Stirling.[3] Hillyer and his wife Livi have four children and reside in Raymond, Alberta.[3] Prior to his marriage, Hillyer was a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Quebec.[4]

Political career[edit]

Hillyer won a nomination to run in a Saskatchewan provincial election under the Saskatchewan Party banner in a Regina riding. He decided to drop out after he was diagnosed with leukemia.[1]

He made a political comeback running for a seat to the House of Commons of Canada in the 2011 Canadian federal election. He contested the electoral district of Lethbridge as a Conservative candidate and held for his party with a large majority.[5]

His decision to not attend any candidate forums after his first was a controversial topic in the riding.[5] Hillyer's absence prompted a local Lethbridge newspaper to dub Hillyer "The Man Who Wasn't There".[6][7] He was also accused of inflating his credentials in campaign literature by emphasizing his graduate education but not mentioning the institution where he studied—George Wythe University—is a non-accredited institution.[1]

Controversy[edit]

In December 2011, Hillyer stated in the House of Commons that he intended no offence when he made gunshot gestures with his hands as he voted to scrap the Canadian Firearms Registry.[8][9] In promising not to make hand gestures in the Commons in the future, Hillyer suggested that "if people were offended they should blame whoever posted the six-week-old video [on YouTube] on the anniversary" of the École Polytechnique massacre.[8]

In March 2012, Hillyer was caught on camera "rolling his eyes dramatically" in the House of Commons during a speech by NDP MP Pat Martin.[10]

2015 election[edit]

Between the 2011 and 2015 federal elections, the electoral boundaries in southern Alberta were changed. Raymond, where Hillyer lives, will be moved from the Lethbridge riding to the Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner for the 2015 election. In 2014, upon learning that Medicine Hat MP LaVar Payne would not be running for reelection, Hillyer decided to seek the Conservative nomination for Medicine Hat rather than seek re-nomination for Lethbridge.[11]

In July 2014, Payne announced that he would not be endorsing Hillyer for the 2015 federal election, citing Hillyer's poor service of his constituents: "I have no problem saying that I won’t be endorsing Jim [Hillyer] just because of the fact that I know he hasn't served his own riding, and I don’t want that to happen here .... I know that he has not serviced his riding very well. I've had people from Lethbridge, Cardston area and Warner area talk to me about the whole thing, so I certainly won’t be endorsing Jim."[12]

Electoral record[edit]

Canadian federal election, 2015: Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner
Party Candidate Votes % ∆% Expenditures
Conservative Jim Hillyer 34,849 68.8 +0.10 –
Liberal Glen Allan 9,085 17.9 +6.75 –
New Democratic Erin Weir 4,897 9.7 -5.24 –
Green Brent Smith 1,319 2.6 -1.84 –
Independent John Clayton Turner 500 1.0 +0.23 –
Total valid votes/Expense limit 50,650 100.0     $236,204.82
Total rejected ballots 118 – –
Turnout 50,768 66.11 –
Eligible voters 76,789
Conservative hold Swing +2.67
Source: Elections Canada[13][14]
Canadian federal election, 2011: Lethbridge
Party Candidate Votes % ∆% Expenditures
Conservative Jim Hillyer 27,173 56.51 -10.45 $72,625
New Democratic Mark Sandilands 13,097 27.24 +13.02 $36,703
Liberal Michael Cormican 4,030 8.38 -0.92 $23,067
Green Cailin Bartlett 2,095 4.36 -2.86 $0
Christian Heritage Geoffrey Capp 1,716 3.57 +1.26 $14,727
Total valid votes/Expense limit 48,086 100.00
Total rejected ballots 307 0.63 +0.34
Turnout 48,393 54.20 +1
Eligible voters 89,280 – –

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c Hall, Vicki (3 May 2011). "Lethbridge: Victorious Hillyer says vote 'turned out for the best'". Calgary Herald. Retrieved 5 May 2011. 
  2. ^ [1]
  3. ^ a b "Meet Jim Hillyer, M.P.", jimhillyer.com.
  4. ^ "'Man Who Wasn't There' surfaces on Hill as new MP". 
  5. ^ a b Modney, Dori (20 April 2011). "Conservative Candidate Jim Hillyer Deletes Forums From His Campaigning". Country 95 News. Retrieved 5 May 2011. 
  6. ^ Canadian Press (19 May 2011). "'Man Who Wasn't There' surfaces on Hill as new MP". CTV News. Retrieved 17 September 2015. 
  7. ^ Josh Wingrove, "Lethbridge's 'Man Who Wasn't There' heads to Ottawa as Tory MP", Globe and Mail, 2011-05-05.
  8. ^ a b Canadian Press, "MP Hillyer shot down over gun vote antics", CBC News, 2011-12-08.
  9. ^ Mia Rabson, "Hillyer sticks to his 'guns'", Winnipeg Free Press, 2011-12-07.
  10. ^ Michael Bolen, "Jim Hillyer: Pat Martin's Speech On Robocalls And Second World War Veteran Elicits Eye Roll From Tory MP", Huffington Post Canada, 2012-03-02.
  11. ^ Stan Ashbee, "Lethbridge MP Hillyer to seek re-election but in Medicine Hat", Sunny South News, 2014-07-14.
  12. ^ "Jim Hillyer Won't get Payne's Endorsement for Conservative Nomination", "CHAT-TV", 2014-07-22.
  13. ^ "October 19, 2015 Election Results — Medicine Hat—Cardston—Warner (Validated results)". Elections Canada. 22 October 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015. 
  14. ^ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates

External links[edit]

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