Barry Devolin

Barry Devolin
Member of Parliament for Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock
In office 2004 – August 4, 2015
Preceded by	John O'Reilly
Succeeded by	Jamie Schmale
Chair of the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs
In office 13 November 2007 – 2 February 2009
Minister	Chuck Strahl
Preceded by	Colin Mayes
Succeeded by	Bruce Stanton
Personal details
Born	(1963-03-10) March 10, 1963 Peterborough, Ontario
Political party	Conservative (2003–present)
Other political affiliations	Reform Party (1987–1997)
Residence	Haliburton, Ontario

Barry Devolin, (born March 10, 1963) is a former Member of Parliament in the House of Commons of Canada and an academic.

Early life and education

Devolin was born in Peterborough and grew up in Haliburton. Devolin studied political science at Carleton University, where he graduated with a bachelor's degree in 1985. Two years later he received a master's degree in political science from the Stony Brook University on Long Island, New York.

In 1993, Devolin married Ursula Beachli. They have 2 children, George (2002) and Molly (2004). The Devolins live in Haliburton, Ontario.

Academic career

In February 2017, Devolin was named chair of the Asian Studies Graduate Program at Sejong University. His research focuses on the socialization challenges facing North Korean defectors, and the ongoing Korean conflict.

Devolin began his teaching career in 1986 while a graduate student at Stony Brook University. He was awarded the 2014 Distinguished Alumni Award by Stony Brook University's Political Science department.

Political career

In 2013, Barry Devolin announced he would not seek re-election in the 2015 federal election. His former executive assistant, Jamie Schmale, became the Conservative candidate for Haliburton-Kawartha Lakes-Brock, and was subsequently elected as a Member of Parliament in October 2015. Thus ended Devolin's 11-year career in the House of Commons, which included his service as Assistant Deputy Speaker, his last 7 years.

Prior to 2008, Devolin served on several Parliamentary Standing Committees, including as chair of the Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development (2006–08). Devolin was also active in various parliamentary associations, and chaired Canada-Korea, Canada-Azerbaijan and Canada-Belgium. In 2013, South Korean President Lee Myung-buk awarded the prestigious Order of Diplomatic Service Medal (Heung-in) to Devolin, the only Canadian to ever receive it.

In 2004 Devolin was nominated as the candidate for the new Conservative Party of Canada, and was elected in the 2004 election to represent the newly redistributed riding of Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock. He received 44% of the popular vote, defeating O'Reilly. In the 2006 election Devolin was re-elected with 49% of the vote. He was subsequently reelected in 2008 with 56% of the vote, and in 2011 with 60% of the vote.

Many years earlier, Devolin ran in the 1993 federal election as a member of the Reform Party in the riding of Victoria—Haliburton. Devolin placed second in the election, losing to John O'Reilly of the Liberals. Following the 1993 election, Devolin served as the director of research for the parliamentary caucus of the Reform Party. He spent time working in British Columbia and Korea, and in 1994 returned to Canada to assist Chris Hodgson to seek election to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario for Haliburton—Victoria—Brock. After this, he served as Hodgson's chief of staff. Devolin did not seek the nomination in Haliburton—Victoria—Brock in the 1997 and 2000 federal elections.

Over the years, Devolin held several senior political staff positions in the Canadian and Ontario governments, including chief of staff to Ontario Ministers Tim Hudak (1999–2000) and Chris Hodgson (1995–96), special assistant for education to Ontario Premier Mike Harris (1998–99), and director of research and question period strategist for the Reform Party of Canada under Preston Manning (1993–94). From 2000 to 2004, Devolin ran Shuter Street Associates, a strategic communications and planning consulting firm in Toronto.

Devolin served twice as campaign manager for Ontario Progressive Conservative candidates: in 1999 for former cabinet minister Brenda Elliott in the riding of Gueph-Wellington; and, In 1987 for Arthur Ward in the riding of Victoria-Halliburton.

Electoral record

2011 Canadian federal election: Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Barry Devolin	35,192	60.0	+4.0
	New Democratic	Lyn Edwards	12,934	22.1	+7.5
	Liberal	Laura Redman	7,539	12.9	−7.5
	Green	Susanne Lauten	2,963	5.1	−3.2
Total valid votes			58,628
Total rejected ballots			163	0.27	−0.06
Turnout			58,791	63.72
Eligible voters			92,201

2008 Canadian federal election: Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Conservative	Barry Devolin	30,391	55.95	+6.95	$80,504
	Liberal	Marlene White	11,093	20.42	−8.33	$41,469
	New Democratic	Stephen Yardy	7,952	14.64	−2.58	$14,201
	Green	Michael Bell	4,505	8.29	+3.27	$2
	Christian Heritage	Dave Switzer	374	0.69		$1,702
Total valid votes/expense limit			54,315	100.00
Total rejected ballots			181
Turnout			54,496	60.10	−7.47
Electors on the lists			90,680

2006 Canadian federal election: Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Conservative	Barry Devolin	29,427	49.00	+4.77	$72,620
	Liberal	Greg Walling	17,266	28.75	−5.76	$73,312
	New Democratic	Anne MacDermid	10,340	17.22	+2.15	$17,989
	Green	Andy Harjula	3,017	5.02	+0.30	$1,787
Total valid votes/expense limit			60,050	100.00
Total rejected ballots			196
Turnout			60,246	67.57	+3.35
Electors on the lists			89,166
Sources: Official Results, Elections Canada and Financial Returns, Elections Canada.

2004 Canadian federal election: Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Expenditures
	Conservative	Barry Devolin	24,731	44.23	$62,433
	Liberal	John O'Reilly	19,294	34.51	$32,357
	New Democratic	Gil McElroy	8,427	15.07	$16,515
	Green	Tim Holland	2,637	4.72	$150
	Christian Heritage	Peter Vogel	493	0.88	$2,345
	Independent	Charles Olito	330	0.59	$8,276
Total valid votes/expense limit			55,912	100.00	$86,102
Total rejected ballots			199
Turnout			56,111	64.22
Electors on the lists			87,371
Percentage change figures are factored for redistribution. Conservative Party percentages are contrasted with the combined Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative percentages from 2000.
Sources: Official Results, Elections Canada and Financial Returns, Elections Canada.

External links

• Barry Devolin
• How'd They Vote?: Barry Devolin's voting history and quotes
• Barry Devolin – Parliament of Canada biography