Hugh McFadyen leadership profile

Hugh McFadyen

Riding: Fort Whyte

Party: Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba

Age: 44

Profession: Lawyer and consultant

Family: Hugh McFadyen and his wife, Jennifer, have two children.

Background: The leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Manitoba, McFadyen was bornMay 31, 1967, in Selkirk, Man.

In 1971, the family moved to Winnipeg's St. James neighbourhood.

McFadyen pursued his post-secondary studies at the University of Manitoba, where he completed his arts degree in 1990. He alsoacquired his bachelor of laws degree from the same university in 1993.

Heserved as a researcher for the PC party of Manitoba in the mid-1990s, and was appointed principal secretary to Premier Gary Filmon in 1998. He was also deputy campaign manager for the party during the 1999 election.

Following the PC party's defeat by the NDP in that election, McFadyen spent the next four years away from Manitoba. He practiced law for two years, in London, England, andthen worked for a consulting firm inToronto. In 2003, he moved back to Manitoba and joined the law firm Aikins, MacAulay & Thorvaldson.

He returnedto politics in 2004 as campaign manager for mayoral hopeful Sam Katz. After Katz's victory, McFadyenbecame the mayors policy advisor.

In 2005, McFadyen resigned to jump back into provincial politics, earning the nomination to be the federal Conservative Party candidatefor Winnipeg South. However, the federal election was deferred and he was hired by Manitoba PC leader Stuart Murray as a consultant on urban issues.

Latre in 2005, McFadyen resigned his federal nomination and became the PC candidate in a provincial byelection in Fort Whyte.

Just a fewmonths later, in February 2006, he announced he was running for the party leadership, which became vacant when Stuart Murray announced his resignation.

McFadyen defeated rival candidates Ron Schuler and Ken Waddell on April 29, 2006,becoming leader of the partyand as such,leader of the official Opposition party in the legislature.

During the 2007 election campaign, McFadyen was criticized for promising to bring the Jets hockey team back to Winnipeg, in order to convince younger Manitobans to remain in the province.

Support for the party dropped offin the last days of the campaign and the NDP won a third consecutive majority government. The PC party retained Opposition status but lost one seat, finishing with19.