Deputy Premier of Ontario

The Deputy Premier of Ontario is the representative of the Premier of Ontario in the Canadian province of Ontario when the current Premier is unable to attend functions executed by the Premier. The role was created in 1977.

For much of the province's early history, the position of Provincial Secretary and Registrar of Ontario was the second most powerful position in the Ontario cabinet. This role diminished by the 1960s, take overby the Deputy Premier in 1977 and abolished in 1985.

Deputy Premiers of Ontario

Order	Deputy Premier	Political Party	Premier	Term Started	Term Ended
1	Bob Welch	Progressive Conservative	Bill Davis/Frank Miller	September 21, 1977	May 17, 1985
2	Bette Stephenson	Progressive Conservative	Frank Miller	May 17, 1985	June 26, 1985
.	none	Liberal	David Peterson	June 26, 1985	September 29, 1987
3	Robert Nixon	Liberal	David Peterson	September 29, 1987	October 1, 1990
4	Floyd Laughren	NDP	Bob Rae	October 1, 1990	June 26, 1995
5	Ernie Eves	Progressive Conservative	Mike Harris	June 26, 1995	February 8, 2001
6	Jim Flaherty	Progressive Conservative	Mike Harris	February 8, 2001	April 14, 2002
7	Elizabeth Witmer	Progressive Conservative	Ernie Eves	April 15, 2002	October 22, 2003
.	none	Liberal	Dalton McGuinty	October 23, 2003	September 20, 2006
8	George Smitherman	Liberal	Dalton McGuinty	September 21, 2006	September 8, 2009
.	none	Liberal	Dalton McGuinty	September 9, 2009	October 19, 2011
9	Dwight Duncan	Liberal	Dalton McGuinty	October 20, 2011	December 21, 2012
10	Deb Matthews	Liberal	Kathleen Wynne	February 11, 2013

See also

• Premier (Canada)
• List of Ontario premiers
• Executive Council of Ontario