John Turmel
John C. Turmel is a perennial candidate for election in Canada, and according to the Guinness World Records holds the records for the most elections contested and for the most elections lost, having contested 112 elections and lost 111. The other contest was a by-election that was pre-empted by a general election call.
Background
Turmel, who describes himself as a "Libertarian Socred", believes in Louis Even's Quebec social credit theory of monetary reform and has also campaigned for the legalization of gambling, the adoption of "Local Employment Trading Systems" which are interest-free barter arrangements, and for the legalization of marijuana. He describes his platform as "I want no cops in gambling, sex or drugs or rock and roll, I want no usury on loans, pay cash or time, no dole."He has participated in several protests outside of Canada's major banking institutions, saying that bank interest promotes poverty and starvation in the third world.
Turmel, an electrical engineering graduate, who lists his occupation as "professional gambler" was active in the Social Credit Party of Canada and the Social Credit Party of Ontario in the 1980s, and founded the Christian Credit Party in the 1980s, the Abolitionist Party of Canada in the 1990s, and the Pauper Party of Ontario in 2011.
He wears a white construction helmet, when campaigning,
and calls himself "The Engineer".
The colour of his helmet is said to not only refer to the white construction helmets worn by engineers and architects on construction sites, but also to the berets blanc, the nickname of the Pilgrims of Saint Michael, a radical monetarist faction within the Quebec social credit movement.
Turmel's grandfather, Adelard Turmel, supported the Social Credit Party of Canada from its inception in 1935, and he passed on a belief in social credit monetary theories to his descendants. His brother, Raymond Turmel, has also campaigned for public office on several occasions.
Turmel spent most of his life in Ottawa but has made Brantford, Ontario, his home since 2003 after running in a by-election there and finding he liked the area where he could play high-stakes Holdem Poker professionally at the Brantford Charity Casino.
Political activity
Entering the electoral fray
His campaign to legalize gambling and the notoriety he received as a result, combined with his family's background in social credit ideology, led Turmel to seek election at the federal level for the first time at the age of 28, as an independent candidate in Ottawa West in the May 1979 federal election in which he ran as the self-described "champion of hookers, gamblers and dope smokers" in a campaign in which he argued interest on money, usury, was the evil instability in financial affairs and swore to "abolish interest rates". He won 193 votes.Social Credit
He ran again as an independent in the February 1980 federal election in Ottawa Centre. His application to run as a Social Credit Party of Canada candidate was rejected by party leader Fabien Roy. He won 64 votes. The Social Credit Party lost its remaining seats in the election.Because of the death of the Social Credit candidate in Frontenac riding in Quebec during the election, a by-election was held in March. When Fabien Roy accepted the nomination without a convention, Turmel ran again as an independent against the Social Credit candidate. He ran as an independent candidate in the April 13 federal by-election in London West, claiming to be interim leader of the Ontario Social Credit Party. Turmel won 77 votes as an "independent Social Credit" candidate in a September 8 by-election in Hamilton West.
He also sought the Social Credit Party of Canada’s interim national leadership unsuccessfully at a convention in November in Calgary. Turmel opposed the appointment of Martin Hattersley as interim leader of the federal Social Credit party as being undemocratic. The party executive claimed that the party did not have sufficient funds to hold a convention.
While running in the Hamilton West federal byelection, Turmel registered for Mayor of Ottawa in November, collecting 1,928 votes. At the same time, he ran as the Social Credit candidate in a provincial by-election in Carleton riding, coming in last. Registered in a hat-trick.
With grandfather Adelard, mother Therese, and brother Ray Turmel in support, Turmel started picketing the Bank of Canada on every Thursday when the interest rate was set and then picketing Parliament too. This continued for five years until the retirement of Governor Gerald Bouey.
In the March 1981 provincial election, Turmel ran as a Social Credit candidate in Ottawa Centre, while his brother Raymond ran for the party in Ottawa South and Serge Girard, Dale Alkerton and Andrew Dynowski ran in neighbouring ridings. It was reported that he became interim leader of the Ontario Social Credit Party in early March, although it is not clear if other members of the party agreed.
In September, Turmel was a candidate in the federal by-election in Spadina riding in Toronto, collecting 98 votes. The national Social Credit party president Carl O’Malley refused to endorse a candidate on the basis that the Liberal candidate, Jim Coutts, a former adviser to Pierre Trudeau, was a personal friend. Raymond Turmel ran as an independent against O’Malley in the by-election held in Joliette, Quebec on the same day, claiming to be the "real Social Credit" candidate.
In October, the Ontario Social Credit Party conducted a leadership vote. The eleven delegates, who represented about 100 party members throughout the province, elected former Toronto mayoral candidate Anne McBride as their new interim leader in a vote of 7 to 1 with 3 spoiled ballots. One vote was cast for Bruce Arnold. Turmel, his brother Ray and their mother, Therese, wrote the word "unconstitutional" across the ballots. Turmel argued that the party was violating its constitution by holding a vote without providing four months' notice to its members. McBride was a Christian fundamentalist minister who vowed to run the party "on Christian principles".
In September, Turmel was reported to be fighting his expulsion from the federal Social Credit Party, and seeking its leadership. Further, he was reported to be seeking to replace Joe Clark as leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada. Turmel denied the report, but the journalist stood by her story.
Christian Credit Party
In June 1982, Turmel returned to Hamilton West to run in a provincial by-election as a candidate of the Christian Credit Party that he had recently founded. He won 173 votes.The Christian Credit Party was formed after the Social Credit Party refused to renew the memberships of Turmel and his brother Raymond. The Turmel brothers said that they left the party because it had compromised its principles on interest rates.
He also ran for the Christian Credit Party in the September federal by-election in Broadview—Greenwood, winning an all-time low 16 votes. Raymond ran for the party in Leeds—Grenville in eastern Ontario.
In July, Turmel attempted to recruit members for his new party at the Social Credit national convention in Regina. In September, the party claimed to have 75 members.
In November 1982, Turmel ran for alderman in the Ottawa suburb of Gloucester, and appears to have abandoned an attempt to run in a provincial by-election in Toronto-York South though list #13 shows it was not abandoned. His brother, Raymond, ran for mayor of Gloucester, while their colleague Marc Gauvin ran for mayor of Ottawa.
By 1983, the Christian Credit Party appears to have died. Turmel said he disbanded his party because he realized voters would not give it a chance. "People won't vote for a new party. They've been voting for one colour all their lives. The only way to do anything is to get into a recognized party."
Turmel, with Therese and Ray, Marc and Emi Gauvin and Serge Girard picketed the 1983 Bilderberger conference held at Chateau Montebello.
Turmel ran as an independent candidate in the Central Nova riding by-election in September 1983 against Progressive Conservative leader Brian Mulroney. He claimed to be a "member of the Abolitionist wing of the PC party".
Turmel won 97 votes as a candidate in a provincial by-election in Stormont—Dundas—South Glengarry, Ontario.
Green Party
In the months before the 1984 federal election, Turmel attempted to take over the Ottawa branch of the fledgling Green Party of Canada by signing up new members and seeking the party’s nomination in Ottawa Centre. After the party had appointed a candidate in Ottawa Centre rather than hold nominations, Turmel claimed that it was undemocratic and called a meeting at which all Greens were invited to elect candidates to run in various Ottawa area ridings under the Green Party banner. The party rejected those nominations, and then held its own meeting to nominate new candidates.In the election, Turmel ran as an independent against Green Party leader Trevor Hancock in Toronto—Beaches, Marc Gauvin ran in Ottawa Centre, supporter Serge Girard in Ottawa—Vanier, and John and Ray’s mother, Therese Turmel ran in Ottawa West, and Ray Turmel ran as an "independent Green" in Nepean—Carleton.
Turmel ran as an independent candidate in the December 13, 1984, provincial by-election in Ottawa Centre, and Serge Girard ran in Ottawa East. Turmel also ran for mayor of Ottawa.
In 1985, the Executive of the Ontario Branch of the Green Party expelled Ontario member John Turmel and Quebec member Ray Turmel.
Mid to late 1980s
Also in 1985, Turmel appears to have founded the "Social Credit Party of Ontario", which was not affiliated with other social credit parties. Turmel led a campaign against the practice of cheque cashing agencies that cashed social assistance cheques at a discount to the face value. Turmel issued ID card to SA recipients and recruited local retailers to cash the cheques at no discount. The Social Credit Party of Ontario guaranteed these cheques. In November, Turmel supporter Walter McPhee ran for Ottawa mayor and Turmel for Nepean mayor. This proved to be Turmel's best performance by percentage of the vote, as he collected 7.25% of the vote, as he was the only other candidate against mayor Ben Franklin. Turmel ran in an April 1986 provincial by-election in Toronto-York East and an August 14 provincial by-election in Cochrane, Ontario, apparently under the "Social Credit Party of Ontario" banner.In September, he ran as an "independent créditiste" claiming to be the heir of Réal Caouette in a federal by-election in St.-Maurice, Quebec when Liberal MP Jean Chrétien resigned.
In June 1987, Turmel ran in a federal by-election in Hamilton Mountain. He was reported to be "attempting to form" an Ontario Social Credit Party.
In the autumn of 1988, Turmel ran for mayor of Ottawa, Member of Parliament for Ottawa Centre and Member of Provincial Parliament for Welland—Thorold in the Niagara peninsula in a November 3 provincial by-election.