Darrell Rankin

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Darrell T. Rankin (born February 14, 1957) is a Canadian peace activist and communist politician. He was briefly leader of the Communist Party of Canada - Ontario (CPC-O) in 1995, and has been the leader of the Communist Party of Canada - Manitoba (CPC-M) since 1996.

Contents

1 Early life and career
2 CPC-O leader
3 CPC-M leader
4 Table of offices held
5 Electoral Record
6 Footnotes

Early life and career

Rankin was born and raised in Edmonton, Alberta, and became involved in radical left politics through an early opposition to the Vietnam War. His grandparents were active in the Communist Party of Canada, which he also joined in 1978. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree. [Election 2000 entry: Darrell Rankin], Globe and Mail, online report.

He lived in Ottawa, Ontario from 1983 to 1995, and was a leading figure in the Canadian Peace Alliance and the Ottawa Disarmament Coalition."Handful hold low-key protests", Toronto Star, 11 February 1989, A11. A newspaper report from 1986 lists him as an articling lawyer, although it is not clear if he continued in this profession.Abby Deveney and Jacquie Miller, "First rooms open in new courthouse", Ottawa Citizen, 18 August 1996, C2. He participated in protests against the Gulf War in 1991."Protesters condemn ground attack", Ottawa Citizen, 25 February 1991, C1.

In 1992, a majority of delegates at the Communist Party's national convention voted to abandon Marxism-Leninism and pursue a social democratic alternative. Rankin was a part of the minority group led by Miguel Figueroa that opposed this measure, and continued to support orthodox communist principles. The party split, and the minority group won the rights to the Communist Party name through an out-of-court settlement.

CPC-O leader

Rankin was appointed leader of the Communist Party of Canada - Ontario in April 1995, and led the Communist Party into the 1995 provincial election. The national party had fallen to only five hundred members in this period, and the Ontario party ran a low-profile campaign with only five candidates and an $8,000 budget.John Gray, "Liberal numbers don't add up in attack on NDP expenditure", Globe and Mail, 16 May 1995, A6. Rankin challenged New Democratic Party Premier Bob Rae in York South, focusing on issues including health, education, social programs and full employment. A newspaper report lists him as thirty-eight years old during the campaign.Nicolaas Van Rijn, "Meet the people who want your vote", Toronto Star, 5 June 1995, A12.

In June 1995, Rankin contributed a paper entitled "Observations on the setbacks to Socialism" to the Communist Party discussion journal The Spark! (which is not to be confused with the Trotskyist group of the same name). The article examined recent events in Eastern Europe, including the fall of the Soviet Union.[Darrell Rankin, "Observations on the setbacks to Socialism"], The Spark! No. 6, 1995.

CPC-M leader

Rankin moved to Winnipeg, Manitoba later in 1995. The Communist Party of Canada - Manitoba had been without effective leadership for several years, and Rankin became the party's provincial organizer before the year was over. He helped organize a banquet to commemorate the party's seventy-fifth anniversary in early 1996, and was elected CPC-M leader later in the year.Holli Moncrieff, "Volunteers needed for Earth Day events", Winnipeg Free Press, 3 April 1996, p. 1. The party was re-registered with Elections Manitoba in 1999, and Rankin has led the party in the 1999 and 2003 elections."Communist party plans to field five in election", Winnipeg Free Press, 22 March 1999, A8.

In January 2004, Rankin was challenged for the CPC-M leadership by Paul Sidon. He received 79% of delegate support, against 21% for Sidon.

Rankin is a founding member of Peace Alliance Winnipeg and a member of the No War Coalition (Manitoba). He helped organize protests against the 1999 Kosovo Conflict, the 2001 NATO invasion of Afghanistan and the 2003 invasion of Iraq.Kevin Rollason, "No bombs in Kosovo, activists say", Winnipeg Free Press, 23 March 1999, A3; Kevin Rollason, "War in Afghanistan draws critics", Winnipeg Free Press, 24 March 2002, A4; Alexandra Paul, "Threats to Iraq all about oil,say protesters", Winnipeg Free Press, 19 January 2003, A5. He also writes occasional articles for People's Voice, the newspaper of the Communist Party.For instance, [Darrell Rankin, ""No!" to Privatized Health Care"], 16-31 January 2006 (Volume 14, No. 2).

Rankin has campaigned for public office several times, although he has never come close to being elected. As of March 2006, he is the leader of Communist Party of Canada's Peace and Disarmament Coalition.[Darrell Rankin, "Humanity needs a strong peace movement"], Political Affairs Magazine, 18 March 2006. He is not related to Naomi Rankin, the leader of the Communist Party of Canada - Alberta.Brian Laghi, "Moscow not on the North Saskatchewan", Edmonton Journal, 15 January 1995, B2.

Table of offices held

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(*) The CPC-M had been without a leader since at least 1990, and possibly longer.
(**) It is not clear if the CPC-O had a recognized leader between 1992 and 1998, apart from Rankin's short tenure in 1995. Hassan Husseini was chosen as leader in 1998.

Electoral Record

2006 federal election, Winnipeg North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Expenditures
New Democratic Party	(x)Judy Wasylycia-Leis	15,582	57.18	\|- \|bgcolor="lightcoral"\|	Liberal	Parmjeet Gill	5,752	21.11	\|- \|bgcolor="cornflowerblue"\|	Conservative	Garreth McDonald	4,810	17.65	\|- \|bgcolor="yellowgreen"\|	Green	David Carey	779	2.86	\|- \|bgcolor="#CC6699"\|	Christian Heritage	Eric Truijen	207	0.76	\|- \|bgcolor="tomato"\|	Communist	Darrell Rankin	123	0.45
Total valid votes	27,253	100.00
Rejected ballots	137
Turnout	27,390	50.91
Electors on lists	53,805

2004 federal election, Winnipeg North
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Expenditures
New Democratic Party	(x)Judy Wasylycia-Leis	12,507	48.16	,948.23 \|- \|bgcolor="lightcoral"\|	Liberal	(x)Rey Pagtakhan	9,491	36.55	,996.00 \|- \|bgcolor="cornflowerblue"\|	Conservative	Kris Stevenson	3,186	12.27	,733.73 \|- \|bgcolor="yellowgreen"\|	Green	Alon Weinberg	531	2.04	,287.45 \|- \|bgcolor="#CC6699"\|	Christian Heritage	Eric Truijen	141	0.54	,000.00 \|- \|bgcolor="tomato"\|	Communist	Darrell Rankin	111	0.43	4.58
Total valid votes	25,967	100.00
Rejected ballots	128
Turnout	26,095	47.13
Electors on lists	55,372

2003 provincial election, Point Douglas
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Expenditures
New Democratic Party	(x)George Hickes	2,877	74.86	,189.54 \|- \|bgcolor="lightcoral"\|	Liberal	Mary Lou Bourgeois	547	14.23	,991.06 \|- \|bgcolor="#9999FF"\|	Progressive Conservative	Wyatt McIntyre	337	8.77	.68 \|- \|bgcolor="tomato"\|	Communist	Darrell Rankin	82	2.13	6.06
Total valid votes	3,843	100.00
Rejected and declined ballots	55
Turnout	3,898	40.24
Electors on the lists	9,687

2000 federal election, Winnipeg North Centre
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	Expenditures
New Democratic Party	(x)Judy Wasylycia-Leis	14,356	58.39	,041.14 \|- \|bgcolor="lightcoral"\|	Liberal	Mary Richard	6,755	27.47	,194.97 \|- \|bgcolor="#9999FF"\|	Progressive Conservative	Myron Troniak	2,950	12.00	,320.59 \|- \|bgcolor="tomato"\|	Communist	Darrell Rankin	525	2.14	3.77
Total valid votes	24,586	100.00
Rejected ballots	481
Turnout	25,067	51.95
Electors on lists	48,254

Footnotes

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