Gail Shea
Canadian politician (1959–2025)
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Anne Marie Gail Shea PC (née Doucette; April 6, 1959 – August 21, 2025) was a Canadian politician who served as the Member of Parliament for Egmont from 2008 to 2015. She had previously been a member of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island from 2000 to 2007, representing the electoral district of Tignish-DeBlois as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party.
Gail A. Shea | |
|---|---|
| Minister of Fisheries and Oceans | |
| In office July 15, 2013 – November 4, 2015 | |
| Prime Minister | Stephen Harper |
| Preceded by | Keith Ashfield |
| Succeeded by | Hunter Tootoo |
| In office October 30, 2008 – May 18, 2011 | |
| Prime Minister | Stephen Harper |
| Preceded by | Loyola Hearn |
| Succeeded by | Keith Ashfield |
| Minister of National Revenue | |
| In office May 18, 2011 – July 15, 2013 | |
| Preceded by | Keith Ashfield |
| Succeeded by | Kerry-Lynne Findlay |
| Member of Parliament for Egmont | |
| In office October 14, 2008 – August 4, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Joe McGuire |
| Succeeded by | Bobby Morrissey |
| Member of the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island for Tignish-DeBlois | |
| In office April 17, 2000 – May 28, 2007 | |
| Preceded by | Bobby Morrissey |
| Succeeded by | Neil LeClair |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Anne Marie Gail Doucette April 6, 1959 |
| Died | August 21, 2025 (aged 66) O'Leary, Prince Edward Island, Canada |
| Party | Conservative |
| Other political affiliations | Progressive Conservative Party of Prince Edward Island |
| Spouse |
Russell Shea
(m. 1976; died 2021) |
| Children | 5 |
Shea served as the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans in the federal cabinet.
Provincial politics
Minister of Community and Cultural Affairs
Shea served as Minister of Community and Cultural Affairs from 2000 to 2003, under the second administration of Premier Pat Binns. During this period Shea's responsibilities included the Status of Women in the province, as well as providing oversight on the Workers Compensation Board and the Island Waste Management Corporation.[1]
Minister of Transportation and Public Works
From 2003 to 2007 Shea served as Minister of Transportation and Public Works. In this position, Shea oversaw the implementation of a graduated licensing system in her home province.[2]
Federal politics
Shea stood as the Conservative Party of Canada candidate in the riding of Egmont for the 2008 federal election.[3] On October 14, 2008, she became the first non-Liberal MP from Prince Edward Island in 24 years.[4] On October 30, 2008, Shea was appointed the federal Minister of Fisheries and Oceans.[5] She is only the third female MP from Prince Edward Island, following Margaret Mary Macdonald and Catherine Callbeck.[6]
In the 2011 federal election, Shea was re-elected by a margin of 4500 votes.[7] On May 18, 2011, she was appointed Minister of National Revenue.[8][9] In July 2013, Shea was moved back into the fisheries position.[10] In the 2015 election, Shea was defeated by Liberal Bobby Morrissey.[11][12]
Pie incident
On January 25, 2010, Shea was pied while giving a speech at the Canada Centre for Inland Waters. An American PETA activist, Emily McCoy, was arrested in Burlington in connection with the incident, and charged with assault. PETA took public responsibility for the incident, saying that it was part of a broader campaign against the Canadian Government's support of the seal hunt.[13][14]
When commenting on the event later, Shea remarked, "I can tell you that this incident actually strengthens my resolve to support the seal hunt. If this is what it takes to stand up for Canadian sealing families and this industry I'm certainly very proud to do it."[15]
Personal life and death
She was born at Skinners Pond, Prince Edward Island on April 6, 1959, the daughter of Roy Ernest and Elva Mary (née Perry) Doucette.[16] She married Russell Shea and had five children.[16] Her husband, Russell, died in 2021.[17] Outside of politics, she worked as a bookkeeper and worked for the Canada Revenue Agency and a tax centre in Summerside, Prince Edward Island.[16]
Shea died at the age of 66 at a hospital in O'Leary, Prince Edward Island, on August 21, 2025.[16][18][19] Hundreds of mourners attended her funeral on August 27, 2025, at St. Simon & St. Jude Church in Tignish.[20]
Electoral record
Federal
| 2015 Canadian federal election: Egmont | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Liberal | Bobby Morrissey | 10,521 | 49.25 | +17.94 | $67,240.83 | |||
| Conservative | Gail Shea | 6,185 | 28.95 | –25.70 | $110,058.32 | |||
| New Democratic | Herb Dickieson | 4,097 | 19.18 | +6.81 | $34,718.49 | |||
| Green | Nils Ling | 559 | 2.62 | +0.95 | $4,895.27 | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 21,362 | 99.59 | $169,928.60 | |||||
| Total rejected ballots | 87 | 0.41 | –0.39 | |||||
| Turnout | 21,449 | 77.29 | +5.62 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 27,751 | |||||||
| Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +21.82 | ||||||
| Source: Elections Canada[21][22] | ||||||||
| 2011 Canadian federal election: Egmont | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Conservative | Gail Shea | 10,467 | 54.65 | +10.72 | $57,565.04 | |||
| Liberal | Guy Gallant | 5,997 | 31.31 | -12.32 | $34,428.58 | |||
| New Democratic | Jacquie Robichaud | 2,369 | 12.37 | +3.32 | $1,780.97 | |||
| Green | Carl Anthony | 320 | 1.67 | -1.72 | $250.00 | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 19,153 | 100.0 | $69,831.16 | |||||
| Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | 155 | 0.80 | +0.18 | |||||
| Turnout | 19,308 | 71.67 | +3.52 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 26,941 | |||||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | +11.52 | ||||||
| Sources:[23][24] | ||||||||
| 2008 Canadian federal election: Egmont | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Conservative | Gail Shea | 8,110 | 43.93 | +12.97 | $51,795.67 | |||
| Liberal | Keith Milligan | 8,055 | 43.63 | -9.54 | $45,007.86 | |||
| New Democratic | Orville Lewis | 1,670 | 9.05 | -0.50 | $2,245.18 | |||
| Green | Rebecca Ridlington | 626 | 3.39 | -1.80 | $2,678.98 | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 18,461 | 100.0 | $67,686 | |||||
| Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | 115 | 0.62 | +0.01 | |||||
| Turnout | 18,576 | 68.15 | -3.57 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 27,256 | |||||||
| Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | +11.26 | ||||||
| Sources:[25] | ||||||||
Provincial
| 2007 Prince Edward Island general election: Tignish-Palmer Road | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Liberal | Neil LeClair | 1,569 | 55.15 | +11.18 | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Gail Shea | 1,276 | 44.85 | −10.44 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 2,845 | 100.0 | ||||||
| Liberal gain from Progressive Conservative | Swing | +10.81 | ||||||
| Source:[26] | ||||||||
| 2003 Prince Edward Island general election | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Gail A. Shea | 1,480 | 55.29 | -0.64 | ||||
| Liberal | Neil J. LeClair | 1,177 | 43.97 | +3.39 | ||||
| New Democratic | Reg T. Pendergast | 20 | 0.75 | -2.75 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 2,677 | 100.0 | ||||||
| Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | -2.02 | ||||||
| Source:[27] | ||||||||
| 2000 Prince Edward Island general election | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Gail A. Shea | 1,472 | 55.93 | +12.04 | ||||
| Liberal | Neil J. LeClair | 1,068 | 40.58 | -13.39 | ||||
| New Democratic | Reg T. Pendergast | 92 | 3.50 | +1.36 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 2,632 | 100.0 | ||||||
| Progressive Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | +12.72 | ||||||
| Source:[28] | ||||||||
| 1996 Prince Edward Island general election: Tignish-DeBlois | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||||
| Liberal | Robert Joseph Morrissey | 1,413 | 53.97 | |||||
| Progressive Conservative | Gail A. Shea | 1,149 | 43.89 | |||||
| New Democratic | Howard Waite | 56 | 2.14 | |||||
| Total valid votes | 2,618 | 100.0 | ||||||
| This riding was created from parts of the dual-member riding of 1st Prince. | ||||||||
| Source:[29] | ||||||||
