Tony Wakeham
Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador since 2025
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tony Wakeham (born July 16, 1956) is a Canadian politician and businessman who has served as the 16th premier of Newfoundland and Labrador since 2025. He has represented Stephenville-Port au Port in the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly since 2019, and has served as the leader of the Newfoundland and Labrador Progressive Conservative Party since 2023.[3][4]
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Tony Wakeham | |
|---|---|
Wakeham in 2022 | |
| 16th Premier of Newfoundland and Labrador | |
| Assumed office October 29, 2025 | |
| Monarch | Charles III |
| Lieutenant Governor | Joan Marie Aylward |
| Deputy | Barry Petten |
| Preceded by | John Hogan |
| Leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador | |
| Assumed office October 14, 2023[1] | |
| Preceded by | David Brazil (interim) |
| Leader of the Opposition in Newfoundland and Labrador | |
| In office October 14, 2023 – October 29, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | David Brazil |
| Succeeded by | John Hogan |
| Member of the Newfoundland and Labrador House of Assembly for Stephenville-Port au Port | |
| Assumed office May 16, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | John Finn |
| Personal details | |
| Born | July 16, 1956[2] Placentia, Newfoundland, Canada |
| Party | Progressive Conservative |
| Spouse | Patricia Wakeham |
| Children | 2 |
| Alma mater | Memorial University of Newfoundland |
| Occupation |
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| Website | www |
Life and early career
Tony Wakeham was born on July 16, 1956, in Placentia, Newfoundland and Labrador, to James and Mary Wakeham. His father worked at Naval Station Argentia and his mother was a teacher.[2] After attending Laval High School in Placentia, Wakeham graduated from Memorial University of Newfoundland with a Bachelor of Arts in 1979. He played basketball during his time at Memorial. Wakeham is married to his wife, Patricia, and has 2 children.[5]
Prior to entering politics, Wakeham was the CEO of Labrador-Grenfell Health Authority, was a franchisee of many KFC restaurants[6][7] and has served as the president of both the Newfoundland and Labrador Basketball Association and Basketball Canada. He has also worked as a public servant in the provincial government and as a basketball coach.
Political career
In 2018, Wakeham ran for the leadership of the Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador, but was defeated by St. John's lawyer Ches Crosbie. The final tally was Crosbie with 2,298.92 and Wakeham with 1,701.08 points respectively.[8][9][10]
On January 17, 2023, Wakeham announced he would be a candidate in the 2023 provincial PC leadership election.[11] He won the election and became Leader of the Opposition.[12]
Premier (2025–present)
Wakeham led his party to a majority government in the 2025 Newfoundland and Labrador general election, in a major political upset.[13] He was re-elected in his own seat of Stephenville-Port au Port, and will be the first Progressive Conservative premier of the province since 2015. Primarily campaigning on affordability and healthcare, Wakeham promised to conduct an independent review and a referendum on the Churchill Falls memorandum of understanding.[14][15][16] He formed the Wakeham ministry on October 29, 2025, following his swearing-in.[17]
Electoral history
Leadership elections
- 2023 Progressive Conservative Party of Newfoundland and Labrador leadership election
| Candidate | Ballot 1 | Ballot 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Name | Votes | Votes |
| Tony Wakeham | 1,816 45.4% | 2,091 52.0% |
| Eugene Manning | 1,636 40.9% | 1,909 48.0% |
| Lloyd Parrott | 548 13.7% | Eliminated |
| Total Points | 4,000.00 | 4,000.00 |
| Candidate | Ballot 1 |
|---|---|
| Name | Points |
| Ches Crosbie | 2,298.92 57.47% |
| Tony Wakeham | 1,701.08 42.53% |
| Total points | 4,000.00 |
Provincial elections
| 2025 Newfoundland and Labrador general election: Stephenville-Port au Port | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Tony Wakeham | 3,820 | 76.29 | +16.63 | ||||
| Liberal | Jeff Young | 1,044 | 20.85 | -17.00 | ||||
| New Democratic | Susan Jarvis | 143 | 2.86 | +0.38 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 5,007 | |||||||
| Total rejected ballots | ||||||||
| Turnout | ||||||||
| Eligible voters | ||||||||
| Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | +16.81 | ||||||
| [18] | ||||||||
| 2021 Newfoundland and Labrador general election: Stephenville-Port au Port | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Tony Wakeham | 2,481 | 59.67 | +9.36 | ||||
| Liberal | Kevin Aylward | 1,574 | 37.85 | -11.83 | ||||
| New Democratic | Jamie Ruby | 103 | 2.48 | |||||
| Total valid votes | 4,158 | 99.59 | ||||||
| Total rejected ballots | 17 | 0.41 | ||||||
| Turnout | 4,175 | 43.41 | ||||||
| Eligible voters | 9,618 | |||||||
| Progressive Conservative hold | Swing | +10.60 | ||||||
Source(s)
"Officially Nominated Candidates General Election 2021" (PDF). Elections Newfoundland and Labrador. Retrieved March 3, 2021. "NL Election 2021 (Unofficial Results)". Retrieved March 27, 2021. | ||||||||
| 2019 Newfoundland and Labrador general election | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Tony Wakeham | 2,512 | 50.3 | +25.0 | ||||
| Liberal | John Finn | 2,481 | 49.7 | -15.1 | ||||
| Total valid votes | ||||||||
| Total rejected ballots | ||||||||
| Turnout | ||||||||
| Eligible voters | ||||||||