In Canada, having the new premier be a female is almost becoming the norm. Several provinces have recently welcomed their first female leader.
Ontario, Canada's most populous province, had to "take it a step further" and have its first female premier also be the first openly gay premier in Canada.
Being female and/or gay isn't the reason why Kathleen Wynne is Ontario's new premier, replacing Dalton McGuinty. If there are special powers from being either, Wynne can certainly use them since unlike all but Pauline Marois (Quebec), Wynne is inheriting a minority government. And unlike Marois, Wynne hasn't been elected.
The battle came down to Wynne and Sandra Pupatello. Wynne had several advantages over Pupatello; Wynne was seen as someone who could better with the other parties. Wynne offered more stability since, unlike Pupatello, Wynne has a seat in Parliament.
Pupatello, from Windsor, would have had to run for a seat in Parliament to keep the top job. She had been a member of Parliament from 1995-2011.
The United States doesn't have an equivalent from the openly gay standpoint. A few states have female governors, though not on the percentage level of Canada. Wisconsin just elected the first openly gay U.S. senator in Tammy Baldwin in November. This doesn't count not openly gay senators (Larry Craig!?). Barney Frank wants to be appointed the interim senator to replace John Kerry until a special election; he would be the second openly gay senator, even if he isn't elected.
Then again, Americans may have a difficult time with the concept of having the party decide the new leader of a province. In Canada, this is rather common on the provincial level (Alison Redford in Alberta leaps to mind) and has happened twice on the federal level in the last 30 years (John Turner — 1984 and Kim Campbell — 1993).
Wynne says she's "not a gay activist." "If I can help (gay) people be less frightened, that's a wonderful, wonderful thing."
The good news for Wynne is that Ontario residents care more about the deficit, about education and Bill 115 (limiting teachers ability to strike), and job creation. When she calls an election, her ability to stay as Ontario premier will depend on those issues and not who she loves.
photo credit: CBC
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