James David Stewart

James David Stewart (January 15, 1874 – October 10, 1933) was a Prince Edward Island educator, lawyer and politician, the province's 15th premier.^[1]

James David Stewart KC
15th Premier of Prince Edward Island
In office September 5, 1923 – August 21, 1927
Monarch	George V
Lieutenant Governor	Murdoch McKinnon Frank Richard Heartz
Preceded by	John Howatt Bell
Succeeded by	Albert C. Saunders
In office August 29, 1931 – October 10, 1933
Monarch	George V
Lieutenant Governor	Charles Dalton
Preceded by	Walter Lea
Succeeded by	William J. P. MacMillan
Leader of the Conservative Party of Prince Edward Island
In office May 1, 1921 – October 10, 1933
Preceded by	Aubin-Edmond Arsenault
Succeeded by	William J. P. MacMillan
MLA (Councillor) for 5th Kings
In office July 25, 1917 – October 10, 1933
Preceded by	John A. Mathieson
Succeeded by	George Saville
Personal details
Born	(1874-01-15)January 15, 1874 Lower Montague, Prince Edward Island
Died	October 10, 1933(1933-10-10) (aged 59) Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island
Nationality	Canadian
Political party	Conservative
Spouse	Barbara Alice MacDonald Westaway
Children	7
Alma mater	Prince of Wales College Dalhousie University
Occupation	lawyer
Profession	Politician
Cabinet	Attorney General (1923–1927) (1931–1933)

Born in Lower Montague and educated at Prince of Wales College and Dalhousie University, he taught school in Georgetown for several years before entering the legal profession.

In 1917, the Conservative Party recruited Stewart, then a young lawyer, to be the party's candidate in a by-election in King's County. Stewart won the vote and took his seat in the provincial legislative assembly.

In 1921 he was elected leader of the Conservative Party and led the party to victory in the 1923 election but his government was defeated in the 1927 election due to Stewart's opposition to total prohibition of alcohol.

He remained party leader and defeated the Liberal government in the 1931 election thanks, in part, to the difficulty all incumbent governments had in dealing with the Great Depression.

Stewart took on several cabinet positions himself and also intensively lobbied the federal government for relief so the province could deal with the economic hardships Prince Edward Islanders were suffering during the Depression. He obtained a larger federal subsidy for the island but the workload had a toll on Stewart and he died in office in 1933 at the age of 59.^[2]

References

1. "Stewart, James D. - Memory PEI". www.gov.pe.ca. Retrieved 2022-07-11.
2. Harrison, R. M. (11 Oct 1933). "Premier Of P.E.I Passes". The Border Cities Star. p. 19. Retrieved 11 Jul 2022.