Bob Skelly, a former leader of the New Democratic Party in British Columbia, passed away at the age of 79.
How Did Bob Skelly Die?
Bob Skelly, a former leader of the New Democratic Party in British Columbia, passed away at the age of 79.
Premier John Horgan expressed his sadness at learning of Skelly’s passing in a message shared on social media, and he thanked him for his years of dedication to British Columbia and Canada.
Bob Skelly cause of death
Bob Skelly’s wife, Sonia Alex Skelly, reports that he was very active up to his death on August 6 at Colwood, close to Victoria, at the age of 79. Parkinson’s illness caused his demise.
Skelly claims in an interview with CBC News that her husband was a kind and sociable individual who enjoyed conversing with others about their interests and who himself had a variety of pastimes away from the political spotlight.
When her husband was a teacher on Vancouver Island, she recalled how he got active in politics through the school board.
“We owned a toy farm. … when [New Democratic Party leader] Tommy Douglas visited our property, he chatted with Robert and persuaded him to run for office by telling him that he’d make a great candidate for the NDP. and after that, in 1972, after Dave Barrett’s massive victory, he was elected.”
He was interested in the environment, in Indigenous affairs. His very first speech in the legislature was recognizing native land claims before anyone else mentioned it
Who was Bob Skelly?
From 1972 until 1987, Skelly represented the Alberni riding on Vancouver Island for five terms in the B.C. legislature.
In 1984, he defeated Dave Barrett to become the new provincial leader of the NDP, but he was unable to defeat charismatic Social Credit leader Bill Vander Zalm and bring the party to power.
Skelly served for one term from 1988 to 1993 after being deposed as leader in 1987. The following year, he quit his position to run successfully for the New Democrats in the newly created Comox-Alberni federal riding.
Skelly leaves behind a wife, two children, and a large number of grandchildren.
Bob Skelly wiki
Skelly was born in New Westminster, British Columbia, on April 14, 1943. As the son of Robert Daniel Skelly and Dorothy Graham, he received his education at UBC. He wed Sonia Alexandra Shewchuk in 1965.
He had two children: a son, Robert Mark William Skelly, born in 1975, and a daughter, Susan Kathleen Skelly, born in 1973. Three children—Rebecca Ruth (born 2001), Sarah-Grace Victoria (born 2002), and Maria Anne Heather (born 2010)—were born to Susan and Michael Ramsay.
Bob Skelly career
When he ran against then-Premier Bill Bennett in the 1986 election campaign, he made such significant gains that the Social Credit Party became frightened, persuaded Bennett to quit, and subsequently replaced him with Bill Vander Zalm. After Skelly stumbled at the beginning of his campaign and had to restart his address, the Social Credit Party went on to win the election.
Under Bob Skelly’s leadership, the NDP did not pick up any seats, but it did not lose any either (Social Credit gained 47 seats to the NDP’s 22 in the newly enlarged BC Legislative Assembly). Although the NDP received less votes than in the previous election, they still won with a larger proportion than in the elections in 1972, 1991, and 1996.
The distribution of electoral districts in the province was found to be biassed in favour of Social Credit after the election, indicating that Skelly would have won in the absence of that. The courts subsequently ruled on a just redistribution. Following Skelly’s resignation as NDP leader in 1986, Michael Harcourt was elected as his replacement at the party convention the following year.
Skelly entered federal politics and, running for the New Democratic Party, was chosen as the Member of Parliament for Comox—Alberni in the 1988 election. In the 1993 general election, in which the New Democratic Party lost nine seats, he sought for a second term but was unsuccessful.
Skelly and his brother Ray both held elected office at the same time.
Bob Skelly Hobby
Despite receiving a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease in 1998, Bob Skelly continued to pursue his many interests, including poetry, gardening, archaeology, bagpiping, and private piloting.
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He never gave up thinking he was going to do more, according to Alex Skelly. “Right up until the final month he was keen to learn Spanish, he was attempting to walk, he wanted to play guitar,” Alex Skelly said.
She claims he preferred not to have a funeral service, but a notice will be printed in the newspaper on Saturday.
His two children and numerous grandchildren also survive Bob Skelly.
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