Stephen Lewis

Biography

Stephen Henry Lewis (November 11, 1937 – March 31, 2026) was a Canadian politician, public speaker, broadcaster and diplomat who served as leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party (ONDP) from 1970 to 1978. Elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in 1963 at the age of 26, he became the province's leader of the Official Opposition in 1975. He later served as the Canadian ambassador to the United Nations from 1984 to 1988. His father, David Lewis, was the leader of the federal New Democratic Party (NDP) during much of the time that Stephen was leader of the provincial party. As member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Scarborough West, Lewis led the Ontario NDP into Official Opposition for its first time in over 25 years in the 1975 general election. After politics, he became a broadcaster on CBC Radio and on Toronto's Citytv. In the mid-1980s, he was appointed as Canada's United Nations ambassador by Progressive Conservative Prime Minister Brian Mulroney. He resigned as ambassador in 1988 and worked at various United Nations agencies during the 1990s and the 2000s decade, including as the inaugural United Nations special envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa. His son Avi Lewis won the 2026 New Democratic Party leadership election two days before Stephen Lewis died.

Bio from Wikipedia