Her first foray into politics was as the Liberal candidate for the riding of Edmonton Northwest in the 1993 general election, when she won her seat by 12 votes over the first runner-up candidate. She quickly became a rising star in the Liberal Party, being one of four Liberals elected in Alberta, and was named to cabinet as Minister of Natural Resources. McLellan has the prenominal "the Honourable" and the postnominal "PC" for life by virtue of being made a member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada on November 4, 1993.[3]
Ahead of the 1997 election, Edmonton Northwest was abolished in changes to the boundaries of the federal ridings. She was re-elected by narrow margins in the re-established riding of Edmonton West in 1997 and 2000, despite the Liberals' general unpopularity in Alberta.[4] Her narrow victory in 1993 earned her the nickname "Landslide Annie" in Canadian political circles.[5]
Though she supported Paul Martin for the Liberal leadership, Jean Chrétien retained her in his cabinet, in part because Chrétien wanted an Albertan in his cabinet for the sake of regional representation.[2]
Deputy prime minister
On being sworn in as Prime Minister on December 12, 2003, Paul Martin named her his deputy prime minister. McLellan was also named minister for the newly created Department of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness.[8] As Deputy Prime Minister, she was also chair of the Cabinet Operations Committee.[9] McLellan's appointment was one of a number of women given senior positions in the Paul Martin government.[10]
In the 2006 federal election, the Conservatives won government and Hawn defeated McLellan by 45.01% to 38.36%.
McLellan is one of the few Canadian parliamentarians to have spent her entire career as a cabinet member.[citation needed] This is due to the fact that McLellan was elected to parliament as a Liberal from Alberta, a historically weak province for the party. Serving as the only Liberal MP from the province, her inclusion as a cabinet member, and later elevation as Deputy Prime Minister, was tantamount to ensuring regional representation.[11]
After politics
On May 12, 2006, McLellan was appointed Distinguished Scholar in Residence to the University of Alberta at the Canadian university's Institute for United States Policy Studies. On June 27, 2006, she also became counsel to the Edmonton-based law firm Bennett Jones LLP. She also became a director on the boards of Nexen Inc., Agrium Inc. and Cameco Corporation.[12]
McClellan is currently Chair of the Board of Directors of Pearson College UWC in Victoria, B.C. Pearson is one of 18 global United World Colleges in the world.
On July 1, 2009, McLellan was appointed an officer of the Order of Canada for her service as a politician and law professor, and for her contributions as a community volunteer. On May 9, 2013, she was appointed to the Alberta Order of Excellence for her achievements in politics, law and advanced education.[13]
In 2016, McLellan was controversially appointed as the chair of the Task Force on Marijuana Legalization and Regulation, created to provide recommendations on the design of a new system to legalize, strictly regulate and restrict recreational use of marijuana, despite her position within Bennett Jones.[16][17] The process included an opportunity for the public to provide their own input. On December 13, 2016, the panel's report was released to the news media; its recommendations were not binding on the legislators.[18]
On November 28, 2017, Pearson College UWC named her the chair of its board of directors.[19]
On March 18, 2019, in the context of the SNC-Lavalin affair Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, announced that McLellan would serve as a special advisor on whether a single minister should continue to hold the positions of Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada. She was also asked to analyze the operating policies and practices across the Cabinet, and the role of public servants and political staff in their interactions with the minister of justice and attorney general of Canada. She was asked to provide independent recommendations (sic) to the Prime Minister by June 30, 2019.[20]
On July 23, 2020 it was announced by Nova Scotia justice minister Mark Furey and federal minister of public safety and emergency preparedness Bill Blair that McLellan would serve on a 3-person Independent Review Panel concerning the RCMP response to the mass shooting that occurred in Nova Scotia on April 18/19, 2020.[23] Families of the 22 victims killed during the shooting reacted to the announcement with disappointment, as they had been calling for a full public inquiry.[24][25]
Notes
^There was no deputy prime minister from February 6, 2006, until November 20, 2019.
