William Sexsmith

Who was William Sexsmith?

William Raymond Sexsmith was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba as a Conservative representative from 1933 until his death.

Sexsmith was born in Napanee, Ontario. He moved to Manitoba at a young age, and was educated in Portage La Prairie. He was called to the Manitoba bar in 1915, was a partner in the law firm of Arthur Meighen and also served as president of the Canadian Hockey Association and the Manitoba Hockey Association, as well as president of the Portage la Prairie Rink Co. Ltd. He married Mildred Howell in 1927. In 1937, Sexsmith was named King's Counsel.

Sexsmith was secretary-treasurer of the Conservative association in the Portage la Prairie constituency for twenty-five years prior to his election.

He was first elected to the legislature in a by-election held on November 27, 1933, defeating independent candidate E.A. Gilroy by 236 votes. He again defeated Gilroy, who was by this time a Liberal-Progressive candidate, in the 1936 provincial election. The Conservatives were the primary opposition party in Manitoba during this period, and Sexsmith sat with his party on the opposition benches.