Obie Baizley

Who was Obie Baizley?

William Obadiah Baizley was a politician in Manitoba, Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1959 to 1969, and served as a cabinet minister in the governments of Dufferin Roblin and Walter Weir.

Born in Montreal, Quebec, Baizley was educated at Glenlawn Collegiate in St. Vital, Manitoba and the Lincoln Chiropractic College in Indiana. He returned to Manitoba in 1937 and worked as a chiropractor, also serving as president of the Manitoba Chiropractors' Association before entering political life. During World War II, he was a member of the Royal Canadian Air Force.

He was first elected to the Manitoba legislature in the 1959 provincial election, unexpectedly defeating CCF leader Lloyd Stinson by 326 votes in the south-central Winnipeg riding of Osborne. He served as a backbench supporter of Roblin's government for the next four years.

Re-elected without difficulty in the 1962 provincial election, Baizley was appointed to cabinet on February 27, 1963 as Minister of Labour. He held this position until September 24, 1968, when he was named Minister of Municipal Affairs. He endorsed Walter Weir to succeed Roblin as Progressive Conservative leader in 1967.