Sam Drover

Who was Sam Drover?

Sam Drover was a longtime member of Newfoundland's House of Assembly and founded the Newfoundland Co-operative Commonwealth Federation, a social democratic political party.

He was originally elected as a Liberal member of the House of Assembly in the 1949 election, which was the first after the Dominion of Newfoundland joined the Canadian confederation as a province. Drover became disenchanted with Premier Joey Smallwood's government because he believed that it ignored the problems of rural poverty.

He crossed the floor to the CCF in 1955, becoming the first CCF member in Newfoundland. He helped form the new party and became its leader. The CCF fielded ten candidates in the 1956 election. The party won no seats, however, and he lost his own seat in the riding now known as Trinity North. It would take three decades before the CCF's successor, the New Democratic Party, was able to win a seat in the legislature.

Prior to his election, Drover had already established himself as a leader in his community as a teacher, a member of the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary, and member of the Newfoundland Ranger Force.