A number of Conservative politicians celebrated the 210th birthday of Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first prime minister and one of the key architects of the nation’s creation.
Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre led the Jan. 11 tributes to the founding figure born in 1815 in Glasgow, Scotland, highlighting his role in the birth of the Canadian Confederation.
“Today, we honour Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first Prime Minister, on his birthday,” Poilievre wrote in a post on the social media platform X. “A nation-builder, he brought Canada together through Confederation and the Canadian Pacific Railway, laying the foundation for a strong and prosperous country. Without his vision, Canada would not exist today.”
Conservative Senator Leo Housakos also shared his praise on social media. Macdonald’s “vision and leadership laid the foundation of our great nation!” the senator wrote in a Jan. 11 post.
John Rustad, leader of the Conservative Party of British Columbia, highlighted Macdonald’s contributions to uniting the country and called for continuing that spirit. “Canada is worth fighting for—Canadians are hardworking, decent people who value family, community, & country,” Rustad wrote on X. “Let’s keep up the fight.”
Former Conservative Industry Minister James Moore also expressed admiration for the founding father. “Happy birthday Sir John A Macdonald. Without his vision, stamina and smarts, Canada would not exist,” he wrote on X.
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Macdonald, who served as prime minister from 1867 to 1873 and again from 1878 to 1891, played a central role in Confederation, bringing together the British North American colonies of Ontario, Quebec, New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia to form a single country, the Dominion of Canada, under a federal government.
Macdonald’s vision for a united nation was further advanced through initiation of the Canadian Pacific Railway, a transcontinental project that ultimately connected Canada from coast to coast.
