Harry Strom

Harry Strom
Strom, c. 1970
9th Premier of Alberta
In office December 12, 1968 – September 10, 1971
Monarch	Elizabeth II
Lieutenant Governor	Grant MacEwan
Preceded by	Ernest Manning
Succeeded by	Peter Lougheed
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta
In office June 29, 1955 – March 25, 1975
Preceded by	James Underdahl
Succeeded by	Alan Hyland
Constituency	Cypress
Alberta Minister of Municipal Affairs
In office July 16, 1968 – December 12, 1968
Preceded by	Edgar Gerhart
Succeeded by	Edgar Gerhart
Alberta Minister of Agriculture
In office October 15, 1962 – July 16, 1968
Preceded by	Leonard Halmrast
Succeeded by	Henry Ruste
Leader of the Official Opposition in Alberta
In office December 10, 1971 – November 22, 1972
Preceded by	Peter Lougheed
Succeeded by	James Henderson
Personal details
Born	Harry Edwin Strom (1914-07-07)July 7, 1914 Burdett, Alberta, Canada
Died	October 2, 1984(1984-10-02) (aged 70) Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Resting place	Medicine Hat, Alberta, Canada
Political party	Social Credit
Spouse	Ruth Johnson
Children	6
Profession	Farmer
Signature

Harry Edwin Strom (July 7, 1914 – October 2, 1984) was the ninth premier of Alberta, from 1968 to 1971. His two-and-a-half years as Premier were the last of the thirty-six-year Social Credit dynasty, as his defeat by Peter Lougheed saw its replacement by a new era Progressive Conservative government. He is remembered as an honest, decent man who lacked the political skills of his predecessor, Ernest Manning, or of Lougheed.

Alberta's first native-born Premier, Strom was born in Burdett, Alberta. He worked most of his young adult life on the family farm, and was also actively involved in his church. After a stint in municipal politics, he ran for the Legislative Assembly of Alberta in the 1955 provincial election, and was elected. In 1962, Manning appointed him to his cabinet as Minister of Agriculture, a position he held until 1967 when he was appointed Minister of Municipal Affairs. When Manning decided to resign in 1968, Strom became a candidate to succeed him, and finished on top of a six candidate field.

As Premier, Strom undertook a number of initiatives, especially in education and youth-related fields, but was politically ineffective. He lacked both charisma and an overriding sense of purpose, and his government gradually lost popularity. In the 1971 election, his government was handily defeated by Lougheed's Progressive Conservatives. Strom served as opposition leader for two years, but soon relinquished the position and did not seek re-election in 1975. After leaving politics, Strom returned to farming. He died in 1984.