Robert Ghiz

Robert Watson Joseph Ghiz (born January 21, 1974) is a Canadian politician who served as the 31st premier of Prince Edward Island from 2007 to 2015. He is the son of the 27th premier, Joe Ghiz. On November 13, 2014 Ghiz announced he would be resigning as Premier in early 2015 as soon as the Liberal Party elected a new leader. Life and career Ghiz was born and raised in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island, the son of Rose Ellen (born McGowan) and Joe Ghiz. He served in the Canadian Forces Primary Reserves, while attending high school in the early 1990s. He attended Bishop's University where he earned a bachelor's degree in political science; his father spoke at Ghiz's graduation. Ghiz moved to Ottawa following his father's death from cancer, where he worked as a political aide for Deputy Prime Minister Sheila Copps before joining the Bank of Nova Scotia in 1998. In 2001 Ghiz joined the office of Prime Minister Jean Chrétien where he served as Atlantic Canada advisor before leaving to run for leader of the Prince Edward Island Liberal Party in 2003. Politics In 2003, Ghiz narrowly defeated former provincial Health Minister Alan Buchanan for the leadership of the party and went on to win a seat in the Legislative Assembly of Prince Edward Island in the 2003 provincial election. The MLA for Charlottetown-Rochford Square (now Charlottetown-Brighton) served as Leader of the Official Opposition in the provincial legislature from 2003 to 2007.