Stephen Harper

The Right Honourable Stephen Harper led Canada through the world’s most complex geopolitical, economic and security challenges as the country’s twenty-second Prime Minister for nearly ten years.

During his tenure in international forums such as the G-7 and G-20, NATO, and the United Nations, Mr. Harper was known for a frank, assertive leadership style defined by principled diplomacy, disciplined economic policy, a strong stance on international peace and security, and passionate defense of freedom and human dignity.

Mr. Harper created the modern Conservative Party of Canada, won three successive national elections, and was the longest-serving Conservative Prime Minister since Canada’s founding Prime Minister in 1891. Under his watch, Canada emerged from the 2008 economic crisis faster and stronger than its peers.

Among his many accomplishments in office, Mr. Harper brought federal taxes to their lowest level in 50 years, balanced the budget while making investments in health care and infrastructure, overhauled the criminal justice system, and expanded Canada’s international trade network tenfold. On the international stage, Prime Minister Harper undertook a principled foreign policy working closely with Canada’s G7 and other partners and stood staunchly by besieged allies Israel and Ukraine. An economist by training, Mr. Harper helped shape financial reform frameworks at the G-20 table, implemented a sustainable approach to fiscal stimulus, and led the call for open markets founded pragmatic, growth-oriented economic policy.