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Walter Maxfield Lea, politician, premier of PEI 1930-31 and 1935-36 (b at Tryon, PEI 10 Feb 1874; d at Charlottetown 10 Jan 1936). A successful farmer and livestock breeder, Lea was the first agriculturalist to lead PEI.
Lea, Walter Maxfield
Walter Maxfield Lea, politician, premier of PEI 1930-31 and 1935-36 (b at Tryon, PEI 10 Feb 1874; d at Charlottetown 10 Jan 1936). A successful farmer and livestock breeder, Lea was the first agriculturalist to lead PEI. Elected to the Assembly in 1915 as a Liberal, he became commissioner (minister) of agriculture in 1919. On 30 May 1930 Lea became premier, attending the Dominion-Provincial Conference (1930), but resigned 29 August 1931. Illness during the 1935 general election forced him to direct a campaign from his bed, which resulted in the first sweep of seats in a parliamentary democracy. His second term as premier lasted until his death.
