Raymond Samuels (born ca. 1968) is a Canadian author, businessman and politician. He is the founder and leader of the unregistered Cosmopolitan Party of Canada, and has campaigned for public office three times. He also uses the names Raymond Samuels II, H. Raymond Samuels II and H. Raymond Carby-Samuels II.[1]
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According to a 1999 Toronto Star article, Samuels has an Honours Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto in international relations and labour-management relations. He is also described as an associate member of the Law Society of England and Wales, although he is not a lawyer.[2]
According to the Cosmopolitan Party website, Samuels worked for the Liberal Party of Canada in the 1988 federal election.[3] He appears to have started the Cosmopolitan Party of Canada for the first time in 1993, when a report in the Ottawa Citizen lists him as having held an open house meeting for the party in Ottawa that attracted about thirty people. Samuels called a "full integration of cultural diversity", and unsuccessfully attempted to register his party with Elections Canada.[4] He later affiliated with Mel Hurtig's National Party of Canada, and campaigned under its banner for Ottawa—Vanier in the 1993 federal election. A newspaper report from this period lists him as twenty-five years old.[5]
Samuels subsequently formed the Cosmopolitan Party of Canada (Ontario) at the provincial level, and registered the party with the Ontario Commission on Election Finances in late 1993. He claimed that the party would "involve more people in decision-making" and develop "a more positive conception of society".[6] He may have intended to field candidates under the party's banner in the 1995 provincial election, but did not do so. Samuels campaigned provincially in the 1999 Ontario general election, and finished eighth out of eight candidates in Trinity—Spadina. He was listed on the ballot as an independent, although earlier in the year he had submitted a request with Elections Ontario to register the "Cosmopolitan/Cosmopolite Party".[7]
Samuels joined the Progressive Conservative party in the late 1990s, presumably as a supporter of David Orchard's leadership campaign. He sought the Progressive Conservative nomination in Ottawa Centre for the 2000 federal election, but lost to David Longbottom, who subsequently resigned.[8] Samuels later affiliated with Paul Hellyer's Canadian Action Party for the election, and finished eighth out of nine candidates in Ottawa—Vanier.
Samuels launched the Cosmopolitan Party of Canada again in 2003, and was announced its first interim leader. The party claimed 600 members in 2004, although this figure has not been independently confirmed. Samuels announced his intention to run in the 2004 federal election for Ottawa Centre, but did not actually appear on the ballot.[9] He described himself as a government relations consultant.[10] The Cosmopolitan Party is unregistered, and does not appear to have fielded any candidates in the 2004 or 2006 elections.
The party's website calls for donations to assist its "Campaign for Public Enterprise". Members are offered a choice of four gifts in return for a $200 donation, one of which is a copy of Samuels's book, National Identity in Canada and Cosmopolitan Community.[11]
A press release from early 2006 lists Samuels as the editor-in-chief of a newspaper called The Canadian. He held a press conference on free trade and violent crime during the 2006 election.[12]
The Cosmopolitan Party under Samuels' leadership describes itself as progressive and centrist. The party's platform (which is written in quasi-religious language) blames the open market economy and the rule of mammon for social inequality in Canada, and calls for government intervention to promote the quality of life. The party also advocates social justice and environmental concerns, and argues that Canadians have a basic right to food, shelter, and other necessities.
Samuels claims that the Cosmopolitan Party follows the legacy of historical figures such as Jean Talon, John A. Macdonald, John Diefenbaker, Tommy Douglas, Lester Pearson, Pierre Trudeau and John Turner. He supports cultural diversity, and strongly opposes Quebec separatism and free trade with the United States of America. He has also championed a proposed social science called "quantuum economics", which is said to combine elements of economics, health and ecology.[13]
Samuels has authored, co-authored and edited several books, all of which are published through "The Agora Cosmopolitan" based in Ottawa. He has over sixty-five titles with registered ISBN numbers, although it is not clear if all are available for purchase.
His political works include the following:
Samuels has also issued several works on e-commerce, and at least two guidebooks on erotica and erotic fiction.
Sources: The Agora (book titles), Blackwell's Online (search for "Raymond Samuels").
Samuels' 1997 book, National Identity in Canada and Cosmopolitan Community, was reviewed by Michael Rappaport in The Varsity, the campus newspaper of the University of Toronto. Rappaport writes that the book is filled with "fiery rhetoric and inane gibberish" and "inflated, incomprehensible prose — chock full of jargon and superfluous words". He summarizes the book's argument as follows: the English and French elites of Canada, along with several prominent social institutions, have promoted official multiculturalism as a means of discriminating against non-English and non-French persons.[14]
Articles and services related to Samuels's career have been featured on a number of interrelated websites. These include:
The stated purpose of this project is to examine electoral issues in Canada. Its earliest article concerns the registration status of the Cosmopolitan Party in the 2004 election.[15] The Cosmopolitan Party's Ottawa address is listed as a contact for advertisers, while The Canadian, the Jesustians, the Agora Book Cafe, the Trudeau Society and the Canadian Association for Research on Capitalistocracy are all linked on the front page.[16] The page is not to be confused with www.elections.ca, the official site of Elections Canada.
The "Jesustians" describe themselves as the "Tommy Douglas Publishing Centre on Spirituality and Social Justice". Their website features prominent articles on both Douglas and Jesus Christ. They have the same mailing address as the Cosmopolitan Party, and Samuels's Capitalism is not Democracy is the only entry in the featured books section.[17]
The stated goal of this project is to defend Pierre Elliot Trudeau's "progressive cosmopolitan" view of Canada as a "Just Society". The Canadian, the Cosmopolitan Party, the Jesustians and the Agora Australia Publishing Consortium are all linked from the site's home page.[18]
This site was once listed as the "Capitalistocracy Book Café", and now as "The Canadian National Newspaper". Three of Samuels's books (Capitalism is not Democracy, Compendium on Capitalistocracy and Corporate Globalization and Constitutionalizing Universal Public Healthcare in Canada) are listed as recommended reading, and several other books by Samuels are listed in the "Featured Books" section.[19]
The Agora Book Café links "Capitalistocracy Books", the Jesustians and "The Canadian national newspaper" on its introductory page. The contact address is the same as that of the Cosmopolitan Party. Quantuum Economics: Wage Slavery or the Quality-of-Life?, co-written by Samuels, is a featured book.[20]
This site lists itself as "Australia's most progressive not-for-profit publishing and distribution consortium". Capitalistocracy, the Agora Book Cafe, The Canadian National Newspaper and the Jesustians are linked from the site's introductory page. Samuels's "The Ozone Layer Conspiracy" is the only featured book.[21]
| 2000 federal election : Ottawa—Vanier edit | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures | ||
| Liberal | (x)Mauril Bélanger | 26,749 | 55.56 | $53,043.71 | ||
| Canadian Alliance | Nestor Gayowsky | 7,600 | 15.79 | $20,746.81 | ||
| Progressive Conservative | Stephen Woollcombe | 7,400 | 15.37 | $12,337.93 | ||
| New Democratic Party | Joseph Zebrowski | 4,194 | 8.71 | $22,013.12 | ||
| Green | Adam Sommerfeld | 1,083 | 2.25 | $1,883.98 | ||
| Marijuana | Raymond Turmel | 728 | 1.51 | $0.00 | ||
| Natural Law | Pierrette Blondin | 187 | 0.39 | $0.00 | ||
| Canadian Action Party | Raymond Samuels | 126 | 0.26 | $2,789.98 | ||
| Marxist-Leninist | Kim Roberge | 74 | 0.15 | $0.00 | ||
| Total valid votes | 48,141 | 100.00 | ||||
| Rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | 292 | |||||
| Turnout | 48,433 | 56.95 | ||||
| Electors on the lists | 85,051 | |||||
Sources: Official Results, Elections Canada and Financial Returns, Elections Canada.
| 1999 Ontario provincial election : Trinity—Spadina edit | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures | ||
| New Democratic Party | (x)Rosario Marchese | 17,110 | 47.89 | $46,546.02 | ||
| Liberal | Albert Koehl | 9,817 | 27.48 | $16,013.80 | ||
| Progressive Conservative | Chris Loreto | 7,323 | 20.50 | $19,195.97 | ||
| Green | Sat Khalsa | 612 | 1.71 | $0.00 | ||
| Natural Law | Ron Robins | 274 | 0.77 | $0.00 | ||
| Ind. (Humanist) | Roberto Verdecchia | 258 | 0.72 | $170.00 | ||
| Freedom | Silvio Ursomarzo | 182 | 0.51 | $0.00 | ||
| Ind. (Cosmopolitan/ Cosmopolite) |
Raymond Samuels | 154 | 0.43 | $1,880.00 | ||
| Total valid votes | 35,730 | 100.00 | ||||
| Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | 647 | |||||
| Turnout | 36,377 | 52.05 | ||||
| Electors on the lists | 69,882 | |||||
| 1993 federal election : Ottawa—Vanier edit | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | Expenditures | ||
| Liberal | (x)Jean-Robert Gauthier | 34,224 | 70.47 | $41,407 | ||
| Progressive Conservative | Marie-Christine Lemire | 5,116 | 10.53 | $21,151 | ||
| Reform | Sam Dancey | 3,830 | 7.89 | $8,694 | ||
| New Democratic Party | Willie Dunn | 3,155 | 6.50 | $15,168 | ||
| Green | Frank de Jong | 652 | 1.34 | $0 | ||
| National | Raymond Samuels | 532 | 1.10 | $1,381 | ||
| Independent | David Talbot | 445 | 0.92 | $1,047 | ||
| Natural Law | Roger Bouchard | 438 | 0.90 | $37 | ||
| Marxist-Leninist | Serge Lafortune | 141 | 0.29 | $135 | ||
| Abolitionist | Steven Edward White | 31 | 0.06 | $108 | ||
| Total valid votes | 48,564 | 100.00 | ||||
| Rejected, unmarked and declined ballots | 517 | |||||
| Turnout | 49,081 | 62.43 | ||||
| Electors on the lists | 78,617 | |||||
Source: Thirty-fifth General Election, 1993: Official Voting Results, Published by the Chief Electoral Officer of Canada. Financial figures taken from official contributions and expenses provided by Elections Canada.
All federal election information is taken from Elections Canada. All provincial election information is taken from Elections Ontario. Italicized expenditures refer to submitted totals, and are presented when the final reviewed totals are not available.
The 1999 expenditure entries are taken from official candidate reports as listed by Elections Ontario. The figures cited are the Total Candidate's Campaign Expenses Subject to Limitation, and include transfers from constituency associations.