Sandra Pupatello (née Pizzolitto; born October 6, 1962) is a politician in Ontario, Canada. She served in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1995 to 2011 as a member of the Ontario Liberal Party, serving as a Minister in the government of Dalton McGuinty. She did not run in the 2011 provincial election and took a position as director of business and global markets at PricewaterhouseCoopers. On November 8, 2012, Pupatello announced her candidacy for the leadership of the Liberal Party of Ontario. On January 26, 2013, she lost to Kathleen Wynne on the third and final ballot. Afterwards, she returned to PricewaterhouseCoopers. Pupatello served as chair of Hydro One from 2014 to 2015. She was the federal Liberal candidate in Windsor West in 2019, coming second to New Democratic Party incumbent Brian Masse. Pupatello is married to Jim Bennett, a former leader of the Newfoundland and Labrador Liberal Party. Early life and career Pupatello was born Sandra Pizzolitto in Windsor, Ontario. She became politically active by campaigning for Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) Herb Gray in the 1970s. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Windsor (1986). She remained in the city after her graduation, serving as general manager of the city's Rotary Club and executive director of the Essex County Kidney Foundation of Canada. She was also a board member of the Windsor Regional Hospital and Windsor Regional Children's Centre, and was president of the Fogolar Furlan Club. Pupatello was named "Italian of the Year" for Windsor-Essex County in 1996, received the Charlie Clark Award for Outstanding Service from the University of Windsor in 2001, and was named "Windsor Woman of the Year" in 2003. Provincial politics Pupatello was first elected to the Ontario legislature in the 1995 provincial election, defeating New Democratic Party candidate Arlene Rousseau by 5,526 votes in Windsor—Sandwich. The seat had previously been held by New Democrat George Dadamo, who did not seek re-election. The Progressive Conservative Party won a majority government in the election, and Pupatello entered the legislature as an opposition Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP). During her first term, she served as Official Opposition Critic for Community and Social Services, Children's issues, Youth Issues, and the Management Board of Cabinet. Pupatello was co-manager of Dwight Duncan's 1996 campaign to lead the Ontario Liberal Party. Like Duncan, she supported Gerard Kennedy on the final ballot. Pupatello was re-elected