Owen, David (1938-…), is a British politician who led the Social Democratic Party (SDP) from 1983 to 1987. He resigned as leader after SDP members voted to merge with the Liberal Party (now the Liberal Democrats). The Liberal Party and the SDP had worked as partners in two general elections. Owen, who helped found the original SDP, became leader of a new SDP in 1988. He disbanded the party after a poor showing in elections in 1990.
Owen had been secretary of state for foreign and commonwealth affairs in a Labour Party government from 1977 to 1979. In 1981, following internal disputes within the Labour Party, Owen resigned and helped form the SDP.
David Anthony Llewelyn Owen was born on July 2, 1938, in Plymouth, England. He studied medicine at Cambridge University and in several hospitals in London. Owen entered Parliament in 1966. He was made Baron Owen in 1992. He acted as a diplomat in Bosnia-Herzegovina from 1992 to 1995.
