He served in the Legislative Assembly of Manitoba from 1958 to 1962, at first for the Cooperative Commonwealth Federation and later for its successor party, the NDP.
[1] Of German and Ukrainian background, Wagner was educated in Manitoba and worked as a farmer.
Before entering politics, he was president of the local Cooperative Association and the Pool Association, also serving as chair of the local school board and as director of the Manitoba Farmer's Union[1] in 1957.
Wagner was defeated under controversial circumstances in the 1962 provincial election, losing to Progressive Conservative Emil Moeller[3] by 87 votes.
[citation needed] Wagner ran again in the 1966 election, but lost to Progressive Conservative Peter Masniuk[3] by 112 votes.