[3] He was born in Wellington County, Canada West, the son of William J.
Short subsequently purchased a farm, where he grew grain and raised cattle and horses.
[1] He served on the council for the Rural Municipality of Shoal Lake and was reeve from 1907 to 1922.
[4] He ran for the Manitoba legislature in the 1922 provincial election as a candidate of the United Farmers of Manitoba (UFM),[3] and defeated Liberal candidate William Iverach by 597 votes in the Birtle constituency.
Short served as a backbench supporter of John Bracken's administration for the next five years.