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Randy Boissonnault

The Honourable
Randy Boissonnault
PC MP
Boissonnault in 2014
Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages
In office
July 26, 2023 – November 20, 2024
Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau
Preceded byCarla Qualtrough
Succeeded byGinette Petitpas Taylor
Minister of Tourism
Associate Minister of Finance
In office
October 26, 2021 – July 26, 2023
Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau
Preceded byMona Fortier
(as Associate Minister of Finance)
Succeeded bySoraya Martinez Ferrada
Member of Parliament
for Edmonton Centre
Incumbent
Assumed office
September 20, 2021
Preceded byJames Cumming
In office
October 19, 2015 – October 21, 2019
Preceded byLaurie Hawn
Succeeded byJames Cumming
Special Advisor to the Prime Minister on LGBTQ2 Issues
In office
November 15, 2016 – September 11, 2019
Prime MinisterJustin Trudeau
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byVacant
Personal details
Born
Randy Paul Andrew Boissonnault[1]

(1970-07-14) July 14, 1970 (age 54)
Morinville, Alberta, Canada
Political partyLiberal
Alma materUniversity of Alberta
Corpus Christi College, Oxford
WebsiteOfficial website

Randy Paul Andrew Boissonnault PC MP (born July 14, 1970) is a Canadian politician who is the member of Parliament (MP) for Edmonton Centre. A member of the Liberal Party, he was initially elected to the House of Commons in the 2015 federal election and served until his defeat in 2019. He later went on to win back his seat in 2021. Boissonnault held several ministerial roles, including Minister of Tourism and Associate Minister of Finance from 2021 to 2023 and Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Official Languages from 2023 to 2024, when he resigned from Cabinet.[2][3] Notably, he was one of five openly gay MPs elected in 2015 and the first openly gay MP elected from Alberta.[4][5]

Early life

Boissonnault was born in the Franco-Albertan town of Morinville, Alberta,[6] on July 14, 1970.

After graduating from the University of Alberta, Boissonault studied at the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar.[6] He subsequently worked as a lecturer at the University of Alberta's Campus Saint-Jean and as a journalist and political commentator for Radio-Canada and Les Affaires.[7]

Political career

Boissonnault was elected in the 2015 election in the riding of Edmonton Centre, the first Liberal MP to win in the riding for almost a decade.[6]

Upon being sworn in as a MP, Boissonnault was named Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage.[6]

On November 15, 2016, Boissonnault was named special advisor on LGBTQ2 issues to the Prime Minister.[8] The role involves advising Trudeau "on the development and co-ordination of the Government of Canada’s LGBTQ2 agenda" including protecting LGBT rights in Canada and addressing both present and historical discrimination.[8]

He was defeated in the 2019 election. On July 14, 2021, he was acclaimed as the Edmonton Centre Liberal candidate for the next Canadian federal election.[9] He won the election on September 20, 2021, defeating James Cumming, who had previously defeated him in 2019.

In Cabinet

Boissonnault was appointed the minister of tourism and associate minister of finance in a Cabinet shuffle following the 2021 federal election.[10]

His last position in cabinet was serving as Minister of Employment, Workforce Development, and Official Languages following a cabinet shuffle in the summer of 2023. He is the first Franco-Albertan to be appointed to the position of Minister for Official Languages.

Boissonnault was part owner of Global Health Imports (GHI), a medical supply company. In January of 2024 GHI won a $28,300 contract from the Government of Canada.[11] The award of this contract was not publicly-reported for seven months, at least two months later than the requirement to disclose under Canada's access laws. [12] He received criticism for these dealings, which he blamed on a business partner in a social media statement. He is currently under a probe by the House ethics committee, and the afformentioned business partner is under police investigation.

Boissonnault received further criticism after his conflicting statements about his Indigenous heritage came to light. He claimed to be a "non-status adopted Cree" person, but was revealed to have Métis ancestry through his adoptive great-grandmother. He sat in the Liberal Indigenous caucus, which he described as “allyship”. He resigned from cabinet on November 20, 2024, days after the allegations resurfaced.[13] In December 2024, he testified before the Canadian House of Commons Standing Committee on Indigenous and Northern Affairs that he was not Indigenous.[14]

Election results

2021 Canadian federal election: Edmonton Centre
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
Liberal Randy Boissonnault 16,560 33.7 +0.6 $109,821.36
Conservative James Cumming 15,945 32.4 -9.05 $81,069.18
New Democratic Heather MacKenzie 14,171 28.8 +8.16 $50,495.97
People's Brock Crocker 2,094 4.3 +2.78 $3,172.62
Libertarian Valerie Keefe 266 0.5 - $0.00
Marxist–Leninist Merryn Edwards 112 0.2 +0.05 $0.00
Total valid votes/Expense limit 49,148 – – $110,160.12
Total rejected ballots 342
Turnout 49,490
Eligible voters 78,769
Liberal gain from Conservative Swing +4.83
Source: Elections Canada[15]
2019 Canadian federal election: Edmonton Centre
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
Conservative James Cumming 22,006 41.45 +6.50 none listed
Liberal Randy Boissonnault 17,524 33.01 -4.18 none listed
New Democratic Katherine Swampy 10,959 20.64 -3.81 $53,174.12
Green Grad Murray 1,394 2.63 +0.00 none listed
People's Paul Hookham 805 1.52 - $5,550.42
Rhinoceros Donovan Eckstrom 206 0.39 -0.09 $0.00
Independent Adil Pirbhai 119 0.22 $3,475.90
Marxist–Leninist Peggy Morton 79 0.15 - $0.00
Total valid votes/expense limit 53,092 99.32
Total rejected ballots 362 0.68 +0.24
Turnout 53,454 64.32 -2.72
Eligible voters 83,112
Conservative gain from Liberal Swing +5.34
Source: Elections Canada[16][17][18]
2015 Canadian federal election: Edmonton Centre
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
Liberal Randy Boissonnault 19,902 37.19 +13.46 $126,839.87
Conservative James Cumming 18,703 34.95 -11.25 $132,838.67
New Democratic Gil McGowan 13,084 24.45 -1.37 $109,525.67
Green David Parker 1,403 2.62 -0.94 $113.87
Rhinoceros Steven Stauffer 257 0.48 – –
Independent Kat Yaki 163 0.30 – $2,097.91
Total valid votes/expense limit 53,512 99.56   $211,594.41
Total rejected ballots 234 0.44 –
Turnout 53,746 67.04 –
Eligible voters 80,173
Liberal gain from Conservative Swing +12.35
Source: Elections Canada[19][20]

References

  1. ^ The Canadian Ministry (by order of precedence
  2. ^ "Boissonnault out of cabinet after shifting claims about Indigenous heritage". CBC News. November 20, 2024.
  3. ^ "Riding profile: Edmonton Centre". Edmonton Journal. Retrieved March 21, 2020.
  4. ^ "Hedy Fry wins decisively as Liberals sweep Canada for majority" Archived January 13, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. Daily Xtra, October 20, 2015.
  5. ^ "Edmonton's newest Liberal, Randy Boissonnault, got taste for politics at U of A and wanted to bring generational change to national politics". Edmonton Journal", October 21, 2015
  6. ^ a b c d Estabrooks, Trisha (May 2016). "A Force of Nature: From Morinville to Oxford to Ottawa, Randy Boissonnault hasn't let anything stand in the way of getting what he wants". Avenue Edmonton. Retrieved November 3, 2017.
  7. ^ http://randyboissonnault.liberal.ca/biography/ Randy Boissonault - Biography - Liberal.ca
  8. ^ a b "Feds name gay MP as ‘LGBTQ2 issues’ advisor" Archived June 1, 2017, at the Wayback Machine. Daily Xtra, November 15, 2016.
  9. ^ "Edmonton Centre Acclamation Notice | Liberal Party of Canada". liberal.ca. Retrieved July 16, 2021.
  10. ^ Curry, Bill; Kirkup, Kristy; Raman-Wilms, Menaka; Dickson, Janice (October 26, 2021). "Trudeau cabinet shuffle: Anita Anand moves to Defence, Steven Guilbeault to Environment, Mélanie Joly to Foreign Affairs". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved October 26, 2021.
  11. ^ "Boissonnault's former company awarded federal contract in potential conflict of interest | Globalnews.ca".
  12. ^ "Why the contract won by Boissonnault's former company went undisclosed for months | Globalnews.ca".
  13. ^ Tasker, John Paul (November 20, 2024). "Boissonnault out of cabinet after shifting claims about Indigenous heritage". CBC News. Retrieved November 20, 2024.
  14. ^ Ritchie, Sarah (December 5, 2024). "Former cabinet minister Randy Boissonnault tells committee: 'I am not Indigenous'". CBC.
  15. ^ "List of confirmed candidates – September 20, 2021 Federal Election". Elections Canada. Retrieved September 2, 2021.
  16. ^ "List of confirmed candidates". Elections Canada. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  17. ^ "Official Voting Results". Elections Canada. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  18. ^ "Candidate Campaign Returns". Elections Canada. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
  19. ^ "Official Voting Results". Elections Canada. February 29, 2016. Retrieved July 14, 2021.
  20. ^ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates Archived August 15, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
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