List of the first openly LGBT holders of political offices in Canada explained
The following is a list of the first openly LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender) holders of elected or appointed political office in Canada.
LGBT people have served at all three main levels of political office in Canada: municipal, provincial and federal. As of 2022, every Canadian province and territory has been represented by at least one out LGBTQ officeholder.
In addition to the milestones noted below, Canada has also had a number of prominent politicians who were not out as LGBT during their careers in politics, either coming out after they retired or being officially outed only in posthumous biographical sources, as well as openly LGBT politicians whose election or appointment to office was not a historically significant first as other LGBT people had already held the same office before them. For a more thorough list of Canadian LGBTQ politicians regardless of whether they represented historic firsts or not, see also List of LGBT politicians in Canada.
First overall
- First openly gay political candidate, regardless of electoral status: Peter Maloney ran for a seat on the Toronto Board of Education in the 1972 Toronto municipal election as an openly gay candidate.[1] (He had previously been an Ontario Liberal Party candidate in St. George in the 1971 Ontario provincial election, and some later biographical sources have stated that he ran as an openly gay candidate at that time as well,[2] but no indication of his sexuality is seen in any media coverage of the 1971 election. The first known coverage of Maloney which makes any reference to his sexuality is of a party policy conference in early 1972, several months after the election was over.)[3] Robert Douglas Cook, a Gay Alliance Toward Equality candidate for the electoral district of West Vancouver-Howe Sound in the 1979 British Columbia provincial election, has been credited with this distinction by some media outlets,[4] but was in fact merely the first to run as a candidate of an explicitly gay-identified political organization rather than a traditional political party or for a non-partisan office.
- First transgender candidate, regardless of electoral status: Jamie Lee Hamilton ran for Vancouver's Park Board in 1996.[5] Christin Milloy, an Ontario Libertarian Party candidate in the 2011 provincial election in Ontario, was the first transgender candidate in a provincial election.[6] Jennifer McCreath, a Strength in Democracy candidate in Avalon in the 2015 federal election, was the first transgender candidate in a federal election.[7] Trevor Kirczenow was Liberal candidate in Provencher in the 2019 federal election, becoming the first openly transgender candidate nominated by a major party in a federal election.[8]
- First openly gay person elected to office: Raymond Blain (Montreal City Council, 1986) is commonly credited with this distinction, although Maurice Richard, who was elected to the National Assembly of Quebec in 1985 after coming out as gay sometime during his term as mayor of Bécancour, Quebec from 1976 to 1985, predated him and the story was simply not picked up by national media until later on.[4] Out lesbian Sue Harris won election to the Vancouver Park Board in 1984.[9] Jim Egan (Comox-Strathcona Regional District board, 1981) may also have predated all of them, although sources are unclear on whether he ran as an openly gay candidate at the time.
- First transgender person elected to office: Julie Lemieux was elected to the municipal council of Très-Saint-Rédempteur in the 2013 municipal election, and later ran for and won the mayoralty of the village in the subsequent 2017 municipal election. Although reported as a lesbian-identified woman at the time of their election to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta in 2015, Estefan Cortes-Vargas came out as non-binary in an assembly debate later in the year.
Federal
Parliament
Blake Desjarlais (NDP) – elected 2021 [12]
At least two federal MPs who predated Robinson, Heward Grafftey and Charles Lapointe, and one who was first elected alongside him in 1979, Ian Waddell, are known to have come out as gay or bisexual after their retirement from politics.[16] [17] [18]
By provincial delegation
As of 2024, seven of Canada's ten provinces have elected at least one LGBT MP to the House of Commons or had an LGBT senator appointed from their province.
- British Columbia
- Nova Scotia
- Ontario
- Quebec
- Saskatchewan
- Alberta
Blake Desjarlais, MP (NDP) – elected 2021
-
- Newfoundland and Labrador
Cabinet
Parties
Provincial and territorial
As of 2024, every Canadian province and territory has elected at least one out LGBTQ member to its provincial or territorial legislature.
The provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Nova Scotia and Quebec and the territory of Yukon have had more than one LGBT member, and all have had both gay men and lesbian women serve in the legislatures. The other provinces and territories have had only one each to date. Alberta, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Ontario, and Yukon have also had elected MLAs who identified as non-binary.
Some figures, including Ian Scott, Keith Norton, Phil Gillies, Dave Cooke and Dominic Agostino in Ontario, Claude Charron and Guy Joron in Quebec, Andrew Thomson in Saskatchewan and Richard Hatfield in New Brunswick, predated the firsts listed here but were not out to the general public during their time in politics.
To date, most LGBT people who have served in provincial or territorial legislatures have represented urban districts in larger cities, while very few have ever served in a purely rural district.[4]
- Lieutenant Governor
- Provincial Premier
- Female: Kathleen Wynne (Ontario) – 2013 (First female premier of Ontario, first openly LGBT premier in Canada)
- Male: Wade MacLauchlan (Prince Edward Island) – 2015[29]
- One provincial premier, Richard Hatfield in New Brunswick, predated Wynne but was not out as gay during his political career, instead being outed only after his death.
- Provincial Deputy Premier
- Provincial cabinet minister:
- Leader of a provincial party: Allison Brewer (New Brunswick New Democratic Party) – 2005
- Leader of a provincial party with seats in a legislature: André Boisclair (Parti Québécois) – 2005
- Provincial and territorial legislators:
Estefan Cortes-Vargas, 2015[31] Cortes-Vargas publicly identified as a lesbian woman at the time of their election to the legislature,[32] and came out as non-binary during a debate in the legislature later in the year.
Brooks Arcand-Paul, 2023[33]
Gerry Rogers, 2011
Wade MacLauchlan, 2015
Julie Green, 2015
Janet Brewster, elected 2021, came out 2022[34]
Luke Randall, 2024
- Note: Although Randall was the first out LGBTQ person elected to the assembly, Richard Hatfield previously served from 1961 to 1987, but was not openly gay during his political career and was outed only after his death.
Municipal
Overall firsts
Mayors
- Mayor of any municipality: Maurice Richard served as mayor of Bécancour, Quebec from 1975 to 1985. Contemporary biographical sources indicate that he came out as gay sometime during his mayoralty, but are not clear about when; it is known, however, that he was out as gay by the time of his campaign for election to the National Assembly of Quebec in 1985.[4] After serving in the provincial legislature from 1985 to 1994 as its first openly LGBT member, he was reelected to another stint as mayor of Bécancour in 1995.
- Mayor of a major city: Glen Murray (Winnipeg) – 1998 (credited as first openly gay major of a major city in North America)
- Transgender mayor: Julie Lemieux was elected mayor of Très-Saint-Rédempteur in the 2017 municipal election.
One mayor, Charlotte Whitton in Ottawa (1951–56, 1961–64), has been the subject of unresolved debate about her sexual orientation. Whitton spent much of her adult life in a Boston marriage-style living arrangement with another woman, Margaret Grier; in 1999, 24 years after Whitton's death, the National Archives of Canada publicly released many intimate personal letters between Whitton and Grier. The release of these papers sparked much debate in the Canadian media about whether Whitton and Grier's relationship could be characterized as lesbian, or merely as an emotionally intimate friendship between two unmarried women. Whitton never publicly identified herself as lesbian during her lifetime, and thus could not be considered Canada's first out LGBT mayor regardless of the status of her relationship with Grier.
City councillors
- First city councillor: At the last caretaker meeting of Tecumseh, Ontario's municipal council following the 1980 municipal elections, outgoing councillor and unsuccessful mayoral candidate Cameron Frye acknowledged that he was gay.[35] The campaign had been marked by rumours about Frye's sexuality, including the distribution of hate literature claiming that Frye would promote a "gay lifestyle" as mayor and would lead the town into "moral decay",[36] although Frye refused to confirm or deny the claims about his sexuality during the campaign.[37] Frye was first elected to the municipal council in 1972.[37]
- First city councillor already out at first election: Raymond Blain (Montreal), 1986
School Board Trustee
- First trans school board trustee: Lyra Evans[38] was elected in October 2018.
By province
Alberta
- City councillor in Edmonton:
- City councillor in Red Deer: Paul Harris – 2010
- City councillor in Calgary: Jeromy Farkas – 2017[41]
British Columbia
- City councillor in Trail: Paul Butler – 2018 to present
- Town councillor in Golden: Joy Guyot – 2022 to present
- City councillor in Vancouver:
- City councillor in Esquimalt: Randall Garrison – 2008[45]
- City councillor in Cumberland: Conner Copeman – 2011[46]
- Mayor of Victoria: Lisa Helps – 2014 to 2022 and Marianne Alto – 2022
- Mayor of Whistler: Ted Nebbeling – 1990 to 1996 [47]
Manitoba
- City councillor in Winnipeg: Glen Murray – 1989[48]
New Brunswick
- Mayor of Caraquet: Kevin Haché – 2012[49]
- Municipal councillor in Quispamsis: Noah Donovan — 2021.
Newfoundland and Labrador
- Deputy mayor in Harbour Grace, Newfoundland and Labrador: Sonia Williams – 2013
- Municipal councillor in Wabana, Bell Island: Donovan Taplin – 2013. [50]
- Transgender municipal councillor: Charlotte Gauthier, Gillams – 2020[51]
Nova Scotia
- City councillor in Halifax: Krista Snow – 2003[52]
- Municipal Councillor in Region of Queens: Brian Fralic – 2012[53]
- Mayor of Cape Breton Regional Municipality: Cecil Clarke – elected 2012[54] [Came out: 2018]
Ontario
- Barrie: Keenan Aylwin – city councillor, elected 2018[55]
- Brant: David Bailey – mayor, elected 2018[56]
- Cochrane: Devon Prevost – town councillor, elected 2014
- Fort Frances: Douglas Judson – town councillor, elected 2018
- Goderich: Kevin Morrison – mayor, elected 2014[57]
- Hamilton: Aidan Johnson – city councillor, elected 2014[58]
- London: Shawn Lewis - city councillor, elected 2018[59]
- North Dundas: Eric Duncan – mayor; elected 2010, came out 2017[60]
- Ottawa:
- Sioux Lookout: Reece Van Breda - town councillor, elected 2022
- Tillsonburg: Mark Renaud – city councillor, elected 2003
- Toronto:
- Male: Kyle Rae – city councillor, elected 1991[65]
- Female: Kristyn Wong-Tam – city councillor, elected 2010[66] (Note: Wong-Tam later came out as non-binary after moving to provincial politics, but identified as a lesbian woman throughout their municipal career.)
Quebec
- City councillor in Montreal:
Saskatchewan
- City councillor in Prince Albert:
- Male: Evert Botha – 2016[68]
- City councillor in Saskatoon:
- Male: Darren Hill – 2006[69]
- Female: Lenore Swystun – 2000
- Mayor of La Ronge: Colin Ratushniak – 2020[70]
- Town councillor in Biggar: Dakota Ekman – 2020
See also
Notes and References
- "Homosexual plans to run for seat on school board". Toronto Star, July 25, 1972.
- http://www.dailyxtra.com/toronto/news-and-ideas/news/elegy-club-toronto-6474 "Elegy to Club Toronto"
- "Maloney tells Liberals of his homosexuality". The Globe and Mail, February 14, 1972.
- EVERITT, J., & CAMP, M. (2014). "In versus Out: LGBT Politicians in Canada". Journal of Canadian Studies, 48(1), 226-251.
- Peace River Block News Dawson Creek, BC; 1995 December 15, page 8.
- Web site: Trans candidate makes Canadian history in Ontario. Daily Xtra. September 27, 2011. 2016-06-23.
- http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/jennifer-mccreath-running-for-federal-election-in-avalon-1.3168431 "Jennifer McCreath running for federal election in Avalon"
- Web site: Braun. Daryl. Former WSO Violinist Running For Liberals In Provencher. 2020-08-24. Steinbachonline.com. en-gb.
- "Out-of-closet lesbian wins Vancouver vote". The Body Politic, January 1985.
- Web site: 30 years after Canada's first MP came out, LGBT politicians still face challenges. Zeidler. Maryse. CBC. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Libby Davies leaves Ottawa - Macleans.ca. www.macleans.ca. 2019-02-17.
- News: Bourne . Kirby . Blake Desjarlais is Canada's first Two Spirit Canadian MP: 'We're starting to see ourselves more' . 24 September 2021 . GlobalNews.ca . BlakeDesjarlais.
- Web site: NDP's Siksay stepping down as Burnaby MP . CBC. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Laurier LaPierre, ex-senator and broadcaster, dies at 83. December 17, 2012. CBC. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Canadian Stories: Conversations with Senator Nancy Ruth. Groat. Cody. 2014-03-12. Canadian Stories. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Well-known Canadians who died in 2010. 2010-12-26. TheRecord.com. en-CA. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Charles Lapointe – Montreal Gazette. montrealgazette.com. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Ian Mulgrew: The Picture of Dorian Gray Waddell. Vancouver Sun. Mulgrew. Ian. 2018-11-02. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: 'Feels very right': Liberal Scott Brison resigns from cabinet, not running in 2019 . www.ctvnews.ca. 10 January 2019 . 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Gay MP Mario Silva works to combat anti-Semitism. 2009-06-01. Xtra. 2019-02-17.
- Encyclopedia: Laurier LaPierre. The Canadian Encyclopedia. September 8, 2019.
- Web site: Gay Bloc MP Réal Ménard leaves federal politics. 2009-09-15. Xtra. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Four openly gay or lesbian new MPs elected to Ottawa. 2015-10-20. Xtra. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Canada's first LGBTQ2 advisor talks gay rights and his personal journey. Browne. Rachel. 2016-11-25. Vice News. en. 2019-02-17.
- News: Murray . Nick . Aug 31, 2024 . Prime minister unveils 2 Senate appointments for Alberta, including prominent Liberal donor . Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.
- Web site: This Magazine → Why the Green Party matters now more than ever in Canadian politics. this.org. 18 October 2017 . 2019-02-17.
- https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/new-brunswick-lieutenant-governor-brenda-murphy-1.5271662 Brenda Murphy 'humbled' to be appointed New Brunswick's new lieutenant-governor
- https://globalnews.ca/news/5875844/brenda-murphy-sworn-in-lt-gov-nb/ Brenda Murphy officially sworn in as lieutenant-governor of New Brunswick
- https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/wade-maclauchlan-on-brink-of-becoming-pei-premier/article23139705/ "Wade MacLauchlan on brink of becoming PEI premier"
- http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/edmonton/alberta-premier-rachel-notley-announces-six-new-cabinet-posts-1.3430316/ "Alberta Premier Rachel Notley announces six new cabinet posts"
- http://www.macleans.ca/news/canada/for-the-record-an-alberta-mla-on-battling-gender-identity/ "An Alberta MLA on battling gender identity"
- http://www.sherwoodparknews.com/2015/04/30/ndp-candidate-supports-education "NDP candidate supports education"
- Web site: Robinson . Carly . 2023-08-24 . Edmonton's Pride festival officially begins in Churchill Square . 2024-02-16 . CityNews Edmonton.
- https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/north/nunavut-legislature-pride-flag-raise-1.6474554 "Nunavut Legislature raises Pride flag for 1st time"
- "Reeve gauche: A sad come-out". The Body Politic, February 1981.
- "Victim of hate mail loses in bid for mayor". The Body Politic, December 1980.
- "Hate mail clouds campaign in town that promotes love". Toronto Star, November 2, 1980.
- Web site: Meet Lyra Evans, believed to be Canada's first openly trans school trustee . 2022-05-01 . ottawacitizen . en-CA.
- Web site: The legacy of Edmonton's Michael Phair. 2007-10-28. Xtra. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: McKibben remembered for dedication to Edmonton . CBC. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Calgary's first transgender city council candidate launches campaign . Calgary Herald. McIntosh. Emma. 2016-08-24. en. 2019-02-17.
- Pete McMartin, “An Alderman Who Happens to be Gay,” Vancouver Sun, January 12, 1987.
- Book: Janoff, Douglas. Pink Blood: Homophobic Violence in Canada. 2005. University of Toronto Press. 9780802085702. en.
- Web site: LGBT activist Ellen Woodsworth emphasizes need for queer safe spaces throughout Metro Vancouver. 2016-07-11. Georgia Straight Vancouver's News & Entertainment Weekly. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: NDP MP Refuses to Withdraw from Canada-Israel Interparliamentary Group. 2018-08-22. Palestine Chronicle. en-US. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Assault raises concerns about gay bashing. CBC. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Former Whistler mayor Ted Nebbeling dies . Burke . David . October 29, 2009 . Question . March 1, 2021 .
- Web site: Ontario Minister Glen Murray quits politics for dream job. Elizabeth. McSheffrey. 2017-07-31. National Observer. en. 2019-02-17.
- Samuel Larochelle, "Kévin J. Haché, le maire ouvertement gai de Caraquet". Fugues, November 27, 2019.
- https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/newfoundland-labrador/donovan-taplin-coming-out-1.5215136 "Meet the politician who came out — to a town council"
- Rosie Mullaley, "'I finally got to be who I really am': Newfoundland's first transgender councillor grateful for support". SaltWire Network, October 11, 2021.
- Web site: Friends remember 'bright light' and community activist. CBC. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Liverpool "Pridebombed" overnight. www.southshorebreaker.ca. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Nova Scotia Mayor Comes Out, Says Someone Threatened To Expose Him. 2018-02-01. HuffPost Canada. en. 2019-02-17.
- https://www.simcoe.com/news-story/9340795--one-small-gesture-barrie-councillors-pass-rainbow-crosswalk-proposal/ "‘One small gesture’: Barrie councillors pass rainbow crosswalk proposal"
- https://www.brantfordexpositor.ca/news/local-news/brant-county-flies-first-pride-flag "Brant County flies first Pride flag"
- Web site: Goderich Mayor Opposes Rainbow Crosswalk. Montgomery. Bob. Blackburn News. March 3, 2017.
- http://www.chch.com/hamilton-welcome-first-gay-councillor/ "Hamilton to welcome first gay councillor"
- Norman De Bono, "'We are here': Impassioned plea from London's first openly gay city councillor". London Free Press, June 6, 2023.
- Peter Zimonjic and Katie Simpson, "Scheer gets support from openly gay candidate over same-sex marriage controversy". CBC News, August 27, 2019.
- Web site: Revue Politique: December 7, 2006. CPAC. en-US. 2019-02-17.
- News: Ottawa leads in pride, but trails in tolerance. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Catherine McKenney, Catherine McKenna and Ottawa's struggle to tell them apart - Macleans.ca. www.macleans.ca. 2019-02-17.
- https://ottawacitizen.com/opinion/columnists/mayor-jim-watson-after-40-years-im-opening-the-closet-door "Mayor Jim Watson: After 40 years, I'm opening the closet door"
- News: Kyle Rae calls it a day. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Out in public: Wong-Tam weighs in on being gay in public life. Freeman. Joshua. 2014-06-23. CP24. en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Milestones. Newspapers.com. 26 July 2006 . en. 2019-02-17.
- Web site: Evert Botha apologizes for 'disrespectful' comments about Raiders DJ. saskatoon.ctvnews.ca. 7 August 2018 . 2019-02-17.
- News: Out and elected: Darren Hill refuses to let his sexuality define him . Hamilton . Charles . . 2014-06-19 . http://www.pressreader.com/canada/saskatoon-starphoenix/20140619 . 2014-06-19.
- News: Colin Ratushniak wins La Ronge mayoral race with half of votes . Short . Amanda . . November 14, 2020.