Josie Osborne
Josie Osborne is a Canadian politician who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2020 provincial election.[2] She represents the electoral district of Mid Island-Pacific Rim as a member of the British Columbia New Democratic Party (BC NDP). She has served in the cabinet of British Columbia since 2020, currently as Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation.
Josie Osborne | |
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Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation of British Columbia | |
Assumed office December 7, 2022 | |
Premier | David Eby |
Preceded by | Bruce Ralston |
Minister of Land, Water, and Resource Stewardship and Minister Responsible for Fisheries of British Columbia | |
In office February 25, 2022 – December 7, 2022 | |
Premier | John Horgan David Eby |
Preceded by | Position established |
Succeeded by | Nathan Cullen |
Minister of Municipal Affairs of British Columbia | |
In office November 26, 2020 – February 25, 2022 | |
Premier | John Horgan |
Preceded by | Selina Robinson (Municipal Affairs and Housing) |
Succeeded by | Nathan Cullen |
Member of the British Columbia Legislative Assembly for Mid Island-Pacific Rim | |
Assumed office October 24, 2020 | |
Preceded by | Scott Fraser |
Mayor of Tofino | |
In office 2013–2020 | |
Preceded by | Perry Schmunk |
Succeeded by | Dan Law |
Personal details | |
Born | 1971/1972 (age 50–51)[1] |
Political party | British Columbia New Democratic Party (since 2020) |
Other political affiliations | Green Party of Canada (until 2020) |
Spouse | George Patterson |
Residence(s) | Tofino, British Columbia |
Alma mater | University of British Columbia Simon Fraser University |
She previously served as mayor of Tofino, British Columbia from 2013 to 2020.[3] When she was first elected, she was Canada's only Green Party-affiliated mayor.[4][5]
Biography
Osborne studied marine biology at the University of British Columbia, then pursued a master's degree in resource management at Simon Fraser University.[6][1] She moved to Tofino for a position as fisheries biologist for the Nuu-chah-nulth Tribal Council, and later joined Raincoast Education Society, a local environmental education non-profit organization.[1][7]
She ran as the mayor of Tofino unopposed as the Green Party candidate in both a 2013 by-election and the 2014 municipal election.[8] She was re-elected in 2018[9] with 86.75% of the overall vote.[8]
Osborne supported the introduction of proportional representation in the 2018 British Columbia electoral reform referendum.
In March 2019, Osborne spoke in favour of more affordable housing in Greater Vancouver.[10]
In September 2020, Osborne announced her intention to seek the BC NDP nomination for the riding of Mid Island-Pacific Rim in the next provincial election.[11] Osborne was successful and was elected as Member of the Legislative Assembly at the October 2020 general election.[12][13] Tofino is expected to elect a new mayor after Osborne's election to the provincial legislature.[14] A mayoral by-election was held in February 2021.[15]
On November 26, 2020, Osborne was sworn in to the Executive Council of British Columbia as Minister of Municipal Affairs under Premier John Horgan;[16] she was then appointed Minister of Land, Water, and Resource Stewardship and Minister Responsible for Fisheries in February 2022.[17] She was subsequently named Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation in the Eby ministry on December 7, 2022.[18]
Electoral record
2020 British Columbia general election: Mid Island-Pacific Rim | ||||||||
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
New Democratic | Josie Osborne | 14,298 | 58.22 | +9.17 | $26,111.41 | |||
Green | Evan Jolicoeur | 4,991 | 20.32 | −0.02 | $8,752.80 | |||
Liberal | Helen Poon | 4,291 | 17.47 | −8.22 | $25,201.50 | |||
Independent | Graham Hughes | 610 | 2.48 | – | $0.00 | |||
Libertarian | Robert Alexander Clarke | 370 | 1.51 | +0.36 | $884.41 | |||
Total valid votes | 24,560 | 100.00 | – | |||||
Total rejected ballots | ||||||||
Turnout | ||||||||
Registered voters | ||||||||
Source: Elections BC[19][20] |
References
- Gill, Ian (2014-11-12). "No Contest in Tofino, This Mayor's a Winner". The Tyee. Retrieved 2019-12-15.
- "BC NDP Josie Osborne wins Mid-Island Pacific Rim riding". CHEK-DT, October 25, 2020.
- "Tofino Has New, Green Mayor". www.webcitation.org. Green Party of Canada. January 15, 2013. Archived from the original on 2013-01-22. Retrieved 2022-04-15.
- "Green Party notables win office in municipal elections in Canada". Global Greens. 2014-11-03. Archived from the original on 2019-12-17. Retrieved 2019-12-17.
- "Tofino Has New, Green Mayor". Green Party of Canada. Retrieved 30 May 2021.
"I am so pleased that the new Mayor of Tofino, Josie Osborne, is a Green Party member. I know she will, as I have tried to do federally, put constituents first and party last. While party affiliations are not raised in most municipalities, the Green Party is nevertheless pleased and proud that one of our own has become mayor. This is a first in Canada," said May.
- Mckenzie, Kevin Hinton & Ryan. "BCBusiness". BCBusiness. Retrieved 2019-12-15.
- "MLA: Hon. Josie Osborne". Legislative Assembly of British Columbia. Retrieved 2022-12-14.
- "Tofino mayor Josie Osborne re-elected". Vancouver Island Free Daily. 2018-10-20. Retrieved 2019-12-17.
- "UPDATED: Tofino mayor Josie Osborne re-elected". Tofino-Ucluelet Westerly News. 2018-10-20. Retrieved 2019-12-15.
- "Tofino housing crunch hits hospital". Vancouver Island. 2019-03-22. Retrieved 2019-12-17.
- "Tofino mayor Josie Osborne seeks B.C. NDP nomination for Mid Island-Pacific Rim". Tofino-Ucluelet Westerly News. 2020-09-15. Retrieved 2020-10-25.
- "Popular Tofino Mayor Josie Osborne elected MLA for Mid Island-Pacific Rim". Vancouver Island. 2020-10-24. Retrieved 2020-10-25.
- "BC VOTES 2020: NDP Josie Osborne declared the winner in Mid Island-Pacific Rim riding". Port Alberni Valley News. 2020-10-24. Retrieved 2020-10-25.
- "Tofino expected to wait to elect new mayor after Josie Osborne wins MLA seat". Vancouver Island Free Daily. 2020-10-26. Retrieved 2020-11-01.
- Kloster, Darron. "Tofino, Campbell River residents head to polls in byelections". Times Colonist. Retrieved 2021-02-28.
- Lindsay, Bethany (2020-11-26). "New faces join B.C.'s new cabinet, while stalwarts stay on in key roles". CBC News. Retrieved 2022-04-24.
- "New ministers appointed for land stewardship, municipal affairs | BC Gov News". news.gov.bc.ca. Office of the Premier of British Columbia. 2022-02-25. Retrieved 2022-04-03.
- "New cabinet ready to take action on cost of living, health care, housing, climate" (Press release). Office of the Premier of British Columbia. 2022-12-07. Retrieved 2022-12-09.
- "2020 Provincial General Election Final Voting Results". electionsbcenr.blob.core.windows.net. Retrieved 2021-01-06.
- "Election Financing Reports". Elections BC. Retrieved 2 February 2021.