Laurel Collins

Laurel Collins MP (born May 7, 1984) is a Canadian politician who was elected to represent the riding of Victoria in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2019 Canadian federal election.[2] Prior to her election in the House of Commons, she was a city councillor for Victoria City Council. She is the NDP Critic for the Environment and Climate Change and the NDP Deputy Caucus Chair.[3]

Laurel Collins
MP
Member of Parliament
for Victoria
Assumed office
October 21, 2019
Preceded byMurray Rankin
Victoria City Councillor
In office
October 20, 2018 – November 4, 2019
Personal details
Born (1984-05-07) May 7, 1984
Kispiox, British Columbia, Canada
Political partyNew Democratic Party
SpouseJames McNish[1]
ChildrenAlora McNish Collins
Residence(s)Victoria, British Columbia

Background

Collins was born in Kispiox in northern British Columbia, one of three children. Her parents, school teachers, separated when she was a baby, and she moved around the province, attending elementary school on Salt Spring Island, Alert Bay, and in Port Hardy. She went to high school in Sussex, New Brunswick and did her undergraduate degree at the University of Kings College and Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia.[4] She did a master's degree in Human Security and Peacebuilding at Royal Roads University.[2]

Career

Collins worked at Victoria Women in Need, running programs for women who have experienced abuse. She co-founded and co-chaired Divest Victoria, a non-profit organization that advocates for cities to take their money out of fossil fuels and put them into environmentally responsible investments. While researching climate migration and displacement, she worked with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Northern Uganda helping to create durable solutions for internally displaced persons in the aftermath of deadly conflict.[5]

From 2014 to 2019, Collins taught courses at the University of Victoria, including courses in Social Inequality, Social Justice Studies, Political Sociology, and the Sociology of Genders.[2] In 2015, she co-published a book, Women, Adult Education, and Leadership in Canada.[6] And, in 2017, she won a Victoria Community Leadership Award in Sustainability and Community Building.[7]

In October 2018 Collins was elected as a councillor for the City of Victoria with the electoral organization Together Victoria.[8] She would resign from this position a year later, after her election to the House of Commons in late October, 2019.[9] The byelection following her departure was delayed due to the coronavirus pandemic until December 2020, where it eventually resulted in the election of Stephen Andrew and the defeat of Together Victoria's candidate Stephanie Hardman.[10][11]

Collins was re-elected in the 2021 federal election.

She is the NDP Critic for the Environment and Climate Change and the Deputy Critic for Families, Children, and Social Development.[12]

Electoral record
2021 Canadian federal election
** Preliminary results — Not yet official **
Party Candidate Votes%±%
New DemocraticLaurel Collins25,22743.89+10.69
LiberalNikki Macdonald14,95626.02+3.72
ConservativeHannah Hodson8,19114.25+1.65
GreenNick Loughton6,63711.55-18.35
People'sJohn Randal Phipps1,9703.43+2.13
CommunistJanis Zroback2600.45+0.25
Animal ProtectionJordan Reichert2430.42+0.12
Total valid votes 57,484
Total rejected ballots
Turnout 57,48457.55
Eligible voters 99,889
Source: Elections Canada[13]
2019 Canadian federal election: Victoria
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
New DemocraticLaurel Collins23,76533.2-9.1$114,384.10
GreenRacelle Kooy21,38329.9-3.0$78,891.28
LiberalNikki Macdonald15,95222.3+10.5$83,095.70
ConservativeRichard Caron9,03812.6+0.8$41,312.21
People'sAlyson Culbert9201.3-$5,286.41
Animal ProtectionJordan Reichert2210.30.0$2,270.91
CommunistRobert Duncan1130.2-
IndependentDavid Shebib1110.2-
Veterans CoalitionKeith Rosenberg460.1-
Total valid votes/expense limit 71,54999.3  $121,316.37
Total rejected ballots 4750.7
Turnout 72,02476.1
Eligible voters 94,627
New Democratic hold Swing -6.10
Source: Elections Canada[14][15]

References
  1. "Victoria MP Laurel Collins expecting first child while preparing for a possible election". Times Colonist. Retrieved 2021-05-04.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  2. "Victoria: City councillor Laurel Collins off to Ottawa as NDP MP". Times Colonist. Retrieved 2019-10-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  3. "Critic Roles". cbc.ca. Retrieved 2021-02-24.
  4. "University of King's College". University of Kings College Halifax Nova Scotia. 21 Jul 2021. Retrieved 4 Dec 2022.
  5. "Councillor Laurel Collins". victoria.ca. Retrieved 2019-10-23.
  6. "Women, Adult Education, and Leadership in Canada". Thompson Educational Publishing, Inc. Retrieved 2019-10-23.
  7. "Victoria Community Leadership Awards" (PDF). Retrieved 2019-10-23.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  8. "CivicInfo BC: Election Results - 2018 - Municipality - Victoria (City)". www.civicinfo.bc.ca. Retrieved 2022-12-06.
  9. "Victoria's new MP Laurel Collins will resign from city council". Victoria Times Colonist. Retrieved 2022-12-06.
  10. "Victoria By-Election Delayed Indefinitely By COVID-19". Capital Daily. Retrieved 2022-12-06.
  11. "Victoria city council byelection live results". CHEK. 2020-12-13. Retrieved 2022-12-06.
  12. "NDP announces new critic roles for caucus". Canada's NDP. Retrieved 2022-12-06.
  13. "List of confirmed candidates – September 20, 2021 Federal Election". Elections Canada. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
  14. "List of confirmed candidates". Elections Canada. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  15. "Election Night Results". Elections Canada. Retrieved November 15, 2019.
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