Rebecca Blaikie

Rebecca Blaikie

Blaikie addressing the 2013 federal NDP convention in Montreal
President of the New Democratic Party
In office
September 12, 2011 – April 10, 2016
Preceded by Brian Topp
Succeeded by Marit Stiles
Treasurer of the New Democratic Party
In office
2009–2011
Personal details
Born (1978-05-25) May 25, 1978
Winnipeg, Manitoba
Political party New Democratic Party
Relations Daniel Blaikie (brother)
Parents Bill Blaikie (father)
Brenda Blaikie (mother)
Alma mater Concordia University
University of Winnipeg

Rebecca Blaikie (born May 25, 1978 in Winnipeg, Manitoba)[1] is a Canadian politician, who served as president of the New Democratic Party (NDP) from 2011 to 2016.[2]

She is the daughter of Bill Blaikie, a former NDP Member of Parliament from Winnipeg, deputy leader of the party, and provincial cabinet minister.[3][4] Her brother Daniel Blaikie was elected as Member of Parliament for their father's former riding of Elmwood-Transcona in 2015.

She has an undergraduate degree in Canadian social history from the University of Winnipeg and a graduate degree in community economic development from Concordia University's School of Community and Public Affairs.

Candidate for the New Democratic Party

Blaikie was a candidate for the NDP in the 2004 Canadian federal election in then-Prime Minister Paul Martin's electoral district of LaSalle—Émard in Montreal, Quebec.[5] She received 4.97% of the vote share, and was not elected. She did however receive a large amount of press coverage.

As executive director of the party's Quebec wing, she was one of the architects of Thomas Mulcair's historic victory in the 2007 Outremont by-election[6] and was widely credited with setting the groundwork for the party's historic breakthrough in the province in the 2011 election.[7]

She then returned to Manitoba to work for the provincial government. She ran in the 2011 federal election in the district of Winnipeg North,[8] receiving 35.41% of the vote, narrowly losing to Kevin Lamoureux of the Liberal Party by 44 votes (0.17%).[3][9]

NDP treasurer and president

Blaikie was elected treasurer of the NDP at the Halifax convention in 2009 and reelected at the Vancouver convention in 2011, alongside Brian Topp who had been elected president. After Jack Layton's death, Topp resigned as party president to run in the leadership race. As the party's federal council may fill vacancies with one of its own members, it chose Blaikie to fill the seat of president. Blaikie was re-elected as president at the 2013 Montreal convention.

One of Blaikie's first notable acts as party president was to preside over the 2012 leadership election.

Her term as president of the NDP ended in 2016.[10] At the party's convention in April 2016, Marit Stiles was selected as her successor.[11]

References

  1. ↑ "Rebecca Blaikie - VIP FAQ". VIP FAQ. VIP FAQ. Retrieved 14 June 2016.
  2. ↑ Bryden, Joan (March 26, 2012). "NDP hunts for source of cyber-attack on electronic voting system". The Globe and Mail. The Canadian Press. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  3. 1 2 Galloway, Gloria (May 17, 2011). "Recounts confirm Liberal victory in Winnipeg, Tory win in Northern Ontario". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  4. ↑ "Parliamentarian File - Complete File - BLAIKIE, The Hon. Rev. William Alexander (Bill), P.C., B.A., M.Div.". PARLINFO. Parliament of Canada. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  5. ↑ Rabson, Mia (February 14, 2011). "NDPer bidding to bring riding back to fold". Winnipeg Free Press. p. A2. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  6. ↑ Joe Paraskevas, "'Toban making waves in Quebec politics", Winnipeg Free Press, 17 September 2007, A5.
  7. ↑ Heather Scoffield, "NDP now the controversial voice of Quebec in Ottawa: Will it backfire?", The Canadian Press, 17 May 2011
  8. ↑ Welch, Mary Agnes (May 3, 2011). "What's next for Rebecca Blaikie?". Winnipeg Free Press. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  9. ↑ "Poll-by-poll results: Winnipeg North". Official Voting Results: Forty-first General Election 2011. Elections Canada. 2011. Retrieved March 31, 2012.
  10. ↑ "Four in race to become next NDP president after disastrous election, ‘I think it’s important we get the right people in this time’". The Hill Times, April 9, 2016.
  11. ↑ "New NDP president supportive of Mulcair remaining leader till successor chosen". iPolitics, April 11, 2016.
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