Janis Irwin

Janis Irwin (born September 9, 1984)[1] is a Canadian politician who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta in the 2019 Alberta general election.[2] She represents the electoral district of Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood as a member of the Alberta New Democratic Party.[3] She is the official opposition deputy whip.[4]

Janis Irwin MLA
Member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta for Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood
Incumbent
Assumed office April 16, 2019
Preceded by	Brian Mason
Personal details
Born	September 9, 1984 Barrhead, Alberta
Political party	Alberta NDP
Residence	Edmonton, Alberta
Alma mater	University of Alberta University of Calgary
Occupation	Teacher, civil servant
Website	https://janisirwin.ca/

A teacher prior to her election, Irwin is queer, and is the only openly LGBTQ MLA in the Alberta legislature.[2] She previously ran as the federal New Democratic Party candidate for Edmonton Griesbach in the 2015 Canadian federal election.

Personal life

Irwin grew up in Barrhead, Alberta.[5] Prior to being elected, Irwin was a high school social studies teacher in Bawlf, Alberta and served as vice-principal in Forestburg, Alberta.[6][7][8][9] Irwin came out in her late 20s.[10] In 2010, Irwin moved back to Edmonton to start working with Alberta Education, focusing on curriculum.[11]

Education

Irwin holds a Bachelor of Education from the University of Alberta, a Master of Education from the University of Calgary, and completed PhD-level coursework at the University of Alberta without defending her thesis.

Provincial politics

Since being elected as a member of Legislative Assembly of Alberta, Irwin has been an advocate against conversion therapy by citing the harmful organization Journey Canada with its ties to this practice.[12] Another issue Irwin has been strongly advocating on is the legal protections of gay-straight alliances (GSAs) in the education system in Alberta.[13][14]

Irwin serves on the Standing Committee on Alberta's Economic Future, as well as the Standing Committee on Private Bills and Private Members' Public Bills.[15]

Irwin was previously a member of the Standing Committee on the Alberta Heritage Savings Trust Fund and the Standing Committee on Families and Communities.[15]

Irwin is the Official Opposition Deputy Whip and Critic of LGBTQ2S+ and Women's Issues.[15]

In the Legislature, Irwin confessed humorously to having a "gay agenda", which she described as consisting of her drinking coffee, going to work, mowing her lawn, and cleaning her house just like heterosexual people do.[13] Irwin has joked that she is the only "ML-gay" in the legislature, which does not mean she needs to speak on all gay-related issues.[10]

Electoral history

2015 federal election

2015 Canadian federal election: Edmonton Griesbach
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	Conservative	Kerry Diotte	19,157	39.96	–12.55	$93,048.30
	New Democratic	Janis Irwin	16,309	34.02	–3.45	$150,799.22
	Liberal	Brian Gold	10,397	21.69	+15.11	$14,575.14
	Green	Heather Workman	1,129	2.35	–1.08	$1,404.61
	Libertarian	Maryna Goncharenko	415	0.87	–	$150.44
	Marijuana	Linda Northcott	279	0.58	–	–
	Rhinoceros	Bun Bun Thompson	144	0.30	–	–
	Marxist–Leninist	Mary Joyce	112	0.23	–	–
Total valid votes/Expense limit			47,942	100.00		$214,842.90
Total rejected ballots			289	0.60	–
Turnout			48,231	60.03	–
Eligible voters			79,980
	Conservative hold		Swing		–4.55
Source: Elections Canada[16][17]

2019 general election[18]

2019 Alberta general election: Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	New Democratic	Janis Irwin	10,008	63.7	-14.37%
	United Conservative	Leila Houle	3,953	25.2	+6.68%
	Alberta Party	Tish Prouse	1,048	6.7
	Green	Taz Bouchier	243	1.5
	Independence	Joe Hankins	227	1.4
	Alberta Advantage	Chris Poplatek	123	0.8
	Communist	Alex S. Boykowich	103	0.7
Total valid votes			15,758
Rejected, spoiled, and declined			70	88	8
Registered electors			33,063
Turnout			47.9%
	New Democratic hold		Swing		-14.37%

References

1. @JanisIrwin (9 September 2020). "It's my birthday! And what do I want? At the top of my list is an @albertaNDP government! I'd love if you could help make my birthday wish come true: albertandp.ca/donate/ehln #ableg" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
2. Jason Markusoff (April 18, 2019). "Why Jason Kenney's workaholic style may not work when he's premier". Maclean's. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
3. Alex Antoneshyn (April 24, 2019). "Edmonton MLA-elect wins seat, then $100K in lottery". CTV News Edmonton. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
4. "Janis Irwin". www.albertandpcaucus.ca. Retrieved 2020-12-02.
5. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 18, 2019.
6. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 27, 2019. p. 1294.
7. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 19, 2019. p. 1056.
8. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 18, 2019. p. 941.
9. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 11, 2019.
10. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 24, 2019. p. 1156.
11. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 11, 2019. p. 710.
12. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 25, 2019. p. 1171.
13. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 24, 2019. p. 1157.
14. "Alberta Hansard" (PDF). Legislative Assembly of Alberta. June 11, 2019. p. 710.
15. "Janis Irwin Bio". Legislative Assembly of Alberta. October 8, 2019.
16. "October 19, 2015 Election Results — Edmonton Griesbach (Validated results)". Elections Canada. 22 October 2015. Retrieved 4 November 2015.
17. Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates
18. "Edmonton-Highlands-Norwood 2019 election result".