Robert-Falcon Ouellette
Dr. Robert-Falcon Ouellette MP BA PhD |
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Member of the Canadian Parliament for Winnipeg Centre |
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Assumed office October 19, 2015 |
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Preceded by | Pat Martin |
Personal details | |
Born | Calgary, Alberta, Canada |
November 22, 1976
Political party | Liberal |
Spouse(s) | Catherine Cantin[1] |
Children | 5 |
Residence | St. Vital, Winnipeg, Manitoba |
Education | Doctor of Philosophy, Anthropology |
Alma mater | Université Laval (Ph.D., M.A.) University of Calgary (B.A.) |
Profession | Anthropologist |
Military service | |
Allegiance | Canadian Forces |
Service/branch | Royal Canadian Navy |
Years of service | 1992-present |
Rank | Petty Officer 2nd class |
Unit | HMCS Chippawa |
Robert-Falcon Ouellette MP (born November 22, 1976) is a Canadian politician, who was elected to represent the riding of Winnipeg Centre in the House of Commons of Canada in the Canadian federal election, 2015. He was previously a candidate for Mayor of Winnipeg in the 2014 municipal election, finishing third.
Of Cree descent, Ouellette was a veteran of nearly twenty years in the Canadian Forces and a university professor before his entry into politics.
Contents
Early life and career
Ouellette was born and raised in Calgary.[1][2] His mother was born in England and his father was part of the Red Pheasant First Nation, located north of Saskatoon.[3] Ouellette was raised primarily by his mother, a poorly educated woman with a history of depression.[3] Ouellette's father was a survivor of the residential schools and an alcoholic who was sometimes absent.[3]
Ouellette grew up in poor conditions, often going hungry, and he once spent a summer homeless in Winnipeg.[3] Determined to change her son's future, Ouellette's mother insisted that he take the admissions test for the Strathcona-Tweedsmuir School, an elite private school.[3] After Ouellette was admitted, his mother paid for his tuition by taking out a loan she could not afford to pay back.[3][4]
Ouellette earned a bachelor of arts in music from the University of Calgary, a master's in music and a master's in education from Laval University, and a PhD in anthropology, also from Laval.[4]
He retired from the Royal Canadian Navy after nearly two decades of service with the rank of Petty Officer 2nd class and remains as part of the Naval Reserve.[1] He moved to Winnipeg in 2011 from Quebec City after he was appointed as director of Aboriginal Focus Programs at the University of Manitoba.[1]
Municipal politics
In 2005, Ouelette ran for a council seat for Quebec City Council, but lost by 170 votes.[4]
Ouellette finished third in the 2014 Winnipeg municipal election.[5] He had run on a platform of dedicated infrastructure funding and campaign finance reform.[1] Shortly after his defeat, he declared that he was developing a business plan to open a Winnipeg university catering to indigenous post-secondary students.[5]
Federal politics
In the 2015 election, Ouellette took over 50% of the vote and defeated longtime NDP MP Pat Martin in Winnipeg Centre.[6] Ouellette resigned his position with the University of Manitoba in July 2015 to focus on his campaign.[7] After his election, Ouellette was considered a leading candidate for the position of Minister of Aboriginal Affairs.[8]
Ouellette withdrew from the race to be Speaker of the House of Commons after making comments at a Winnipeg town hall meeting stating the position comes with "great influence" over the Prime Minister to the extent of calling the Prime Minister to the Speaker's Chair to address constituent's concerns.[9]
Personal life
Ouellette is married to Catherine Cantin, whom he met while they were both military cadets, and has five children.[1] Like himself, his household is fluently bilingual.[1] He lives in the southern suburban region of St. Vital, Winnipeg.[1]
Electoral record
Canadian federal election, 2015 | ||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ∆% | Expenditures | |||
Liberal | Robert-Falcon Ouellette | 18,471 | 54.5% | – | – | |||
New Democratic | Pat Martin | 9,490 | 28.0% | – | – | |||
Conservative | Allie Szarkiewicz | 4,189 | 12.4% | – | – | |||
Green | Don Woodstock | 1,379 | 4.1% | – | – | |||
Christian Heritage | Scott Miller | 221 | 0.7% | – | – | |||
Communist | Darrell Rankin | 135 | 0.4% | – | – | |||
Total valid votes/Expense limit | 33,885 | 100.0 | $191,132.58 | |||||
Total rejected ballots | 281 | 0.8% | – | |||||
Turnout | 34,166 | 61.41% | – | |||||
Eligible voters | 55,633 | |||||||
Source: Elections Canada[10][11][12] |
Candidate | Votes | % |
---|---|---|
(x) Brian Bowman | 111,504 | 47.54 |
Judy Wasylycia-Leis | 58,440 | 24.29 |
Robert-Falcon Ouellette | 36,823 | 15.70 |
Gord Steeves | 21,080 | 8.99 |
David Sanders | 3,718 | 1.59 |
Paula Havixbeck | 2,083 | 0.89 |
Michel Fillion | 898 | 0.38 |
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
- ↑ Elections Canada – Confirmed candidates for Winnipeg Centre, 30 September 2015
- ↑ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates
- ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
External links
- Living people
- 1976 births
- Liberal Party of Canada MPs
- Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Manitoba
- First Nations politicians
- Politicians from Calgary
- Politicians from Winnipeg
- Cree people
- Indigenous Members of the House of Commons of Canada
- Royal Canadian Navy officers
- Canadian anthropologists
- Université Laval alumni
- University of Calgary alumni