Stephanie Kusie MP (born 1973) is a Canadian politician and former diplomat who was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in a by-election on April 3, 2017.[3] She represents the electoral district of Calgary Midnapore in Alberta as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada[3] and serves as Shadow Minister of Treasury Board in the Official Opposition Shadow Cabinet of the 44th Parliament of Canada.

Stephanie Kusie
Member of Parliament
for Calgary Midnapore
Assumed office
April 3, 2017
Preceded byJason Kenney
Personal details
Born1972 or 1973 (age 50–51)[1]
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Political partyConservative
ChildrenEdward Kusie
ResidenceCalgary[2]
EducationUniversity of Calgary (B.A. Political Science)
Rutgers University (M.B.A.)
ProfessionMember of Parliament

Personal life edit

Kusie received a B.A. in political science from the University of Calgary and an M.B.A. from Rutgers University. She was chargé d'affaires ad interim for Canada to El Salvador and consul for Canada to Dallas, Texas. She served as a senior policy advisor to Peter Kent on Latin America.[4] Her responsibilities included negotiating free trade deals, work related to the Keystone Pipeline project, and lobbying the United Nations to place Canada on the Security Council.

Political career edit

Kusie ran for Calgary City Council in 2013 but did not win a seat. After the election, she worked on Preston Manning's Municipal Governance Project.[4]

The Conservative Party nominated Kusie for the 2017 Calgary Midnapore by-election; she succeeded former cabinet minister Jason Kenney, who had resigned as Calgary Midnapore's Conservative MP in 2016.[5][6]

After being elected in 2017, Kusie was appointed as the Official Opposition Deputy Shadow Minister for Health. In September 2018, she took over the position of Official Opposition Shadow Minister for Democratic Institutions and became a vice-chair of the Standing Committee of Procedure and House Affairs In the same year, she accepted invitations to become a member of both the Trilateral Commission and CANZUK. She was most recently elected to the executive committee of the Canadian Section of ParlAmericas Interparliamentary Association.

Following the fall 2019 general election, Kusie served as the Shadow Minister for Families, Children, and Social Development,[7] a role she held until September 2020, when incoming Conservative Party Leader, Erin O’Toole, appointed her as the Shadow Minister of Transport in his new Shadow Cabinet.

Kusie was re-elected in the 2021 federal election. Following the 2022 Conservative Party of Canada leadership election,[8] Pierre Poilievre appointed a new Shadow Cabinet in October 2022 with Kusie in Treasury Board.[9]

Electoral record edit

Federal edit

2021 Canadian federal election: Calgary Midnapore
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Stephanie Kusie 39,147 60.7 -13.6
New Democratic Gurmit Bhachu 11,826 18.3 +8.8
Liberal Zarnab Zafar 7,947 12.3 +1.3
People's Jonathan Hagel 3,930 6.1 +3.8
Green Shaun T. Pulsifer 868 1.3 -1.6
Maverick Matt Magolan 812 1.3
Total valid votes 64,530 100.0
Total rejected ballots 355
Turnout 64,885 68.1
Eligible voters 95,309
Conservative hold Swing -11.2
Source: Elections Canada[10]
2019 Canadian federal election: Calgary Midnapore
Party Candidate Votes % ±% Expenditures
Conservative Stephanie Kusie 50,559 74.3 -2.87 $74,411.39
Liberal Brian Aalto 7,507 11.0 -6.01 $1,875.42
New Democratic Gurmit Bhachu 6,445 9.5 +6.97 $2,059.00
Green Taylor Stasila 1,992 2.9 +0.75 $0.00
People's Edward Gao 1,585 2.3 - $8,767.66
Total valid votes/expense limit 68,088 100.0
Total rejected ballots 338
Turnout 68,426 73.2
Eligible voters 93,458
Conservative hold Swing +1.57
Source: Elections Canada[11][12][13]
Canadian federal by-election, April 3, 2017: Calgary Midnapore
Resignation of Jason Kenney
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Stephanie Kusie 22,454 77.17 +10.44
Liberal Haley Brown 4,950 17.01 −5.64
New Democratic Holly Heffernan 735 2.53 −5.20
Green Ryan Zedic 625 2.15 −0.51
Christian Heritage Larry R. Heather 251 0.86
National Advancement Kulbir Singh Chawla 81 0.28
Total valid votes/expense limit 29,096 100.0   –  
Total rejected ballots -
Turnout
Eligible voters 89,436
Conservative hold Swing +8.08

Municipal edit

Calgary Ward 12
Candidate Votes %
Shane A. Keating 11,942 71.5
Stephanie Kusie 4,766 28.5

References edit

  1. ^ "Stephanie Kusie - Council candidate in Ward 12". Calgary Herald, October 2, 2013.
  2. ^ "Official Voting Results". Elections Canada. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
  3. ^ a b "Conservative Kusie cruises to victory in Calgary-Midnapore, takes over for Kenney". 660 News, April 3, 2017.
  4. ^ a b "Stephanie Kusie biography". Huffington Post. Retrieved April 4, 2017.
  5. ^ Wood, James (July 6, 2016). "Kenney finally makes his leadership pitch to 'Unite Alberta'". calgaryherald.com. Calgary Herald.
  6. ^ "Taxpayers group miffed Kenney will collect MP perks this summer". CBC News. Retrieved November 6, 2016.
  7. ^ "Press Release: MP Stephanie Kusie appointed as Shadow Minister for Families, Children, and Social Development". stephaniekusiemp.ca.
  8. ^ Tasker, John Paul (September 10, 2022). "Conservative members pick MP Pierre Poilievre to be their new leader". CBC News. Archived from the original on September 10, 2022. Retrieved September 10, 2022.
  9. ^ Zimonjic, Peter; Cullen, Catherine (October 12, 2022). "Poilievre unveils critics list, pits Alberta MP Jasraj Singh Hallan against Chrystia Freeland". CBC News.
  10. ^ "Election Night Results - Electoral Districts".
  11. ^ "List of confirmed candidates". Elections Canada. Retrieved October 4, 2019.
  12. ^ "Election Night Results". Elections Canada. Retrieved November 7, 2019.
  13. ^ "Candidate Campaign Returns". Elections Canada. Retrieved September 7, 2020.

External links edit