Blake Richards (born November 8, 1974) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

politician. He has been a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization i ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

since 2008, having been elected to represent the now defunct

electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...

(or riding) of Wild Rose in the October 14, 2008 and May 2, 2011 federal elections and subsequently the riding of Banff—Airdrie in federal elections held on October 19, 2015, October 21, 2019, and September 20, 2021.

Early life and career

Richards was born in

Olds Olds may refer to: People * The olds, a jocular and irreverent online nickname for older adults * Bert Olds (1891–1953), Australian rules footballer * Carl D. Olds (1912–1979), New Zealand-born American mathematician * Chauncey N. Olds (181 ...

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

. Prior to starting his real estate business, Richards worked in the oil field and agriculture-related industries, and attended

Red Deer College , mottoeng = To Greater Things Through Learning , established = 1964 , type = Public polytechnic institute , president = Stuart Cullum , city = Red Deer , state = Alberta , country = Canada , students = 7,500 , undergrad = , campus = Ur ...

and the

University of Calgary The University of Calgary (U of C or UCalgary) is a public research university located in Calgary, Alberta, Canada. The University of Calgary started in 1944 as the Calgary branch of the University of Alberta, founded in 1908, prior to being ins ...

, where he earned a degree in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

. He served his community as a volunteer firefighter and minor hockey coach before being elected to the House of Commons in 2008.

Federal politics

Richards was elected in the 2008 federal election and re-elected in the 2011, 2015, 2019, and 2021 federal elections. Richards is the Chief

Opposition Opposition may refer to: Arts and media * ''Opposition'' (Altars EP), 2011 EP by Christian metalcore band Altars * The Opposition (band), a London post-punk band * '' The Opposition with Jordan Klepper'', a late-night television series on Com ...

Whip. He previously served as Official Opposition Shadow Minister for Small Business, Export Promotion and Tourism. In the 41st Parliament, Richards chaired the Parliamentary Tourism Caucus and the House of Commons' Standing Committee on Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development and the Special Committee on Co-operatives. He has also been a member of the committees on Finance; International Trade; Public Safety and National Security; Procedure and House Affairs; Canadian Heritage; Agriculture; and Transport, Infrastructure and Communities. Through the Rocky Mountain Hockey Challenge, Richards has raised $360,000 for regional groups that assist victims of crime. In 2010, Richards spearheaded a national petition that called for changes to the national pardons system after it was revealed that convicted sex offender Graham James had received a pardon in 2007 for his offences. The petition attracted thousands of supporters from across Canada and in June 2010, Bill C-23A, an act to limit pardons for serious crimes, received Royal Assent. In October 2011, Richards introduced Private Member's Bill C-309 in the House of Commons. It received Royal Assent in June 2013. As a result, it is now an offence under the

Criminal Code of Canada The ''Criminal Code'' (french: Code criminel)The citation of this Act by these short titles is authorised by thEnglishantexts of section 1. is a law that codifies most criminal offences and procedures in Canada. Its official long title is ''An ...

to wear a mask or to otherwise conceal one's identity during a riot or an unlawful assembly. On November 30, 2017, House of Commons Speaker

Geoff Regan Geoffrey Paul Regan (born 22 November 1959) is a former Canadian politician who served as the 36th Speaker of the House of Commons of Canada from 2015 to 2019. A member of the Liberal Party of Canada, he was the Member of Parliament (MP) for ...

ordered that Richards be removed from the House for "excessive heckling" following three repeated warnings. Richards has three times been recognized as the Hardest Working and Best Constituency MP in ''

The Hill Times ''The Hill Times'' is a Canadian twice-weekly newspaper and daily news website, published in Ottawa, Ontario, which covers the Parliament of Canada, the federal government, and other federal political news. Founded in 1989 by Ross Dickson and Jim ...

'' Annual Politically Savvy Survey and has been recognized with a Canadian Tourism Award for his work in Parliament on behalf of the tourism industry.

Electoral record

References

External links

Blake Richards
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Richards, Blake 1974 births Canadian firefighters Canadian real estate agents Conservative Party of Canada MPs Living people Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Alberta People from Airdrie, Alberta People from Olds, Alberta University of Calgary alumni 21st-century Canadian politicians