Bruce Ralston 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 is a

Member of the Legislative Assembly A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. S ...

(MLA) of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

, representing the riding of

Surrey-Whalley Surrey-Whalley is a provincial electoral district for the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, Canada. The riding's name was resurrected from a former riding in the same area, with similar but not identical boundaries. The newly created ri ...

since 2005, and member of the

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * t ...

(NDP). He has served in the cabinets of

Premiers Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of governm ...

John Horgan John Joseph Horgan (born August 7, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 36th premier of British Columbia from 2017 to 2022, and also as the leader of the British Columbia New Democratic Party from 2014 to 2022. Horgan has been the ...

and

David Eby David Robert Patrick Eby (born July 21, 1976) is a Canadian politician and lawyer who has been serving as the 37th and current premier of British Columbia since November 18, 2022, and has been serving as the leader of the British Columbia New De ...

since 2017, currently as Minister of Forests.

Life and career

Ralston was born in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

and grew up in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

. He has degrees in history and law from the

University of British Columbia The University of British Columbia (UBC) is a public university, public research university with campuses near Vancouver and in Kelowna, British Columbia. Established in 1908, it is British Columbia's oldest university. The university ranks a ...

, and a degree in history from the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

in England. He was called to the bar in 1982, and has lived in

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

since 1990, where he ran his own law firm. Ralston served on the

Surrey City Council The Surrey City Council is the governing body of the City of Surrey, British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a d ...

from 1988 to 1993. He was a member of the board of directors of Vancouver City Savings Credit Union from 1995 to 2006. Between 1996 and 2001, he served as president of the BC NDP. He ran in the 2005 provincial election as the NDP candidate in

, winning the seat with 55% of the vote. He kept his seat in the 2009 election, growing his vote share to 66.5%, and was re-elected in

2013 File:2013 Events Collage V2.png, From left, clockwise: Edward Snowden becomes internationally famous for leaking classified NSA wiretapping information; Typhoon Haiyan kills over 6,000 in the Philippines and Southeast Asia; The Dhaka garment fact ...

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a ser ...

and

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...

. He replaced

as NDP house leader in March 2014, allowing Horgan to contest the party leadership. In July 2017, Ralston was named Minister of Jobs, Trade and Technology in the NDP minority government. He swapped portfolios with

Michelle Mungall Michelle Mungall is a Canadian politician, who represented the Nelson-Creston electoral district Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 2009 to 2020. She is a member of the British Columbia New Democratic Party (BC NDP) and was first ele ...

in January 2020, becoming Minister of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources. His post was modified to Minister of Energy, Mines and Low Carbon Innovation and Minister Responsible for the Consular Corps of British Columbia in November 2020, and he was appointed

Queen's counsel In the United Kingdom and in some Commonwealth of Nations, Commonwealth countries, a King's Counsel (Post-nominal letters, post-nominal initials KC) during the reign of a king, or Queen's Counsel (post-nominal initials QC) during the reign of ...

in December of the same year. He was subsequently named Minister of Forests in the

Eby ministry The Eby ministry is the combined Cabinet (formally the Executive Council of British Columbia) that has governed British Columbia since November 18, 2022. It is chaired by the 37th premier of British Columbia, David Eby. The Cabinet is made up ...

on December 7, 2022, while retaining the role of Minister Responsible for the Consular Corps.

Electoral results

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ralston, Bruce Living people People from Surrey, British Columbia British Columbia New Democratic Party MLAs Surrey, British Columbia city councillors Year of birth missing (living people) Members of the Executive Council of British Columbia Peter A. Allard School of Law alumni Alumni of the University of Cambridge 21st-century Canadian politicians Canadian King's Counsel