Daniel Blaikie 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 who was elected to represent the riding of

Elmwood—Transcona Elmwood—Transcona (formerly Winnipeg—Transcona) is a federal electoral district (Canada), electoral district in Manitoba, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1988. Its population in 2011 was 85,906. Hi ...

in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

in the

2015 Canadian federal election The 2015 Canadian federal election held on October 19, 2015, saw the Liberal Party, led by Justin Trudeau, win 184 seats, allowing it to form a majority government with Trudeau becoming the next prime minister. The election was held to elect m ...

as a 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 is the

(NDP)'s critic for the

Treasury Board The Treasury Board of Canada (french: Conseil du Trésor du Canada) is the Cabinet committee of the Privy Council of Canada which oversees the spending and operation of the Government of Canada and is the principal employer of the core public se ...

and the deputy critic for Ethics in the

42nd Canadian Parliament The 42nd Canadian Parliament was in session from December 3, 2015, to September 11, 2019, with the membership of its lower chamber, the House of Commons of Canada, having been determined by the results of the 2015 federal election held on Octob ...

. He is the son of former NDP deputy leader

Bill Blaikie William Alexander Blaikie (June 19, 1951 – September 24, 2022) was a Canadian politician. He served as a Member of Parliament (Canada), member of Parliament (MP) from 1979 to 2008, representing Elmwood—Transcona and its antecedent ridings i ...

, who held the riding from 1979 to 2008, and brother of former NDP President Rebecca Blaikie. Blaikie was nominated as the NDP candidate for his father's former riding ahead of the 2015 election. He defeated

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 ...

incumbent Lawrence Toet by only 61 votes, the lowest margin of victory for any Canadian MP elected that year. He was the only non-

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

elected from a

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the province of Manitoba in Canada. It is centred on the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine rivers, near the longitudinal centre of North America. , Winnipeg had a city population of 749,6 ...

riding, as the Liberals rose from being the third-largest party to

Government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a ...

, while the Conservatives fell from Government to

Official Opposition Parliamentary opposition is a form of political opposition to a designated government, particularly in a Westminster-based parliamentary system. This article uses the term ''government'' as it is used in Parliamentary systems, i.e. meaning ''th ...

, and the NDP from Official Opposition to third-party status. Blaikie led in most pre-election opinion polling, but a last-minute Liberal surge both in Winnipeg and nationwide resulted in him narrowly defeating Toet by only 61 votes. He defeated Toet in a 2019 rematch by a much larger margin of over 3,500.

Early life and education

Daniel Blaikie was born to Brenda and

in the northeast

suburb of

Transcona Transcona is a ward and suburb of Winnipeg, Manitoba, located about east of the downtown area. Until 1972, it was a separate municipality, having been incorporated first as the Town of Transcona on 6 April 1912 and then as the City of Tr ...

. Before entering the trades, Blaikie studied

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. Some ...

and

history History (derived ) is the systematic study and the documentation of the human activity. The time period of event before the History of writing#Inventions of writing, invention of writing systems is considered prehistory. "History" is an umbr ...

at the

University of Winnipeg The University of Winnipeg (UWinnipeg, UW) is a public research university in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, that offers undergraduate faculties of art, business and economics, education, science and kinesiology and applied health as well as gr ...

, from which he graduated with an undergraduate degree. He went on to earn a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

Concordia University Concordia University ( French: ''Université Concordia'') is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1974 following the merger of Loyola College and Sir George Williams University, Concordia is one of the t ...

Montreal Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-most populous city in Canada and List of towns in Quebec, most populous city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian ...

. Blaikie later trained as an electrician, becoming very active in the

International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW) is a trade union, labor union that represents approximately 775,000 workers and retirees in the electricity, electrical industry in the United States, Canada, Guam, Panama, Puerto Rico, a ...

, of which he is still a member. Blaikie acted as an advisor to the Minister of Health in the

Government of Manitoba The powers and structure of the provincial Government of Manitoba (french: Gouvernement du Manitoba) are set out in the Constitution Act, 1867. In modern Canadian use, the term "government" referred broadly to the cabinet of the day (formally ...

Community work

Blaikie has been involved in several community engagements in

Transcona, Winnipeg Transcona is a ward and suburb of Winnipeg, Manitoba, located about east of the downtown area. Until 1972, it was a separate municipality, having been incorporated first as the Town of Transcona on 6 April 1912 and then as the City of Tr ...

, and in the province of

Manitoba Manitoba ( ) is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population o ...

. He has sat on the Board of directors of the Transcona Historical Museum in the past and continues to maintain his interest and involvement with the museum. As an MP, he currently sits as an honorary board member. Blaikie is an active associate member of the Royal Canadian Legion - Branch #7 known by locals as the Transcona Legion. With its official formation date being December 6, 1926, the legion celebrated its 90th anniversary in 2016. He commemorated the anniversary as a Member of Parliament by using his allotted time for ''Statements by Members'' in the House of Commons to speak to the Legion's history and relevance in the community. Before becoming an MP, Blaikie was a board member of the Apprenticeship and Certification Board of Manitoba, which coordinates the apprenticeship and certification system in Manitoba. After being elected to the House of Commons, Daniel Blaikie continued to sit on the executive of the

Winnipeg Labour Council The Winnipeg Labour Council is a labour council based in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Affiliated to the Canadian Labour Congress The Canadian Labour Congress, or CLC (french: Congrès du travail du Canada, link=no or ) is a national trade union ce ...

for a period. During his electoral campaign in 2015, the council was active in supporting his campaign to become a Member of Parliament.

Parliament of Canada

42nd Parliament

Blaikie is a Vice-Chair of the Standing Committee on Access to Information, Privacy and Ethics, and is also a member of several parliamentary associations, including the Canada-Europe Parliamentary Association, Canada-Ireland Interparliamentary Group, Canada-United Kingdom Inter-Parliamentary Association, Canada-United States Inter-Parliamentary Group, and

Commonwealth Parliamentary Association The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA), previously known as the Empire Parliamentary Association, is an organisation which works to support good governance, democracy and human rights. In 1989 the patron of the CPA was the Head of ...

(CPA), as well a part of the Canadian Delegations to the

Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) is the world's largest regional security-oriented intergovernmental organization with observer status at the United Nations. Its mandate includes issues such as arms control, prom ...

Parliamentary Assembly (OSCE PA), NATO Parliamentary Association (NATO PA) and ParlAmericas.

Electoral record

References

External links

Official bio
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Blaikie, Daniel 1984 births Living people Canadian people of Scottish descent New Democratic Party MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Manitoba Trade unionists from Manitoba Electricians Politicians from Winnipeg Concordia University alumni University of Winnipeg alumni 21st-century Canadian politicians International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers people