Eric Melillo (born March 27, 1998) is a Canadian politician who was elected to represent the riding of

Kenora Kenora (), previously named Rat Portage (french: Portage-aux-Rats), is a city situated on the Lake of the Woods in Ontario, Canada, close to the Manitoba boundary, and about east of Winnipeg by road. It is the seat of Kenora District. The his ...

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

2019 Canadian federal election The 2019 Canadian federal election was held on October 21, 2019. Member of Parliament (Canada), Members of the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons were elected to the 43rd Canadian Parliament. In keeping with the Fixed election dates in ...

. Melillo is the youngest Conservative MP ever elected in Canada, and the youngest of the 43rd and 44th parliaments.

Background

Melillo graduated from

Beaver Brae Secondary School Beaver Brae (BBSS) (2016 population 600) is a secondary school situated in Kenora, Ontario, Canada. Beaver Brae Secondary School is home to grades seven through twelve and has 65 staff members. The school offers trades, college, and university l ...

where he showed political aspirations as a high-school student. Prior to election, he studied economics at

Lakehead University Lakehead University is a public research university with campuses in Thunder Bay and Orillia, Ontario, Canada. Lakehead University, shortened to 'Lakehead U', is non-denominational and provincially supported. It has undergraduate programs, grad ...

, worked for a non-partisan think tank in

Thunder Bay Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario; its population ...

(Northern Policy Institute) conducting policy analysis, served as an Associate for a Business Consulting firm, and worked as the campaign manager for

Kenora—Rainy River Kenora—Rainy River was a federal electoral district represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1925 to 2004. It was located in the province of Ontario. This riding was created in 1924 from parts of Fort William and Rainy River and Por ...

MPP

Greg Rickford Greg Rickford (born September 24, 1967) is a Canadian politician. He is the Minister of Northern Development and Minister of Indigenous Affairs in the Executive Council of Ontario under Premier Doug Ford. He represents the Kenora-Rainy River r ...

Career

43rd Parliament

In December 2019, Melillo was appointed the Conservative Party's Deputy Shadow Minister for Diversity and Inclusion and Youth, and Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario. Prior to the second session of the 43rd Parliament, Melillo was named to

Erin O'Toole Erin Michael O'Toole (born January 22, 1973) is a Canadian politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Durham since 2012. A member of the Conservative Party, O'Toole served as the party's leader and the leader of the Official ...

's Shadow Cabinet as the Shadow Minister for Northern Affairs and Economic Development Initiative for Northern Ontario. Melillo served on the Natural Resources and the Indigenous and Northern Affairs standing committees during the 43rd Parliament. In his first term, he developed a reputation for his attention to constituency work that led to local popularity. He was re-elected at the

2021 Canadian federal election The 2021 Canadian federal election was held on September 20, 2021, to elect members of the House of Commons to the 44th Canadian Parliament. The writs of election were issued by Governor General Mary Simon on August 15, 2021, when Prime Minist ...

44th Parliament

After the 2021 election, Melillo remained in the Conservative Shadow Cabinet and was appointed to the Natural Resources Committee. On March 15, 2022 Melillo was listed among 313 Canadians banned from entering

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

. The announcement came after Ukrainian President

Volodymyr Zelenskyy Volodymyr Oleksandrovych Zelenskyy, ; russian: Владимир Александрович Зеленский, Vladimir Aleksandrovich Zelenskyy, (born 25 January 1978; also transliterated as Zelensky or Zelenskiy) is a Ukrainian politicia ...

addressed the House of Commons in midst of the

Russian invasion of Ukraine On 24 February 2022, in a major escalation of the Russo-Ukrainian War, which began in 2014. The invasion has resulted in tens of thousands of deaths on both sides. It has caused Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. An ...

Personal life

Melillo married Danaka Howden on June 3, 2022. His brothers-in-law Quinton and

Brett Howden Brett Howden (born March 29, 1998) is a Canadian ice hockey centre for the Vegas Golden Knights of the National Hockey League (NHL). Howden was drafted 27th overall in the 2016 NHL Entry Draft by the Tampa Bay Lightning. Playing career Junior ...

are professional ice hockey players.

Electoral record

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Melillo, Eric Living people Conservative Party of Canada MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario 21st-century Canadian politicians People from Kenora Year of birth uncertain 1998 births