Henry Braun (born c. 1950) is a Canadian politician and businessman. He served as the mayor of Abbotsford, British Columbia from 2014 to 2022.
Braun was born in
Paraguay
Paraguay (; ), officially the Republic of Paraguay ( es, República del Paraguay, links=no; gn, Tavakuairetã Paraguái, links=si), is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the south and southwest, Brazil to th ...
where he lived with his family until he was three and a half, when they first moved to
Steinbach, Manitoba
Steinbach () ( Plautdietsch: /ˈʃte̞nbah/ or /ˈʃte̞nbax/) is a city located about south-east of Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada. Steinbach is the third-largest city in Manitoba, with a population of 17,806, and the largest community in the Eas ...
and then to Abbotsford. His parents were
Russian Mennonite
The Russian Mennonites (german: Russlandmennoniten it. "Russia Mennonites", i.e., Mennonites of or from the Russian Empire occasionally Ukrainian Mennonites) are a group of Mennonites who are descendants of Dutch Anabaptists who settled for abo ...
refugees from the Mennonite colonies of southern
Ukraine
Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...
who fled to Paraguay during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. Before entering politics, Braun was a rancher and the CEO Pacific Northern Rail Contractors Corp.
Braun was first elected as a
city councillor
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...
in Abbotsford in the 2011 municipal election. As a councillor, Braun was known for his lone opposing votes, with mayor
Bruce Banman
Bruce Banman is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2020 British Columbia general election.in 2014, defeating Banman by just over 600 votes. Braun ran on a platform of "fiscal responsibility" and "better accountability" in local government. He received some controversy in his run, as his son was director of development planning for the city, causing a possible conflict of interest. In his campaign, he won the endorsements of former mayors George Ferguson and Dave Kandal.
Braun was re-elected mayor in the 2018 mayoral election, defeating long-time city councillor Moe Gill and accountant Eric Nyvall, taking 57% of the vote.
Braun did not run for re-election in
2022
File:2022 collage V1.png, Clockwise, from top left: Road junction at Yamato-Saidaiji Station several hours after the assassination of Shinzo Abe; Anti-government protest in Sri Lanka in front of the Presidential Secretariat; The global monkeypo ...
.
Personal life
Braun is married to Velma Braun, and has three children.