Kevin Yarde 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 and former

weather presenter A weather presenter (also known colloquially in North America as a weatherman or weather broadcaster) is a person who presents the weather forecast daily on radio, television or internet news broadcasts. Using diverse tools, such as projected weath ...

who was elected to the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA, french: Assemblée législative de l'Ontario) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by ...

in the 2018 provincial election for the riding of

Brampton North Brampton North (french: Brampton-Nord) is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada. It encompass portions of Ontario formerly included in the electoral districts of Brampton—Springdale, Bramalea—Gore—Malton and Brampton West. Br ...

. Initially elected as a member of the

Ontario New Democratic Party The Ontario New Democratic Party (french: link=no, Nouveau Parti démocratique de l'Ontario; abbr. ONDP or NDP) is a social-democratic political party in Ontario, Canada. The party currently forms the Official Opposition in Ontario following th ...

, he eventually left the party to sit as an independent. He is part of Ontario's first ever Black Caucus, alongside NDP caucus colleagues

Laura Mae Lindo Laura Mae Monique Lindo (born 1976) is a Canadian politician who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in the 2018 provincial election. She represents the electoral district of Kitchener Centre as a member of the Ontario New Democrat ...

Faisal Hassan Faisal Ahmed Hassan is a Canadian politician, who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 2018 until his defeat in the 2022 Ontario general election. He represented the riding of York South—Weston as a member of the Ontario N ...

Jill Andrew Jill Andrew is a Canadian politician who has represented Toronto—St. Paul's in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario since June 7, 2018 as a member of the Ontario New Democratic Party (NDP). Education Andrew attended Humber College, where ...

and

Rima Berns-McGown Rima Michelle Berns-McGown is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in the 2018 provincial election. She represented the riding of Beaches—East York as a member of the Ontario New Democratic Party. She ...

. While serving as a Member of Provincial Parliament, Yarde was employed by private security firms Sentinel Security and Nationwide Security Ltd. Yarde did not receive his party's nomination as a candidate in the 2022 election, losing to Sandeep Singh, who unsuccessfully ran in Caledon Ward 2 in the 2018 municipal elections. Yarde was the only NDP incumbent MPP to not receive his party nomination. Subsequently, Yarde resigned from the NDP to sit as an independent MPP for the remainder of the

42nd Parliament of Ontario The 42nd Legislative Assembly of Ontario was a legislature of the province of Ontario, Canada. The membership was set by the 2018 Ontario general election and sat for two sessions until it was dissolved on May 3, 2022 in advance of the 2022 Onta ...

. Prior to his election to the legislature, Yarde worked for

The Weather Network The Weather Network (TWN) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English language, English-language weather information specialty channel available in Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. It delivers weather information on television, ...

Personal life and education

Yarde was born in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

and has never lived in Brampton, but has "longtime family roots in Brampton". He studied journalism at

York University York University (french: Université York), also known as YorkU or simply YU, is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's fourth-largest university, and it has approximately 55,700 students, 7,0 ...

and

Ryerson University Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU or Toronto Met) is a public university, public research university located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The university's core campus is situated within the Garden District, Toronto, Garden District, although i ...

, before beginning his television career on the

Rogers TV Rogers TV (stylized as Rogers tv) is a group of English-language community channels owned by Rogers Communications. Many of these channels share common programs. Rogers TV broadcasts in the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick, Newfoundland and ...

community television network. He joined The Weather Network in 2001, first as a field correspondent and later as a studio host. Yarde is a member of the US-based

National Association of Black Journalists The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) is an organization of African-American journalists, students, and media professionals. Founded in 1975 in Washington, D.C., by 44 journalists, the NABJ's stated purpose is to provide quality p ...

and also a volunteer with the Toronto location of

Covenant House Covenant House is a large, Catholic, privately funded agency in the Americas, whose primary purpose is to promote Catholicism. It provides shelter, food, immediate crisis care, and other services to homeless and runaway young people. Covenant H ...

, a shelter and support centre for homeless and at-risk youth. He is a first cousin of drummer

Tyler Stewart Tyler Joseph Stewart (born September 21, 1967) is the drummer for the Canadian music group Barenaked Ladies. Role in Barenaked Ladies Stewart met Steven Page, Ed Robertson, and Jim Creeggan at the Waterloo Busker Carnival in Waterloo, Ontario, C ...

of the

Barenaked Ladies Barenaked Ladies is a Canadian rock band formed in 1988 in Scarborough, Ontario. The band developed a following in Canada, with their self-titled 1991 cassette becoming the first independent release to be certified gold in Canada. They reach ...

Electoral record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yarde, Kevin Ontario New Democratic Party MPPs 21st-century Canadian politicians Living people Politicians from Brampton Black Canadian politicians Black Canadian broadcasters Canadian television meteorologists Year of birth missing (living people) York University alumni Toronto Metropolitan University alumni Politicians from Toronto Black Canadian scientists Independent MPPs in Ontario