: ''For other people with a similar name, see Pedro da Fonseca (disambiguation)'' Peter Fonseca (born October 5, 1966) is a Portuguese-born Canadian

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

and former

athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

. He is a

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 ...

member of 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 ...

, representing the riding of

Mississauga East—Cooksville Mississauga East—Cooksville (french: Mississauga-Est—Cooksville) is a federal electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 2004. History It was created in 2003 from parts of ...

since his election in 2015. Prior to entering federal politics, Fonseca was a provincial

member of 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 ...

representing

Mississauga East Mississauga East was a federal and provincial electoral district in Ontario, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1988 to 2003, and in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1975 to 2007. It was located in the ...

(2003-2007) and

(2007- 2011). He was a cabinet minister in the government of

Dalton McGuinty Dalton James Patrick McGuinty Jr. (born July 19, 1955) is a former Canadian politician who served as the 24th premier of Ontario from 2003 to 2013. He was the first Liberal leader to win two majority governments since Mitchell Hepburn nearl ...

. Fonseca was re-elected his safe Liberal riding of Mississauga East—Cooksville with roughly 53% of the vote in the 2019 federal election and again with 50% of the vote in the 2021 federal election. In the 44th parliament which was formed after the 2021 federal election (where the governing Liberals were re-elected with an increased minority), Fonseca was selected as the chair of the powerful Finance Committee.

Background

Fonseca was born in

Lisbon Lisbon (; pt, Lisboa ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 544,851 within its administrative limits in an area of 100.05 km2. Grande Lisboa, Lisbon's urban area extends beyond the city's administr ...

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

and immigrated to

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 ...

with his family in 1968. He was raised in Little Portugal. He graduated from

St. Michael's College School St. Michael's College School, (also known as St. Michael's, St. Mike's, and SMCS), is an independent, Catholic school for young men in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Administered by the Basilian Fathers, it is the largest school of its kind in Canada ...

and attended the

University of Oregon The University of Oregon (UO, U of O or Oregon) is a public research university in Eugene, Oregon. Founded in 1876, the institution is well known for its strong ties to the sports apparel and marketing firm Nike, Inc, and its co-founder, billion ...

, gaining a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

on an athletic scholarship. He also holds a

Bachelor of Education A Bachelor of Education (B.Ed.) is an undergraduate professional degree which prepares students for work as a teacher in schools. In some countries such as Tanzania and Kenya, additional tasks like field work and research are required in order for ...

degree from the

University of Windsor , mottoeng = Goodness, Discipline and Knowledge , established = , academic_affiliations = CARL, COU, Universities Canada , former_names = Assumption College (1857-1956)Assumption University of Windsor (1956-1963) , type = Public universit ...

. He worked as a senior performance management consultant for the Coach Corporation and has run an importing and distributing company in Portugal. He married his wife Christine "Chris" Fonseca in 2003. Christine was elected to

Mississauga City Council Mississauga City Council is the governing body of the city of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. The council consists of the mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a ...

as Councillor for Ward 3 in the 2010 Mississauga municipal election and re-elected in 2014 Mississauga municipal election.

Athletic career

He finished 5th in the 10,000 metres at the

1994 Commonwealth Games The 1994 Commonwealth Games ( French: ''XVéme Jeux du Commonwealth'') were held in Victoria, British Columbia, from 18 to 28 August 1994. Ten types of sports were featured at the Victoria Games: athletics, aquatics, badminton, boxing, cycling, ...

. He also represented Canada at the

1996 Olympic Games The 1996 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXVI Olympiad, also known as Atlanta 1996 and commonly referred to as the Centennial Olympic Games) were an international multi-sport event held from July 19 to August 4, 1996, in Atlanta, ...

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the Southeast United States Georgia may also refer to: Places Historical states and entities * Related to the ...

in the Men's Marathon. He was the top finisher for the Canadians, placing 21st overall in a race with a time of 2 hours, 17 minutes and 28 seconds. He also placed second in the 1994

Toronto Marathon The Toronto Marathon, held annually on the first Sunday of May, is a race from Yonge and Sheppard, in the north end of Toronto, to Exhibition Place, via Humber Bay Park. The origins of the event trace back to 1977, and the race was initially call ...

and the 1994

Houston Marathon The Houston Marathon is an annual marathon usually held every January in Houston, Texas, United States, since 1972. With thousands of runners and spectators, it is the largest single day sporting event in the city. It is run concurrently wi ...

, and third in the 1992

New York City Marathon The New York City Marathon (currently branded TCS New York City Marathon after its headline sponsor) is an annual marathon () that courses through the five boroughs of New York City. It is the largest marathon in the world, with 53,627 finishe ...

and the 1990

Los Angeles Marathon The Los Angeles Marathon (formerly known as the City of Los Angeles Marathon) is an annual running event typically held each spring in Los Angeles, California, since 1986. The marathon was inspired by the success of the 1984 Summer Olympic Ga ...

Politics

Provincial

Fonseca was elected to the Ontario legislature in the provincial election of 2003, defeating incumbent Progressive Conservative

Carl DeFaria Carl DeFaria (born ) is a politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1995 to 2003 and was a cabinet minister in the government of Ernie Eves. Background DeFaria has a Bac ...

by about 3,000 votes in Mississauga East. On October 23, 2003, he was named

parliamentary assistant In UK politics, a parliamentary assistant is an unelected partisan member of staff employed by a Member of Parliament (MP) to assist them with their parliamentary duties. Parliamentary assistants usually work at the House of Commons in the U ...

George Smitherman George Smitherman (born February 12, 1964) is a former Canadian politician and broadcaster. He represented the provincial riding of Toronto Centre in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1999 to 2010, when he resigned to contest the mayora ...

, the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care. In July 2005, he became the

to Jim Watson, the Minister of Health Promotion. In October 2007, Fonseca was named to

cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

as Minister of Tourism and Recreation. In a cabinet shuffle on September 18, 2008, Fonseca was appointed as the province's

Minister of Labour Minister of Labour (in British English) or Labor (in American English) is typically a cabinet-level position with portfolio responsibility for setting national labour standards, labour dispute mechanisms, employment, workforce participation, traini ...

Federal

On December 16, 2010, Fonseca resigned from the Ontario cabinet to run for the federal Liberals in the riding of

. He was defeated by

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 ...

candidate

Wladyslaw Lizon Wladyslaw Lizon ( pl, Władysław Lizoń; born June 27, 1954) is a Polish Canadian former politician. He was a Conservative member of the House of Commons of Canada from 2011 to 2015 who represented the Greater Toronto Area riding of Mississaug ...

in the 2011 federal election by 676 votes. Fonseca ran for the Liberals again in the 2015 federal election and defeated Lizon by a wide margin as part of the Liberal sweep of Mississauga ridings. Fonseca's constituency office was on fire, February 22. Peel Regional Police is investigating the matter as an arson.

Electoral record

Federal

Provincial

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Fonseca, Peter 1966 births Athletes (track and field) at the 1994 Commonwealth Games Athletes (track and field) at the 1996 Summer Olympics Athletes from Mississauga Canadian male long-distance runners Canadian male marathon runners Canadian sportsperson-politicians Commonwealth Games competitors for Canada Liberal Party of Canada MPs Living people Members of the Executive Council of Ontario Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario Naturalized citizens of Canada Ontario Liberal Party MPPs Olympic track and field athletes of Canada Oregon Ducks men's track and field athletes Politicians from Mississauga Portuguese emigrants to Canada Athletes from Lisbon University of Windsor alumni 21st-century Canadian politicians