Rachna Singh (born 1972) 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 trade unionist who has represented the electoral district of Surrey-Green Timbers in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia since 2017. A member of the

British Columbia New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party of British Columbia (BC NDP) is a social-democratic provincial political party in British Columbia, Canada. As of 2017, it governs the province. It is the British Columbia provincial arm of the federal New Democrati ...

(BC NDP) caucus, she has served as Minister of Education and Child Care of

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

since December 2022.

Biography

Singh was born in

Delhi Delhi, officially the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi, is a city and a union territory of India containing New Delhi, the capital of India. Straddling the Yamuna river, primarily its western or right bank, Delhi shares borders ...

, and grew up in

Chandigarh Chandigarh () is a planned city in India. Chandigarh is bordered by the state of Punjab to the west and the south, and by the state of Haryana to the east. It constitutes the bulk of the Chandigarh Capital Region or Greater Chandigarh, which a ...

. She attended

Panjab University Panjab University (PU) is a collegiate public state university located in Chandigarh, Punjab. Funded through both State and Union governments, it is considered a state university. It traces its origins to the University of the Punjab in Laho ...

, from which she received a master's degree in psychology. She moved to Canada in 2001, settling in Surrey, British Columbia. Prior to her election to the legislature, Singh worked as a drug and alcohol counsellor. She became active in her labour union local, and eventually became a National Representative (staff) for the

Canadian Union of Public Employees The Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE; french: Syndicat canadien de la fonction publique, links=no; french: SCFP, link=, label=none) is a Canadian trade union serving the public sector – although it has in recent years organized workpl ...

representing workers through advocacy in

grievance A grievance () is a wrong or hardship suffered, real or supposed, which forms legitimate grounds of complaint In legal terminology, a complaint is any formal legal document that sets out the facts and legal reasons (see: cause of actio ...

handling, labour arbitrations, organizing, community and political activism and helping advise local unions on matters of internal administration. With incumbent

Member of the Legislative Assembly A member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) is a representative elected by the voters of a constituency to a legislative assembly. Most often, the term refers to a subnational assembly such as that of a state, province, or territory of a country. ...

(MLA) for Surrey-Green Timbers

Sue Hammell Sue Hammell (born June 18, 1945) is a Canadian politician who is the former MLA for Surrey-Green Timbers in the province of British Columbia for most of the years between 1991 and 2017, she retired and did not seek re-election in May 2017. Her ...

declining to seek re-election in

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

, Singh decided to contest the BC NDP nomination for the riding. She was acclaimed as the NDP's candidate, then went on to defeat

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 ...

candidate and former Surrey-Green Timbers MLA

Brenda Locke Brenda Joy Locke is a Canadian politician, who served in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia from 2001 to 2005 and is the current mayor of Surrey, British Columbia. She represented the electoral district of Surrey-Green Timbers as a mem ...

at the general election. After winning re-election in

2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global social and economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, worldwide lockdowns and the largest economic recession since the Great Depression in t ...

, Singh was appointed Parliamentary Secretary for Anti-Racism Initiatives by Premier

John Horgan John Joseph Horgan (born August 7, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 36th premier of British Columbia from 2017 to 2022, and also as the leader of the British Columbia New Democratic Party from 2014 to 2022. Horgan has been the ...

. On December 7, 2022 she was named Minister of Education and Child Care by Premier

David Eby David Robert Patrick Eby (born July 21, 1976) is a Canadian politician and lawyer who has been serving as the 37th and current premier of British Columbia since November 18, 2022, and has been serving as the leader of the British Columbia New De ...

. Singh is married to Gurpreet Singh, a journalist for

the Georgia Straight ''The Georgia Straight'' is a free Canadian weekly news and entertainment newspaper published in Vancouver, British Columbia, by Overstory Media Group. Often known simply as ''The Straight'', it is delivered to newsboxes, post-secondary schools, ...

and publisher of the Radical Desi magazine; they have two children together. Both descend from families with a history of activism for various social and economic causes in their native India. She is a secular Sikh.

Electoral history

References

External links

Legislative Assembly of British Columbia - MLA: Hon. Rachna Singh
{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Rachna 1972 births Living people British Columbia New Democratic Party MLAs Education ministers of British Columbia People from Surrey, British Columbia Women MLAs in British Columbia Canadian trade unionists 21st-century Canadian politicians 21st-century Canadian women politicians Canadian people of Indian descent Indian emigrants to Canada Panjab University alumni