Verlyn Dale Olson (born February 4, 1954) 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 lawyer. He served as a member of the

Alberta Legislature The Legislature of Alberta is the unicameral legislature of the province of Alberta, Canada. The legislature is made of two elements: the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta,. and the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. The legislature has existed sinc ...

from 2008 to 2015 and was a cabinet minister from 2011 until 2015.

Political career

Olson first ran for a seat to 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

Crowfoot Crowfoot (1830 – 25 April 1890) or Isapo-Muxika ( bla, Issapóómahksika, italics=yes; syllabics: ) was a chief of the Siksika First Nation. His parents, (Packs a Knife) and (Attacked Towards Home), were Kainai. He was five years old when ...

electoral district in the

2000 Canadian federal election The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect members to the House of Commons of Canada of the 37th Canadian Parliament, 37th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister of Canada, Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Pa ...

under the federal Progressive Conservative banner. He was defeated by

Kevin Sorenson Kevin A. Sorenson (born November 3, 1958) is a Canadian politician who represented the riding of Battle River-Crowfoot (known as Crowfoot from 2000 to 2015) in the House of Commons of Canada from 2000 to 2019, first as a member of the Canad ...

in a landslide that also saw incumbent

Jack Ramsay John Travilla Ramsay (February 21, 1925 – April 28, 2014) was an American basketball coach, commonly known as "Dr. Jack" (as he held an earned doctorate). He was best known for leading the Portland Trail Blazers to the 1977 NBA championship, a ...

get defeated. Olson ran for seat to the Alberta Legislature in the 2008 provincial election and was elected to represent the

electoral district An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...

Wetaskiwin-Camrose Wetaskiwin-Camrose was a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada, mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta using first past the post method of voting from 1993 to 2019. History The district was created ...

in the

Legislative Assembly of Alberta The Legislative Assembly of Alberta is the deliberative assembly of the province of Alberta, Canada. It sits in the Alberta Legislature Building in Edmonton. The Legislative Assembly currently has 87 members, elected first past the post from singl ...

. He is a member of the provincial Progressive Conservatives. Olson succeeded Alison Redford as Alberta's Minister of Justice and Attorney General on February 18, 2011. He was appointed Minister of Agriculture for Alberta on May 8, 2012. He was appointed acting Minister of Justice and Attorney General on April 25, 2015, in the middle of the election campaign, upon the sudden resignation of

Jonathan Denis Jonathan Brian Denis, (born September 22, 1975) is a Canadian politician and lawyer. On May 9, 2012, he was named Solicitor General, Attorney General, and Minister of Justice for the province of Alberta. He represented the constituency of Calga ...

. He was defeated in the

2015 Alberta general election The 2015 Alberta general election was held on May 5, 2015, following a request of Premier Jim Prentice to the Lieutenant Governor of Alberta Donald Ethell to dissolve the Legislative Assembly on April 7, 2015. This election elected members to th ...

by NDP candidate

Bruce Hinkley Bruce Hinkley (born 1949) is a Canadian politician who was elected in the 2015 Alberta general election to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta representing the electoral district of Wetaskiwin-Camrose Wetaskiwin-Camrose was a provincial elec ...

Private life

Verlyn was born and raised in Camrose. He and his wife, Mardell Olson, have three adult children and four grandchildren.

Community involvement

Olson's history of community involvement includes coaching local baseball and hockey and membership with the following organizations: Viking Cup International Hockey Tournament Steering Committee, The Bethany Group (Health Care/Seniors Housing Board), Alberta Motion Picture Development Corporation Board, Camrose Sport Development Society, Armena Athletic Association, Camrose Lutheran College Corporation (Augustana University College) Board of Regents.

References

External links

Alberta government members directory
Progressive Conservative Association of Alberta MLAs Living people Place of birth missing (living people) Alberta candidates for Member of Parliament Members of the Executive Council of Alberta Progressive Conservative Party of Canada candidates for the Canadian House of Commons Candidates in the 2000 Canadian federal election People from Camrose, Alberta 1954 births 21st-century Canadian politicians {{Alberta-politician-stub