Maria Michelle Fitzpatrick (born February 18, 1949) is a Canadian politician who was elected 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 the ...

to 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 sin ...

representing the electoral district of

Lethbridge-East Lethbridge-East is a provincial electoral district in Alberta, Canada, covering the eastern half of the city of Lethbridge. The district is one of 87 in the province mandated to return a single member to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta usi ...

Early life

Fitzpatrick was born and raised in St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador. She is a former sprinter who competed in the

Canada Summer Games The Canada Games (french: Jeux du Canada) is a multi-sport event held every two years, alternating between the Canada Winter Games and the Canada Summer Games. They represent the highest level of national competition for Canadian athletes. Two ...

Canadian Track and Field Championships The Canadian Track and Field Championships is an annual outdoor track and field competition organized by Athletics Canada, which serves as the Canadian national championships for the sport. The most recent edition of the event took place in Montr ...

, National University Indoor Championships, Halifax Highland Games, Antigonish Highland Games, and Royal Canadian Legion Provincial Championships. In 1969, she was named the Athlete of the Year for St. John's. She later coached various track and field teams in the Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Alberta. In 2005, she was named to the Newfoundland and Labrador Athletics Association Hall of Fame. Fitzpatrick is a trustee on the Lethbridge Labour Council, vice president of the Canadian Federation of University Women, and chair of the regional women's committee of the Public Service Alliance of Canada. She worked for 32 years with the Correctional Service of Canada, most recently as a project officer.

Political career

In November 2015, during debate on a private member's bill to improve supports for victims of domestic violence, Fitzpatrick spoke in the legislature about her own experience, having been married to an abusive husband in the 1970s."‘He beat me. He raped me,’ Alberta NDP politician recounts own experience of domestic violence"
''

Toronto Star The ''Toronto Star'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet daily newspaper. The newspaper is the country's largest daily newspaper by circulation. It is owned by Toronto Star Newspapers Limited, a subsidiary of Torstar Corporation and pa ...

'', November 17, 2015. She earned a

standing ovation A standing ovation is a form of applause where members of a seated audience stand up while applauding after extraordinary performances of particularly high acclaim. In Ancient Rome returning military commanders (such as Marcus Licinius Crassus a ...

in the legislature for her speech, and the bill unanimously passed second reading soon afterward.

Electoral history

2019 general election

2015 general election

References

1949 births Alberta New Democratic Party MLAs Canadian female sprinters Living people Politicians from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador Women MLAs in Alberta Sportspeople from Lethbridge Sportspeople from St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador 21st-century Canadian politicians 21st-century Canadian women politicians {{Alberta-politician-stub