Raymonde Gagné (; born January 7, 1956) is a Canadian politician and academic who has served as the

speaker of the Senate of Canada The speaker of the Senate of Canada () is the presiding officer of the Senate of Canada. The speaker represents the Senate at official functions, rules on questions of parliamentary procedure and parliamentary privilege, and presides over debat ...

since May 12, 2023. She was named to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada () is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Monarchy of Canada#Parliament (King-in-Parliament), Crown and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, they compose the Bicameralism, bicameral le ...

to represent

Manitoba Manitoba is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada at the Centre of Canada, longitudinal centre of the country. It is Canada's Population of Canada by province and territory, fifth-most populous province, with a population ...

on March 18, 2016.

Background

Prior to her appointment to the Senate, Gagné worked in the education field. She worked as a high school teacher and principal and was a longtime faculty member of the Université de Saint-Boniface in

Winnipeg Winnipeg () is the capital and largest city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Manitoba. It is centred on the confluence of the Red River of the North, Red and Assiniboine River, Assiniboine rivers. , Winnipeg h ...

, serving as president of the school between 2003 and 2014."Raymonde Gagné nommée membre de l’Ordre du Canada"

Radio-Canada Radio-Canada may refer to: * CBC/Radio-Canada, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation *Ici Radio-Canada Télé, the CBC's main French-language television network *Ici Radio-Canada Première Ici Radio-Canada Première (formerly Première Chaîne) i ...

, September 23, 2015. Gagné contributes to numerous organizations and boards within Manitoba and across Canada. She served as President of the Association of Colleges and Universities of the Canadian Francophonie from 2005 to 2009, was a member of the Advisory Committee on Official Languages for the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages of Canada from 2007 to 2009.

Political career

Gagné was appointed to the Senate by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on March 18, 2016. However, she chose to sit as a member of the

Independent Senators Group The Independent Senators Group (ISG; ) is a parliamentary group in the Senate of Canada. Established on March 10, 2016, the Independent Senators Group is committed to a non-partisan Senate and the modernization of the Upper House of Canada's Parli ...

. On January 31, 2020, she was appointed Deputy to Representative of the Government in the Senate Marc Gold. Upon this appointment she left the ISG, becoming designated as non-affiliated with any Senate political group.

Speaker of the Senate

On May 12, 2023, Gagné was named Speaker of the Senate by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau following the retirement of George Furey, becoming the third female Speaker of the Senate and the first since Renaude Lapointe who served as speaker from 1974 to 1979.

Honours and awards

In May 2014, Gagné was recognized with the Order of Manitoba. On November 20, 2014, Gagné was awarded the Order of Canada and was invested as a Member of the Order of Canada on September 23, 2015, for services to education and social services. She also received the Prix Riel in the community development category in 2015. She is also the recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gagne, Raymonde 1957 births Living people Canadian senators from Manitoba Women members of the Senate of Canada Women in Manitoba politics People from St. Boniface, Winnipeg Franco-Manitoban people Members of the Order of Canada Members of the Order of Manitoba Canadian university and college chief executives 21st-century Canadian women politicians Women heads of universities and colleges Speakers of the Senate of Canada Women legislative speakers 21st-century members of the Senate of Canada