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Ali Ehsassi | |
|---|---|
 Ehsassi on May 23, 2017. | |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Intergovernmental Affairs, and One Canadian Economy | |
| Assumed office June 5, 2025 | |
| Minister of Government Transformation, Public Services and Procurement Receiver General for Canada | |
| In office March 14, 2025 – May 13, 2025 | |
| Prime Minister | Mark Carney |
| Preceded by | Jean-Yves Duclos |
| Succeeded by | Joël Lightbound |
| Member of Parliament forWillowdale | |
| Assumed office October 19, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Chungsen Leung |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1970-04-24)April 24, 1970 (age 55) |
| Party | Liberal |
| Relatives | Abdolhossein Teymourtash (great-grandfather) |
| Residence(s) | Lansing,[1]North York,Toronto,Ontario |
| Alma mater | University of Toronto Osgoode Hall Law School Georgetown University London School of Economics |
| Profession | Lawyer, International Law Executive of the Ontario Bar Association |
Ali Cyrus Ehsassi[1]MP (Persian:علی احساسی; born April 24, 1970) is a Swiss-bornCanadian politician ofIranian descent who has served as the Liberal Member of Parliament forWillowdale since 2015.[2] He was briefly theminister of government transformation, public services and procurement from March 14, 2025, to May 13, 2025.[3]
Ehsassi was born on April 24, 1970, in Geneva, Switzerland. At the age of three, his family relocated to New York City and by age 15, Ehsassi moved toNorth York,Ontario, with his family.[4][better source needed]
Ehsassi's extended family has extensive experience in international relations. His maternal great-grandfather was Iranian statesmanAbdolhossein Teymourtash, who was the first Minister of Court during thePahlavi dynasty. Ehsassi's father was also an Iranian diplomat and worked in Iran's embassy inSwitzerland when he was born. His family left Iran during theIranian Revolution.
Ehsassi holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto and a Master's of Science degree from theLondon School of Economics[citation needed]. He attendedYork University Osgoode Hall Law School having obtained his LL.B.[citation needed] Ehsassi then went on toGeorgetown University Law School to pursue a masters of international trade and arbitration law,[4] which he attended concurrently as a global and WTO fellow.[citation needed][better source needed]
Ehsassi has served as the Liberal Member of Parliament for Willowdale since 2015. He was one of the first two Canadians of Iranian heritage elected to federal Parliament.[5]
Ehsassi is the chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Prevention of Genocide and other Crimes against Humanity, Co-Chair of the 416 Caucus, is on the Standing Committee for Citizenship and Immigration, and the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations.
He is also a member of several Parliamentary Associations and Interparliamentary groups such as the Canada-Africa Parliamentary Association, Canada-China Legislative AssociationCanada-Israel Interparliamentary Group, Canada-United Kingdom Inter-Parliamentary Association, Canada-United States Inter-Parliamentary Group, Canadian Group of the Inter-Parliamentary Union, Canadian NATO Parliamentary Association and the Canadian Section of ParlAmericas.[6]
He notably opposes the Iranian government and called for a public inquiry into potential Iranian interference in Canadian elections.[7]
In the2025 Liberal Party of Canada leadership election, he endorsedMark Carney.[8] He joined Carney's30th Canadian Ministry asMinister of Government Transformation, Public Services and Procurement in March. After being reelected in the2025 federal election in April, Elhassi was appointed as Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the King’s Privy Council for Canada and Minister responsible for Canada-U.S. Trade, Intergovernmental Affairs and One Canadian Economy.[9]
| 2025 Canadian federal election:Willowdale | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ** Preliminary results — Not yet official ** | ||||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Liberal | Ali Ehsassi | 25,487 | 53.45 | +2.26 | ||||
| Conservative | James Lin | 20,915 | 43.86 | +10.00 | ||||
| New Democratic | Christy Kheirallah | 1,286 | 2.70 | –7.59 | ||||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | ||||||||
| Total rejected ballots | ||||||||
| Turnout | 47,688 | 60.63 | ||||||
| Eligible voters | 78,656 | |||||||
| Liberalhold | Swing | –3.87 | ||||||
| Source:Elections Canada[10][11] | ||||||||
| 2021 Canadian federal election | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Liberal | Ali Ehsassi | 21,043 | 51.2 | +2.2 | $98,989.39 | |||
| Conservative | Daniel Lee | 13,916 | 33.9 | -2.3 | $70,040.08 | |||
| New Democratic | Hal Berman | 4,231 | 10.3 | +1.0 | $2,471.22 | |||
| People's | Al Wahab | 1,102 | 2.7 | +1.5 | $1,784.10 | |||
| Green | Anna Gorka | 812 | 2.0 | -1.7 | $1,462.34 | |||
| Total valid votes/Expense limit | 41,104 | 99.1 | – | $108,952.94 | ||||
| Total rejected ballots | 383 | 0.9 | ||||||
| Turnout | 41,487 | 54.8 | ||||||
| Eligible voters | 75,773 | |||||||
| Liberalhold | Swing | +2.3 | ||||||
| Source:Elections Canada[12] | ||||||||
| 2019 Canadian federal election:Willowdale | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Liberal | Ali Ehsassi | 22,282 | 49.0 | -4.4 | $103,868.26 | |||
| Conservative | Daniel Lee | 16,452 | 36.2 | -0.8 | $82,193.67 | |||
| New Democratic | Leah Kalsi | 4,231 | 9.3 | +2.3 | none listed | |||
| Green | Sharolyn Vettese | 1,671 | 3.7 | +1.5 | $0.00 | |||
| People's | Richard Hillier | 563 | 1.2 | - | $1,005.61 | |||
| Independent | Birinder Singh Ahluwalia | 200 | 0.4 | -0.1 | none listed | |||
| Independent | Shodja Ziaian | 71 | 0.2 | - | none listed | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 45,470 | 100.0 | ||||||
| Total rejected ballots | 410 | |||||||
| Turnout | 45,880 | 58.2 | ||||||
| Eligible voters | 78,809 | |||||||
| Liberalhold | Swing | -1.80 | ||||||
| Source:Elections Canada[13][14] | ||||||||
| 2015 Canadian federal election | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Liberal | Ali Ehsassi | 24,519 | 53.4 | +13.5 | $89,151.49 | |||
| Conservative | Chungsen Leung | 16,990 | 37.0 | -4.7 | $135,960.85 | |||
| New Democratic | Pouyan Tabasinejad | 3,203 | 7.0 | -11.4 | $6,678.16 | |||
| Green | James Arruda | 1,025 | 2.2 | +1.81 | $7,484.51 | |||
| Independent | Birinder Singh Ahluwalia | 216 | 0.5 | – | $39,117.06 | |||
| Total valid votes/Expense limit | 45,953 | 100.0 | $207,725.33 | |||||
| Total rejected ballots | 251 | 0.5 | -0.1 | |||||
| Turnout | 46,204 | 61.46 | +3.06 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 75,172 | |||||||
| Liberalgain fromConservative | Swing | +9.1 | ||||||
| Source:Elections Canada[15][16] | ||||||||