Bernadette Smith | |
|---|---|
| Minister of Housing, Addictions, and Homelessness | |
| Assumed office October 18, 2023 | |
| Premier | Wab Kinew |
| Preceded by | Portfolio established |
| Member of theLegislative Assembly of Manitoba forPoint Douglas | |
| Assumed office June 13, 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Kevin Chief |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | New Democratic |
| Residence(s) | Winnipeg,Manitoba |
| Alma mater | Red River College |
Bernadette SmithOM MLA is aCanadianFirst Nations politician who was elected to theLegislative Assembly of Manitoba in aby-election on June 13, 2017.[1] She represents the electoral district ofPoint Douglas as a member of theManitoba New Democratic Party.[2][3] In November 2023, Smith was named to theBBC's100 Women list.[4]
Smith was born and raised inWinnipeg.[5] She left school in Grade 11, completing her high school education at age 22.[5] She subsequently obtained a Child and Youth Care Certificate fromRed River Community College.[5]
Smith isAnishinaabe andMétis.[5] Her sister, Claudette Priscilla June Osborne-Tyo, has been missing from Winnipeg since 2008.[5][2][6] She has three children: Aron, Matthew and Makena.[5][6]
She was awarded theOrder of Manitoba in 2016.[3][7]
She was a teacher atMaples Collegiate and the Assistant Director of WayFinders Program at theSeven Oaks School Division.[8][2][6] She is the co-founder of the Manitoba Coalition of Families of Missing and Murdered Women in Manitoba (CFMMWM) and the Drag the Red Initiative.[6][2]
Smith was the only candidate to submit her name in order to qualify as theNew Democratic Party's candidate forPoint Douglas in the 2017 by-election.[9] During the campaign, the opposingProgressive Conservative Party filed a complaint withElections Manitoba alleging that Smith had improperly campaigned at polling stations.[10][11] Smith won the seat with 44% of the vote.[12][13]
She was re-elected in the2019 provincial election and the 2023 Manitoba general election.
Smith has advocated for some form of government investment in order to preserve the Neechi Commons grocery store and arts centre.[14]
| 2023 Manitoba general election:Point Douglas | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| New Democratic | Bernadette Smith | 3,367 | 73.31 | +11.18 | $22,793.24 | |||
| Progressive Conservative | Najiha Ali | 742 | 16.16 | +0.49 | $0.00 | |||
| Liberal | Jerald Funk | 484 | 10.54 | -1.16 | $311.30 | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 4,593 | 99.46 | – | $55,071.00 | ||||
| Total rejected and declined ballots | 25 | 0.54 | – | |||||
| Turnout | 4,618 | 32.76 | -3.24 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 14,097 | |||||||
| New Democratichold | Swing | +5.35 | ||||||
Source(s) | ||||||||
| 2019 Manitoba general election:Point Douglas | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| New Democratic | Bernadette Smith | 3,002 | 62.13 | +17.78 | $19,767.20 | |||
| Progressive Conservative | Michelle Redmond | 757 | 15.67 | -0.58 | $521.28 | |||
| Liberal | Richard Sanderson | 565 | 11.69 | -17.39 | $0.00 | |||
| Green | Jenn Kess | 398 | 8.24 | 3.99 | $0.00 | |||
| Manitoba Forward | Michael Wenuik | 66 | 1.37 | $0.00 | ||||
| Communist | Fagie Fainman | 44 | 0.91 | +0.07 | $310.80 | |||
| Total valid votes | 4,832 | 100.0 | ||||||
| Total rejected ballots | ||||||||
| Turnout | ||||||||
| Eligible voters | ||||||||
| Manitoba provincial by-election, 13 June 2017:Point Douglas Resignation ofKevin Chief | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| New Democratic | Bernadette Smith | 1,568 | 44.35 | -13.46 | $35,313.48 | |||
| Liberal | John Cacayuran | 1,006 | 29.08 | +9.62 | $19,478.56 | |||
| Progressive Conservative | Jodi Moskal | 562 | 16.25 | -0.27 | $35,068.27 | |||
| Manitoba | Gary Marshall | 181 | 5.23 | $5,528.56 | ||||
| Green | Sabrina Koehn Binesi | 147 | 4.25 | -0.78 | $2,230.86 | |||
| Communist | Frank Komarniski | 27 | 0.84 | -0.34 | $9.44 | |||
| Total valid votes/Expense limit | 3,491 | 100.00 | - | $37,179.00 | ||||
| Total rejected and declines votes | 23 | 0.72 | -0.45 | |||||
| Turnout | 3,514 | 32.38 | -10.16 | |||||
| Electors on the lists | 11,207 | |||||||
| New Democratichold | Swing | -11.54 | ||||||
| Source:Elections Manitoba[18] | ||||||||
Smith helped push for an inquiry into missing and murdered Indigenous women and co-founded Drag the Red, a group that searches the Red River for clues in missing persons cases. She is also a recent recipient of the Order of Manitoba.
Bernadette Smith is best known for her dedication to pursuing justice for Canada's missing and murdered Indigenous girls and women. She is a leader in her community and across Canada.
The popular teacher at Maples Collegiate is one of the new wave of young,vibrant indigenous leaders in Manitoba.
Indigenous activist Bernadette Smith was the only candidate to submit her name before the party's deadline and her nomination is to be made official Jan. 31.
Manitoba's Progressive Conservatives are accusing the Opposition New Democrats of breaking election rules that ban political activities at polling stations. [...] The Tories said NDP candidate Bernadette Smith has taken photographs of herself with voters in front of the polling station.
A byelection in Point Douglas ended with NDP candidate Bernadette Smith celebrating a victory Tuesday night.
When all poll results were in, New Democrat candidate Bernadette Smith had captured 44 per cent of the vote in a seat where the NDP had never previously scored less than 52 per cent.
This is a vital community meeting place. It's not just a grocery store," Bernadette Smith, the newly minted NDP MLA for Point Douglas, said Wednesday morning, surrounded by organizers from the community." We definitely should be asking the government to put in some funds.
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