Monique Smith (Canadian politician)

Monique Smith
Ontario MPP
In office 2003–2011
Preceded by	Al McDonald
Succeeded by	Vic Fedeli
Constituency	Nipissing
Personal details
Born	1965 (age 59–60) North Bay, Ontario
Political party	Liberal
Relations	Richard Smith, father
Residence	North Bay, Ontario
Occupation	Lawyer

Monique M. Smith (born c. 1965) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. She was a Liberal member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 2003 to 2011 who represented the riding of Nipissing. She was a cabinet minister in the government of Dalton McGuinty.

Background

Smith was born and raised in North Bay, Ontario, the largest city in the Nipissing riding.^[1] She has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Toronto, and a law degree from Queen's University. After graduating, she worked at the Toronto law firm of McCarthy Tétrault until 1997,^[2] when she resigned to work as chief of staff for provincial Liberal leader Dalton McGuinty. She served as director of operations for the Liberals in the 1999 provincial election, which the party lost.

After this election, Smith became executive director of the Association of Canadian Publishers, and represented the organization across the country.^[2] She returned to North Bay in 2002, and worked for the firm of Larmer and Larmer.

Her father, Dick Smith, represented Nipissing in the legislature from 1965 to 1977.^[3] Her mother Marthe Smith was the Liberal candidate for the riding in 1987.^[4]

Politics

Smith ran for political office in the 2003 provincial election, in the Nipissing riding (until recently held by former Progressive Conservative Premier Mike Harris). Despite her roots in the North Bay community, she was often described as a "Toronto lawyer" and a "parachute candidate" by the Tory campaign. These criticisms were not an obstacle to her being elected, and she defeated Harris' immediate successor, Al McDonald, by just over 3,000 votes.^[5]

The Liberals won the election, and Smith was subsequently named parliamentary assistant to George Smitherman, the Minister of Health and Long-Term Care. In December 2003, Smitherman commissioned her to undertake a comprehensive review of the province's long-term care system. The review was published in May 2004 calling for more funding and inspections.

On October 30, 2007 following the provincial election, Premier Dalton McGuinty appointed Smith into cabinet as the province's Minister of Revenue.^[6] In a cabinet shuffle on September 18, 2008, Smith was appointed as the province's Minister of Tourism.^[7] On February 4, 2009 Smith was appointed Government House Leader. She continued as Minister of Tourism until she was appointed Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs in January 2010.^[8]

On November 19, 2010, Smith announced that she would not run in the 2011 election.^[3]

In August 2013, Premier Kathleen Wynne appointed Smith to represent the Government of Ontario at its office at the Canadian Embassy in Washington, DC.^[9]

On July 16, 2018, Conservative Premier Doug Ford withdrew Monique Smith from her position as the representative in a Washington, DC effective immediately. https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.4748423

Cabinet positions

Ontario provincial government of Dalton McGuinty
Special Parliamentary Responsibilities
Predecessor	Title	Successor
Michael Bryant	Government House Leader 2009–2011	John Milloy

After politics

On August 15, 2013, she was appointed by Premier Kathleen Wynne to run Ontario's office in the Canadian embassy in Washington.^[10]

Electoral record

2007 Ontario general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Monique Smith	13,730	41.94	-7.90
	Progressive Conservative	Bill Vrebosch	13,373	40.85	-0.62
	New Democratic	Henri Giroux	4,135	12.63	+5.40
	Green	Amy Brownridge	1,258	3.84	+2.38
	Family Coalition	Suzanne Plouffe	238	0.73

2003 Ontario general election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Monique Smith	18,003	49.84	+6.70
	Progressive Conservative	Al McDonald	14,978	41.47	-8.95
	New Democratic	Terry O'Connor	2,613	7.23	+2.37
	Green	Jaimie Board	528	1.46	+0.51

References

1. Ruimy, Joel (17 April 1999). "Grit Kids aim to craft myths of their own". Toronto Star. p. 1.
2. "Executive director appointment". Quill & Quire. Vol. 66, no. 2. February 2000. p. 17.
3. "Another McGuinty Liberal bows out". Toronto Star. 19 November 2010.
4. Campbell, Laurel J. (26 September 2007). "Family, past and present, integral to Smith's goals" (PDF). Almaguin News. p. 7.
5. "Summary of Valid Ballots by Candidate". Elections Ontario. 2 October 2003. Archived from the original on 7 January 2015. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
6. Ferguson, Rob; Benzie, Robert (31 October 2007). "Premier goes for new blood; Expanded 28-member cabinet has eight ministers from Toronto, three from 905 area". Toronto Star. p. A13.
7. "The new-look Ontario cabinet". The Hamilton Spectator. 19 September 2008. p. A9.
8. Kenyon, Wallace (19 January 2010). "Sweeping changes hit Queen's Park; Liberal Cabinet". National Post. p. A8.
9. "Ontario Appoints New Representative in Washington" (Press release). Toronto, ON: Province of Ontario. 15 August 2013. Retrieved 1 March 2018.
10. "Former Liberal minister Monique Smith appointed Ontario's envoy to Washington". Toronto Star. 15 August 2013.

External links

• Ontario Legislative Assembly parliamentary history