Omar Alghabra
Omar Alghabra MP MBA |
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Member of the Canadian Parliament for Mississauga Centre |
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Assumed office October 19, 2015 |
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Preceded by | riding created |
Member of Parliament for Mississauga—Erindale |
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In office January 23, 2006 – October 14, 2008 |
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Preceded by | Carolyn Parrish |
Succeeded by | Bob Dechert |
Personal details | |
Born | Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia |
October 24, 1969
Political party | Liberal |
Residence | Mississauga, Ontario |
Profession | Engineer, Entrepreneur, Politician |
Omar Alghabra is a Saudi Arabian born Canadian politician of Syrian Canadian[1] descent, who represented the riding of Mississauga—Erindale in the Canadian House of Commons from 2006 to 2008. He is the former president of the Canadian Arab Federation, and senior policy advisor to Justin Trudeau.
Alghabra graduated from Ryerson University with a degree in engineering and in 2000 received his Master of Business Administration from York University.
He was elected to the House of Commons in the 2006 election as a member of the Liberal caucus, and was an active organizer for Gerard Kennedy's leadership bid. He was the opposition critic for Citizenship and Immigration, and later for Natural Resources.
He was narrowly defeated by Bob Dechert in the 2008 election and the 2011 election. In the 2015 election he was returned to Parliament as the MP for the recreated riding of Mississauga Centre.
Campaigning[edit]
The National Post stated that Alghabra promotes himself by "humour and self-deprecation to win over voters. Rather than vilify his opponents, Alghabra is establishing himself in the public mind in a positive sense, before he can be trashed by competitors."[2]
According to a column in The Globe and Mail, Alghabra's "combination of biographical information and self-deprecating humour stands in contrast to the aggressive attack ads currently in rotation on the federal stage."[3]
In the 2015 election, Alghabra won national attention for his campaign's ad that parodied a Conservative attack ad against Justin Trudeau that used a job application as the premise.[4] Later in the campaign, he released a campaign video that parodied the opening sequence of Game of Thrones.[5]
Views[edit]
In 2010, Alghabra identified key issues on his platform:[6]
- Ending poverty in Mississauga; Alghabra states that one out of five children in Mississauga live in poverty
- Reduce the unemployment rate; Alghabra quotes a 2010 figure of around 10%.
- Integration of immigrants; Alghabra said he would work towards the recognition of foreign credentials.
On Canadian democracy, Alghabra stated:[6]
I was raised in areas where they don't believe in democracy and civil rights, cultures of equality and justice, and there is no belief that a citizen has the power over their own destiny...now I have a unique appreciation for Canada and what Canada has to offer, so it is that passion about striving to protect the idea and the noble concept of democracy.
Electoral record[edit]
Canadian federal election, 2015: Mississauga Centre | ||||||||
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ∆% | Expenditures | |||
Liberal | Omar Alghabra | 28,372 | 54.72 | +18 | – | |||
Conservative | Julius Tiangson | 17,431 | 33.62 | -8.06 | – | |||
New Democratic | Farheen Khan | 4,920 | 9.49 | -9.51 | – | |||
Green | Linh Nguyen | 1,129 | 2.18 | -0.14 | – | |||
Total valid votes/Expense limit | 51,852 | 100.0 | $218,539.24 | |||||
Total rejected ballots | 342 | – | – | |||||
Turnout | 52,194 | – | – | |||||
Eligible voters | 82,443 | |||||||
Source: Elections Canada[7][8][9] |
Canadian federal election, 2011: Mississauga-Erindale | ||||||||
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ∆% | Expenditures | |||
Conservative | Bob Dechert | 29,793 | 46.95 | +4.24 | – | |||
Liberal | Omar Alghabra | 21,541 | 33.95 | -8.05 | – | |||
New Democratic | Michelle Bilek | 10,327 | 16.27 | +7.73 | – | |||
Green | John Fraser | 1,694 | 2.67 | -3.83 | – | |||
Marxist–Leninist | Dagmar Sullivan | 99 | 0.16 | -0.07 | – | |||
Total valid votes | 63,454 | 100.00 | – | |||||
Total rejected ballots | 217 | 0.34 | -0.02 | |||||
Turnout | 63,671 | 61.61 | +5.4 | |||||
Eligible voters | 103,337 | – | – |
Canadian federal election, 2008: Mississauga-Erindale | ||||||||
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ∆% | Expenditures | |||
Conservative | Bob Dechert | 23,863 | 42.71 | +3.3 | $96,559 | |||
Liberal | Omar Alghabra | 23,466 | 42.00 | -2.8 | $74,412 | |||
New Democratic | Mustafa Rizvi | 4,774 | 8.54 | -2.6 | $1,330 | |||
Green | Richard Pietro | 3,636 | 6.50 | +2.1 | ||||
Marxist–Leninist | Dagmar Sullivan | 129 | 0.23 | -0.3 | ||||
Total valid votes/Expense limit | 55,868 | 100.00 | $98,112 | |||||
Total rejected ballots | 203 | 0.36 | -0.06 | |||||
Turnout | 56,071 | 56.2 | -9.9 |
Canadian federal election, 2006: Mississauga-Erindale | ||||||||
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Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ∆% | Expenditures | |||
Liberal | Omar Alghabra | 26,852 | 44.81 | -9.56 | $75,892 | |||
Conservative | Bob Dechert | 23,524 | 39.25 | +7.30 | $81,890 | |||
New Democratic | Rupinder Brar | 6,644 | 11.08 | +1.26 | $3,459 | |||
Green | Adam Hunter | 2,613 | 4.36 | +0.79 | $1,484 | |||
Independent | Ronnie Amyotte | 289 | 0.48 | – | $1,249 | |||
Total valid votes/Expense limit | 59,922 | 100.00 | $162,852 | |||||
Total rejected ballots | 251 | 0.42 | -0.10 | |||||
Turnout | 60,173 | 65.5 | +6.2 |
References[edit]
- ^ [1]
- ^ "Two approaches to political advertising: Humour versus vilification". National Post.
- ^ Jane Taber. "And now for something completely different in political ads: ‘blind puppies’ and ‘smart pantsery’". Globe and Mail.
- ^ "The Gargoyle – Liberal candidate responds to Tories' "Just not ready" ad". Ottawa Citizen. 3 June 2015. Retrieved 27 August 2015.
- ^ Omar, Mohamed (2 October 2015). "Omar Alghabra, Liberal Candidate, Releases Incredibad 'Game Of Thrones' Ad". Huffington Post Canada. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
- ^ a b Saaliha Malik (2010-02-01). "TALKING WITH OMAR ALGHABRA". The Medium.
- ^ Elections Canada – Confirmed candidates for Mississauga Centre, 30 September 2015
- ^ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates
- ^ Federal Election 2015: Mississauga Centre riding results
External links[edit]
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- 1969 births
- Living people
- Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Ontario
- Liberal Party of Canada MPs
- Canadian engineers
- Canadian Muslims
- Syrian Muslims
- Canadian people of Syrian descent
- People from Mississauga
- Saudi Arabian emigrants to Canada
- York University alumni
- Ryerson University alumni
- Ontario MP stubs