Preceded by Riding Established Party Liberal Party of Canada Preceded by Carolyn Parrish Residence Mississauga, Canada | Political party Liberal Succeeded by Bob Dechert Name Omar Alghabra | |
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Born October 24, 1969 (age 54)
Al-Khobar, Saudi Arabia ( 1969-10-24 ) Profession Engineer, Entrepreneur, Politician Role Former Member of the Canadian House of Commons Previous office Member of the Canadian House of Commons (2006–2008) Education York University, Ryerson University Profiles | ||
Omar alghabra speaking out on foreign policy
Omar Alghabra (born October 24, 1969) is a Canadian politician. He is a Liberal member of the Canadian House of Commons who was elected from 2006 to 2008 and again in 2015. He represents the riding of Mississauga Centre. He is a Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs specializing in consular affairs. He is a former president of the Canadian Arab Federation, and was a senior policy adviser to Justin Trudeau.
Contents
- Omar alghabra speaking out on foreign policy
- Omar alghabra debates immigration policies part 1
- Background
- Politics
- Views
- References
Omar alghabra debates immigration policies part 1
Background
Alghabra was born in Saudi Arabia into a Syrian family working in Saudi Arabia at that time. He is currently the only Canadian politician of Syrian Canadian descent. He graduated from Ryerson University with a degree in engineering and in 2000 received his Master of Business Administration from York University.
Politics
Alghabra ran as the Liberal candidate in the 2006 federal election in the riding of Mississauga—Erindale. He defeated Conservative candidate Bob Dechert by 3,328 votes. He served as the opposition critic for Citizenship and Immigration, and later for Natural Resources. He was defeated by Dechert in the 2008 election and again in the 2011 election. During the 2011 election, 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." The Globe and Mail commented that 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."
In the 2015 election he was returned to Parliament as the MP for the recreated riding of Mississauga Centre. During the election, he gained national attention for his campaign's ad that parodied a Conservative attack ad against Justin Trudeau that used a job application as the premise. Later in the campaign, he released a campaign video that parodied the opening sequence of Game of Thrones.
On December 2, 2015, he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs for consular affairs.
Views
In 2010, Alghabra identified key issues on his platform:
On Canadian democracy, Alghabra stated:
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.