Catherine McKenney

Catherine McKenney (born June 3, 1961) is a Canadian politician who serves on Ottawa City Council. Elected in 2014, McKenney represents Somerset Ward, and worked as an advisor and political staffer before being elected to council in 2014. McKenney identifies as non-binary and uses the pronouns they/them.

For the former MP for Ottawa Centre, see Catherine McKenna.
Catherine McKenney
Ottawa City Councillor
Assumed office
December 1, 2014
Preceded byDiane Holmes
ConstituencySomerset Ward
Personal details
Born (1961-06-03) June 3, 1961[1][2]
Fort-Coulonge, Quebec[1]
Spouse(s)Catharine Vandelinde[3]
Children3
Residence(s)Little Italy[4]
Websitewww.catherinemckenney.ca

Political career

McKenney was first elected in the 2014 municipal election to represent Somerset Ward, which consists of Centretown, Centretown West, and the downtown core.

Prior to holding elected office, they worked as a staffer in the offices of city councillors Diane Holmes and Alex Munter, and federal members of Parliament Ed Broadbent and Paul Dewar.[5] McKenney supported Jim Watson in the 2014 mayoral election.[6] McKenney is recognized in Ottawa circles for activism in promoting cycling and advocating for better biking infrastructure,[7] as well as LGBT rights.[8]

During the 2022 Canada convoy protests, McKenney regularly spoke out against demonstrators, and criticized inaction by Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson and the Ottawa Police Service.[9] McKenney virtually joined an Ottawa City Council meeting from the streets of the Occupation.[10]

In December 2021, McKenney announced that they would be running for mayor in the 2022 Ottawa municipal election.[11]

Personal life

McKenney is a lesbian and is the first openly LGBT person to serve on Ottawa's city council.[12] In 2019, McKenney stated that they are non-binary and uses they/them pronouns.[13] McKenney has three children.[6]

Electoral record

2018 Ottawa municipal election
Main article: 2018 Ottawa municipal election
Somerset Ward (Ward 14)[14]
Candidate Votes %
Catherine McKenney7,75476.66%
Jerry Kovacs1,46114.44%
Arthur David7016.93%
Merdod Zopyrus1991.97%

2014 Ottawa municipal election
Main article: 2014 Ottawa municipal election
Somerset Ward (Ward 14)[15]
Candidate Votes %
Catherine McKenney399740.13%
Jeff Morrison168116.88%
Martin Canning163116.38%
Conor Meade8078.10%
Edward Conway5765.78%
Thomas McVeigh4344.36%
Lili V. Weemen2923.94%
Denis Schryburt2232.24%
Sandro Provenzano990.99%
Curtis Tom770.77%
Silviu Riley430.43%

References
  1. Pearson, Matthew (21 October 2015). "The two Catherines: How to tell McKenney and McKenna apart". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 20 April 2017.
  2. @CatharineV (3 June 2020). "Happy birthday to my person @cmckenney" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  3. "Catherine McKenney, Catherine McKenna and Ottawa's struggle to tell them apart". Macleans.ca.
  4. "Search For Contributions". Elections Canada. Retrieved 2021-06-22.
  5. "Catherine McKenney to run for Somerset Ward". Xtra Ottawa. April 22, 2014.
  6. "Ottawa votes: Somerset candidates answer our questions". Ottawa Citizen. September 25, 2014.
  7. "More action needed after cycling deaths: Catherine McKenney". Metro News. Archived from the original on 2016-08-17. Retrieved 2016-06-29.
  8. "Getting to know Catherine McKenney". Daily Xtra. 2014-10-31. Retrieved 2016-06-29.
  9. "Ottawa police board chair ousted in dramatic city council meeting". Ottawa. 2022-02-16. Retrieved 2022-02-22.
  10. "'What is the plan?': Ottawa councillor joins meeting from downtown street crowded with protesters". CBC News. February 16, 2022.
  11. https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/catherine-mckenney-diane-deans-bob-chiarelli-running-for-mayor-2022-1.6281605
  12. "Ottawa elects first openly queer woman to city council". Xtra Ottawa. October 28, 2014. Archived from the original on October 30, 2014.
  13. "Councillor posts hateful email to 'give people pause'". CBC News. November 5, 2019.
  14. "2018 Election Results". City of Ottawa. Retrieved 2019-05-27.
  15. "2014 Election Results". City of Ottawa. Retrieved 2018-09-19.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.