I am excited to be working with Liberal MPP John Fraser for my spring placement. MPP Fraser has represented the riding of Ottawa South since 2013, and has held a rich bundle of portfolios through his three terms. Today, is the Liberal House Leader, a fascinating role since his party have only eight seats, so they technically all sit as independents. From June 2018 to February 2020, he served as the interim party leader for the Liberal Party of Ontario, and continues to serve as the party’s parliamentary leader.
With a deep interest in health and palliative care, it is no surprise that he was the parliamentary assistant to the Minister of Health under Kathleen Wynne’s government. Having also worked for Dalton McGuinty as a constituency assistant under his premiership means he is no stranger to leadership.
So far, I have had the opportunity to attend stakeholder meetings for MPP Fraser, conduct research for projects of interest, draft correspondences for the office, and write notes for speeches. The placement has been a captivating behind-the-curtains look at how the Liberal Party of Ontario continues to practice strong leadership and political acuity skills despite their size. As the party continues to rebuild leading up to the next election, I am sure that there are many more ah-hah moments to come.
I look forward to the remainder of this term working in his office alongside his fantastic Queen’s Park staff, Grace Johnson and Eric Osborne (a former OLIP intern), and their abundance of experience. Thank you for the warm welcome into your office!