Rachel Bendayan

Rachel Bendayan PC MP (born May 10, 1980^{[citation needed ]}) is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in a by-election on February 25, 2019, following the resignation of former New Democratic Party leader Tom Mulcair.^[2] She was re-elected in the 2019 and 2021 Canadian federal elections. She represents the electoral district of Outremont as a member of the Liberal Party of Canada.^[2] In December 2019, she was appointed by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to serve as the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade, Mary Ng. On December 20, 2024, she became the minister of Official Languages and associate minister of public safety.^[3]

She previously ran as the Liberal candidate for Outremont in the 2015 Canadian federal election, coming in second and increasing the Liberal Party's vote share by a significant margin. Following the 2015 election, Bendayan served as Chief of Staff to Bardish Chagger, Minister of Small Business and Tourism.^[4]

Bendayan was born and raised in a Moroccan-Jewish family.^[5] She studied law at McGill University and obtained her degree in 2007, specializing in commercial litigation and international arbitration.^[6] After graduating, Bendayan was employed by the Norton Rose Fulbright law firm^[4] and also teaches at the Faculty of Law of the Université de Montréal.

A member of the Liberal Party of Canada, she was a candidate for the first time in Outremont in the 2015 federal election, against Thomas Mulcair, the leader of the official opposition. She finished second with 33.4% of the vote. After the elections, she then became chief of staff to Bardish Chagger, Minister of Small Business and Tourism.

Following Thomas Mulcair's departure from political life in June 2018, Bendayan announced her intention to once again be a candidate for the Liberal Party in the next election. She was nominated as a candidate against the teacher and activist Kim Manning in December 2018, after a vote by members of the constituency.^[2] The elections were finally called to take place on February 25, When she became elected after winning with 40.4% of votes, 2,161 votes more than her nearest opponent, the NDP's Julia Sánchez with 26.1%.^[7]

Bendayan was re-elected in the 2019 federal election, obtaining 46.2% of the votes and beating her closest opponent by 10,829 votes.^[8] She was then appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade, Mary Ng, by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

Bendayan was elected for a third time in the 2021 federal election with 45.4% of the votes.

Along with other Jewish Liberal Party candidates, Bendayan has been a victim of anti-Semitic attacks during the campaign for the 2021 Canadian federal elections.^{[9] [10]}

• Rachel Bendayan – Parliament of Canada biography

• Living people
• 1980 births
• Women members of the House of Commons of Canada
• Liberal Party of Canada MPs
• Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada
• Members of the 29th Canadian Ministry
• Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec
• Canadian people of Moroccan-Jewish descent
• Jewish Canadian politicians
• 21st-century Canadian women politicians
• Politicians from Montreal
• Jewish women politicians
• People from Outremont, Quebec
• 21st-century members of the House of Commons of Canada

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