Iqwinder Gaheer
Iqwinder Gaheer MP (born July 12, 1993) is a Canadian politician who was elected to represent the riding of Mississauga—Malton in the House of Commons of Canada in the 2021 Canadian federal election.[1]
Early life and career
Gaheer was born in Punjab, India to Maninder Singh, a construction worker and plumber, and Baljit Kaur, a home-maker. Gaheer's father had immigrated to Canada in 1992.[2] He and the rest of his family joined his father in Canada in 1999.[citation needed] Describing his early life, the Toronto Star wrote, "Gaheer has a compelling, almost made for politics, story. He was born in a small village in the Punjab. He moved to Canada when he was six years old. He spent his summers growing up in Peel working on his father’s plumbing crew."[3]
Gaheer graduated from Bramalea Secondary School in Brampton.[2] After completing high school, Gaheer attended the Schulich School of Business, York University where he received his Bachelor of Business Administration.[citation needed] He then went on to attend Harvard Law School from 2016 to 2019, where he served as Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Harvard Human Rights Journal. Beginning in September 2019, Gaheer worked in New York City, in the litigation department of Kirkland & Ellis LLP, a large international corporate law firm.
Political career
In his first election in 2021, Gaheer won the Liberal nomination for the riding of Mississauga—Malton by acclamation,[4] and won the seat with approximately 53 per cent of the total vote.[5][6] Gaheer was elected chair of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Security in November 2024, and held it until Parliament was prorogued in January 2025.[7]
In the 2025 Liberal Party of Canada leadership election, he endorsed Mark Carney.[8]
Electoral record
| 2025 Canadian federal election: Mississauga—Malton | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The 2025 general election will be held on April 28. | ||||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| New Democratic | Inderjeetsingh Ailsinghani | |||||||
| Liberal | Iqwinder Singh Gaheer | |||||||
| People's | Nathan Quinlan | |||||||
| Conservative | Jaspreet Sandhu | |||||||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | ||||||||
| Total rejected ballots | ||||||||
| Turnout | ||||||||
| Eligible voters | ||||||||
| Source: Elections Canada[9] | ||||||||
| 2021 Canadian federal election: Mississauga—Malton | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Liberal | Iqwinder Gaheer | 21,766 | 52.8 | -4.7 | $75,599.65 | |||
| Conservative | Clyde Roach | 12,625 | 30.6 | +4.8 | $36,598.37 | |||
| New Democratic | Waseem Ahmed | 5,771 | 14.0 | +1.4 | $36,233.25 | |||
| Green | Mark Davidson | 811 | 2.0 | -0.6 | $0.00 | |||
| Marxist–Leninist | Frank Chilelli | 275 | 0.7 | +0.5 | $0.00 | |||
| Total valid votes/Expense limit | 41,248 | – | – | $109,482.72 | ||||
| Total rejected ballots | 435 | |||||||
| Turnout | 41,683 | 54.1 | ||||||
| Eligible voters | 77,095 | |||||||
| Liberal hold | Swing | -4.7 | ||||||
| Source: Elections Canada[10] | ||||||||
References
- ^ "Liberal newcomer Iqwinder Gaheer secures seat in Mississauga-Malton riding". Sabrina Gamrot. The Star. September 21, 2021. Retrieved September 21, 2021.
- ^ a b "Iqwinder Gaheer: from humble beginnings to Liberal candidate for Mississauga-Malton". Natasha O'Neill. The Pointer. September 4, 2021. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
- ^ "Uninterested, unhappy, but not quite ready for change: Why apathy in some Toronto suburbs might let Trudeau keep his job". Richard Warnica. The Star. September 18, 2021. Retrieved September 27, 2021.
- ^ Loriggio, Paola (September 3, 2021). "Bains not running, but still influential in Mississauga-Malton election: expert". LethbridgeNewsNow. The Canadian Press. Archived from the original on May 23, 2024. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
- ^ Gamrot, Sabrina (September 21, 2021). "Liberal newcomer Iqwinder Gaheer secures seat in Mississauga-Malton riding". Mississauga.com. Mississauga, Ontario. Archived from the original on May 23, 2024. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
- ^ "Canada election results: Mississauga–Malton". Global News. September 20, 2021. Archived from the original on January 29, 2022. Retrieved May 23, 2024.
- ^ "Roles - Iqwinder Gaheer - Current and Past - Members of Parliament - House of Commons of Canada". www.ourcommons.ca. Archived from the original on June 7, 2023. Retrieved February 8, 2025.
- ^ Lévesque, Catherine (January 15, 2025). "MPs are rallying to Carney and Freeland as they prepare leadership bids". National Post.
- ^ "Voter information service". Elections Canada. Retrieved April 18, 2025.
- ^ "List of confirmed candidates – September 20, 2021 Federal Election". Elections Canada. Retrieved September 2, 2021.