Jason Kenney is a politician, the leader of the United Conservative Party of Alberta, and a former Premier of Alberta. Even after stepping down from his position, Kenney continues to work for the benefit of the people. More on edmonton-yes.
Childhood and Education
Jason was born on May 30, 1968, in Oakville. He is the third child in his family. After Jason’s birth, the family moved to Winnipeg, and in 1979, to Wilcox. At that time, his father was appointed president of Notre Dame College.
Jason received his secondary education at the private Athol Murray College of Notre Dame, part of St. Michaels University School in Victoria. He graduated in 1986 and became an assistant to Ralph Goodale, the leader of the Saskatchewan Liberal Party.
In 1987, Jason enrolled at the St. Ignatius Institute in California to study philosophy. When he turned 20, he returned to Alberta, where he focused on politics.
In 1989, he was hired as the first executive director of the Alberta Taxpayers Association. A year later, Kenney was appointed president of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation.
Political Career
Jason Kenney first ran for office in 1997. He joined the Reform Party of Canada, which later became the Canadian Alliance. While in opposition, Kenney held several positions. In February 2006, he was appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Premier of Alberta Stephen Harper.
By 2007, Kenney took the oath as Secretary of State for Multiculturalism and Canadian Identity. In this role, he often represented Harper’s government at ethnic community events across Canada. During his tenure, he developed a strategy to broaden the Conservative Party’s base by reaching out to immigrant voters from Africa and Asia.
In 2009, with Kenney’s support, changes were made to the Citizenship Act. They included certain restrictions stipulating that children born outside Canada would no longer automatically receive Canadian citizenship unless at least one parent was Canadian-born.
Under Kenney’s leadership, the ministry introduced significant reforms to the immigration system. These included placing caps on immigration applications. Kenney took measures to prevent abuses in the system, focusing on smugglers and fraudulent marriages. During his time in office, Canada provided homes to about 100,000 refugees.
Kenney also supported investigations into fraudulent citizenship claims. In 2012, he announced that more than 2,000 Canadians were under investigation for fraud and would be stripped of their citizenship.
In 2013, Kenney was appointed Minister of Employment and Social Development. In that role, he focused on speeding up appeals related to disability claims. As minister, he negotiated with the provinces to implement the Canada Job Grant, which enabled employers to train new or existing workers.
In 2015, when Minister of National Defence John Baird left politics, Kenney took over the position. While serving as Defence Minister, he emphasized the threat that Islamic militants posed to Canada.
In the fall of 2016, Kenney resigned from the House of Commons. In March of the following year, he was elected leader of Alberta’s Wildrose Party. That summer, the Wildrose Party merged with another party to form the United Conservative Party, where Kenney assumed leadership.
In 2019, Kenney became Premier of Alberta. Upon taking office, he directed his efforts toward defending the oil industry. In 2022, Jason Kenney resigned. In 2023, he was appointed a senior advisor to the law firm Bennett Jones.