Claudia Chender Explained

Claudia Chender
Birth Date:29 July 1976
Birth Place:New York City, U.S.[1]
Office:Leader of the Opposition
Term Start:TBD
Succeeding:Zach Churchill
Office1:Leader of the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party
Term Start1:June 25, 2022
Predecessor1:Gary Burrill
Honorific-Suffix:MLA
Assembly2:Nova Scotia House of
Constituency Am2:Dartmouth South
Term Start2:May 30, 2017
Predecessor2:Marian Mancini
Party:New Democratic Party
Residence:Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada
Spouse:Jamie MacLellan
Occupation:Lawyer
Children:3

Claudia Chender (born July 29, 1976)[2] is a Canadian politician and lawyer who has been serving as the leader of the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party since June 25, 2022. She was first elected to the Nova Scotia House of Assembly in the 2017 general election, representing the electoral district of Dartmouth South.[3] She's scheduled to become Nova Scotia's first female leader of the Opposition, after her party won the second most seats in the 2024 general election.

Early life and education

Chender is a lawyer by training and has worked in the not for profit and private sectors. Three of Chender's grandparents were Holocaust survivors and she was taught about the Holocaust by her Polish-Jewish grandmother. Many of her relatives died in the Holocaust, including some at Auschwitz.[4] [5] She graduated from Dalhousie University in 1999 with a Bachelor of Arts and then from the University of Victoria in 2004 with a Bachelor of Laws. She lives in Dartmouth South with her husband and three children.

Leader of the NSNDP

After the 2021 Nova Scotia general election, provincial NDP leader Gary Burrill re-appointed Chender as the party's House Leader,[6] a role she had held since 2018.[7] She returned to her role as the spokesperson for Justice and Status of Women as well as the critic for Economic Development and Natural Resources and Renewables.[6]

On November 9, 2021, Burrill announced that he would resign as leader once a successor was chosen at a future convention.[8] On February 14, 2022, Chender declared her candidacy to replace Burrill as leader of the Nova Scotia New Democratic Party (NSNDP).[9] On May 21, 2022 registration closed for the leadership race, with Chender being the sole candidate.[10]

Chender was elected leader of the Nova Scotia NDP after a general membership vote on June 25, 2022.[11] [12] She is the third female leader of the NSNDP, following Alexa McDonough and Helen MacDonald; fourth leader, if interim leader Maureen MacDonald is included.[13] Aside from her responsibilities as leader of the third party, Chender also serves as the NDP caucus spokesperson for Intergovernmental Relations (as of September 22, 2024).

Chender has introduced a number of bills in the Nova Scotia Legislature around affordable housing, reducing poverty, energy efficiency, and lowering grocery bills and child care costs.[14] She successfully advocated for the indexing of Income Assistance Rates,[15] the expansion of the province’s Down Payment Assistance Program,[16] [17] and banning waitlist fees for daycare.[18] [19]

In October 2023, Chender was removed from the legislature after challenging Education Minister Becky Druhan’s statement that every student in Nova Scotia had access to food in schools.[20] The government later launched a “pay-what-you-can” school food program.[21]

On September 12, 2024, the legislature passed Chender's bill declaring domestic violence an epidemic with all-party support.[22] The bill legislated a recommendation from the Mass Casualty Commission, which investigated the 2020 Nova Scotia attacks.[23]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: MacPolitics: In Conversation with NDP's Claudia Chender . . 2023-11-27.
  2. https://nslegislature.ca/sites/default/files/pdfs/people/mlabios.pdf The Legislative Assembly of Nova Scotia: a biographical directory from 1984 to the Present: Chender, Claudia, page 41
  3. http://globalnews.ca/news/3483936/nova-scotia-election-ndp-claudia-chender-elected-in-dartmouth-south-riding/ "Nova Scotia election: NDP Claudia Chender elected in Dartmouth South riding"
  4. Web site: Nova Scotia MLA whose grandparents fled Holocaust condemns Nazi graffiti . . 2023-06-29.
  5. Web site: Tweets . . 2023-06-29.
  6. News: Cooke . Alex . Nova Scotia NDP leader Gary Burrill announces new caucus roles . Global News . Halifax, Nova Scotia . September 8, 2021 . 2022-06-26 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220106002824/https://globalnews.ca/news/8174704/ns-ndp-new-caucus-roles/ . January 6, 2022.
  7. Web site: Claudia Chender . 2024-10-18 . Nova Scotia Legislature . en.
  8. Web site: Doucette . Keith . Nova Scotia NDP Leader Gary Burrill to step down once party chooses successor . November 9, 2021 . CTV News . Halfax, Nova Scotia . The Canadian Press . 2022-06-26 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20211110082206/https://atlantic.ctvnews.ca/nova-scotia-ndp-leader-gary-burrill-to-step-down-once-party-chooses-successor-1.5658565 . November 10, 2021.
  9. News: Renić. Karla. Claudia Chender announces her bid for leadership of Nova Scotia NDP Party . Global News. February 14, 2022 . February 14, 2022. live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220513025955/https://globalnews.ca/news/8617815/claudia-chender-nova-scotia-ndp-leadership/. May 13, 2022.
  10. News: The Canadian Press . Claudia Chender sole candidate running as leader of Nova Scotia's NDP . May 21, 2022 . Toronto Star . 2022-05-23 . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220523110948/https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2022/05/21/claudia-chender-sole-candidate-running-as-leader-of-nova-scotias-ndp.html . May 23, 2022.
  11. News: Ramesar . Vernon . May 21, 2022 . Claudia Chender unopposed in run for Nova Scotia NDP leadership . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220523122329/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scotia/claudia-chender-nsndp-sole-candidate-leadership-1.6462245 . May 23, 2022 . 2022-05-23 . CBC News.
  12. News: Fairclough . Ian . June 25, 2022 . Chender comes out swinging in first speech as Nova Scotia's NDP leader . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220626023740/https://www.saltwire.com/halifax/news/chender-comes-out-swinging-in-first-speech-as-nova-scotias-ndp-leader-100747384/ . June 26, 2022 . 2022-06-25 . The Chronicle Herald.
  13. News: Doucette . Keith . June 25, 2022 . Nova Scotia NDP officially confirms Claudia Chender as new party leader . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220626201806/https://www.thestar.com/news/canada/2022/06/25/nova-scotia-ndp-officially-confirms-claudia-chender-as-new-party-leader.html . June 26, 2022 . 2022-06-26 . Toronto Star . The Canadian Press.
  14. Web site: Claudia Chender . 2024-10-18 . Nova Scotia Legislature . en.
  15. News: Gorman . Michael . March 27, 2024 . N.S. government announces plans to index income assistance to inflation rate . 2024-10-18 . CBC.
  16. Web site: NSNDP Homes Within Reach would combat housing costs, cost-of-living crisis . 2024-10-18 . Nova Scotia NDP . en.
  17. Web site: Enhancements to Down Payment Assistance Program Government of Nova Scotia News Releases . 2024-10-18 . news.novascotia.ca.
  18. News: Grant . Taryn . October 15, 2023 . Nova Scotia to review daycares' use of waitlist fees . 2024-10-18 . CBC.
  19. News: Grant . Taryn . February 22, 2024 . Nova Scotia banning daycare waitlist fees . 2024-10-18 . CBC.
  20. News: Munro . Nicole . October 13, 2023 . N.S. NDP Leader Claudia Chender kicked out of legislature after school food remarks . 2024-10-18 . Saltwire.
  21. News: Jerrett . Andrea . September 20, 2024 . Some N.S. families can now order school lunches under new pay-what-you-can program . 2024-10-18 . CTV News.
  22. News: Doucette . Keith . September 12, 2024 . Nova Scotia adopts bill declaring domestic violence in the province an epidemic . 2024-10-18 . The Canadian Press.
  23. https://masscasualtycommission.ca/files/documents/Turning-the-Tide-Together-List-of-Recommendations.pdf

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