Lifestyle & Family

Canadian women who broke barriers in politics

These four women paved the way for women in the political landscape.


The representation of women within Canadian politics reached a milestone just over 100 years ago. It was Dec. 6, 1921, when Agnes Campbell Macphail became the first woman to be elected to the House of Commons and the first woman parliamentarian in the Parliament of Canada as an MP.  

Macpahil’s monumental win was not the only milestone moment for women that year. Held on Sept. 20, 1921, the 44th federal election was the first election where women had the right to vote.  

Throughout her political career, Macphail represented farmers in the southeastern area of her hometown of Grey County, Ont. She also championed the rights of miners, immigrants, prisoners, women and other marginalized groups. While she did have allies and admirers for her work, Macphail also experienced criticism from fellow MPs and journalists who opposed her viewpoint on political and social issues.  

Macphail isn’t the only political figure to break barriers in politics as a Canadian woman. Countless other women came after her and made a name for themselves as proud politicians.  


Rosemary Brown 

Born in Jamaica to a politically-minded family, politics was always part of Rosemary Brown’s life. Upon graduating from the University of British Columbia with a master’s in social work, Brown became involved in two social groups: the British Columbia Association for the Advancement of Coloured People and Voice of Women.  

The unrest of the 1960s renewed Brown’s sense of purpose as a political advocate against racism and sexism as traditional roles of race and gender were being challenged in Canadian politics.  

In 1972, Brown entered provincial politics as a candidate for the New Democratic Party (NDP) after receiving encouragement from fellow members of the Vancouver Status of Women Council. She became the first Black woman to sit in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia when she won her seat in the riding of Vancouver-Burrard.  

Brown achieved much throughout her 14-year term. Some of her accomplishments include creating a committee to abolish sexist content in British Columbia’s educational material, introducing legislation to ban discrimination based on gender or marital status, and holding a campaign for leadership of the Federal NDP, breaking a colour barrier.  

Retiring from politics in 1988 and passing away in 2003, Brown’s contributions led to an increase in women on boards, commissions, and directories throughout British Columbia.  


Jeanne Sauvé 

Starting as a freelance journalist and broadcaster for networks like CBC and CTV and several major Canadian newspapers and American broadcasting networks, Jeanne Sauvé covered politics, a news topic that men predominantly covered.  

After establishing a reputation as a strong political commentator, Sauvé’s political journey reached a peak in 1972 when she was approached by the Liberal Party of Canada to run in the Montreal riding of Ahuntsic in the 1972 federal election. 

Despite finding campaigning to be a challenge, Sauvé’s campaigning paid off as she became the first woman in Quebec to hold a federal Cabinet position when the minority government of Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau appointed her Minister of State for Science and Technology.  

In 1980, Sauvé achieved another first when Prime Minister Trudeau asked her to be speaker of the House of Commons. The prime minister gave her this opportunity because of her temperament. She was a good public speaker and wasn’t unduly partisan.  

On Dec. 23, 1983, Sauvée became the first woman Governor General of Canada. She described her appointment as “a magnificent breakthrough for women.” 

Unity, peace and youth were the three themes of Sauvé’s mandate. As an advocate of issues affecting youth and work peace, she established two awards for students looking to be involved in the special education field for exceptional children and established the Jeanne Sauvé Foundation. The initiative of the $10 million project is to promote excellence for young Canadians.  

After completing her term as Governor General in 1990, Sauve retired to Montreal, where she continued to focus on the Jeanne Sauvé Youth Foundation until her death in 1992.  


Kim Campbell 

Although her term as prime minister lasted for just under five months, Kim Campbell has made a name for herself as a global advocate for education, democracy and women’s issues.  

Her political career began when she was enrolled at the University of British Columbia as a law student. Campbell was elected to the Vancouver School Board as a trustee from 1980 to 1984 and served as its chair in 1983.  

In October 1986, Campbell was elected to the provincial legislature as the Social Credit MLA representing Vancouver-Point Grey where she would render changes in the province’s Health Act to make it less discriminatory to the LGBTQ+ community.  

After leaving the Social Credit party and resigning her seat, Campbell joined the Progressive Conservative Party in 1988.  

Two years after joining the party, Campbell became the first woman in Canada to be justice minister and attorney general. She was behind the reform legislation of many issues, such as providing women more protection in cases of rape and sexual assault and toughening the country’s gun-control laws. 

Upon Brian Mulroney’s resignation from the Progressive Conservative Party in February 1993, Campbell succeeded him in the party’s leadership convention and was elected as Canada’s 19th prime minister in the 1993 federal election.  

While Campbell was popular, the same could not be said for the rest of her party. On Oct. 25, 1993, another general election was held. The PC Party suffered a devastating loss, leading to Campbell’s resignation as party leader on Dec. 13, 1993.  

Post-politics, Campbell continues to serve Canada in various ways and as an advocate for women.  


Hon. Dr. Jean Augustine 

The Hon. Dr. Jean Augustine is a trailblazing politician who was behind many firsts within Canada.  

Born in Grenada, Augustine moved to Canada for better opportunities. She spent her first few years in Canada working as a nanny before becoming a teacher. Her teaching career would also be the beginning of her journey into politics. She became an activist for Toronto’s Caribbean community, volunteered with grassroots organizations to bolster immigration and women’s rights and contested violence against women, drug abuse and poverty.  

On Oct. 25, 1993, Augustine became a Liberal candidate nominee for the Etobicoke-Lakeshore district in Ontario. This led to her becoming the first Black woman to be elected to the House of Commons. Augustine was elected four more times in 1997, 2000, 2002 and 2004.  

As a member of Parliament, Augustine continued to address issues that were significant to her riding, women and Canadians. When she was appointed Parliamentary Secretary, she played an imperative role in establishing Black History Month in Canada.  

Celebrations of Black History Month in Canada stretch back to the 1950s, with individual celebrations taking place in cities like Halifax and Toronto. In 1979, celebrations became municipal for the first time in Toronto with the Ontario Black History Society behind it. The first provincial celebration followed in 1993. Augustine put a motion before Parliament to recognize February as Black History Month. The motion was unanimously passed in December 1995.  

Augustine continued to break barriers in politics afterwards by serving several chair positions and becoming the first Black woman to achieve a post in Cabinet in May 2002. She retired from politics in 2005 but continues to sustain a career in advocacy for various issues.  

These four women, along with a handful of other Canadian women, paved the way for women in politics within the country.

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