# Marlin Schmidt

Marlin Schmidt ECA MLA (born October 16, 1978) is a Canadian politician who currently represents the electoral district of Edmonton-Gold Bar in the Legislative Assembly of Alberta. First elected in the 2015 Alberta general election, Schmidt served as the Minister of Advanced Education in the New Democratic Party (NDP) government led by Rachel Notley.
Prior to serving with the Legislative Assembly, Schmidt specialized in site remediation for over a decade. From 2008 to 2015 he worked for Alberta Environment as a soil and groundwater contamination specialist, and previous to this, he worked as a remediation specialist, beginning in 2002. He holds a master of science degree in applied environmental geosciences from University of Tübingen in Germany and a bachelor of science from Queen's University in Kingston.
Schmidt drew criticism in July 2020 for comments he made in the Legislature about the late British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher. His remarks were in opposition to a bill proposed by the governing United Conservative Party that modified the province's referendum laws, which Schmidt said Thatcher would have opposed. Schmidt went on to say that he "count[s] on enjoying the fact that Margaret Thatcher is still dead" and regretted she had died "probably 30 years too late". The comments were deemed "totally inappropriate," by the Speaker of the Legislature, which prompted Schmidt to withdraw his comments and apologize.

## Electoral history
### 2023 general election

vte2023 Alberta general election: Edmonton-Gold Bar :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Marlin Schmidt | 15,508 | 69.48 | +10.00 |
| | United Conservative | Miles Berry | 6,174 | 27.66 | -1.64 |
| | Independent | Graham Lettner | 321 | 1.44 | – |
| | Green | Ernestina Malheiro | 316 | 1.42 | +0.41 |
| Total | Total | Total | 22,319 | 99.36 | – |
| Rejected and declined | Rejected and declined | Rejected and declined | 144 | 0.64 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 22,463 | 63.31 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 35,481 |
| | New Democratic hold | New Democratic hold | Swing | Swing | +5.82 |
| Source(s) Source: Elections Alberta |||||||

### 2019 general election

vte2019 Alberta general election: Edmonton-Gold Bar :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Marlin Schmidt | 14,562 | 59.48% | -9.40% |
| | United Conservative | David C. Dorward | 7,174 | 29.30% | +4.31% |
| | Alberta Party | Diana Ly | 2,008 | 8.20% | 5.23% |
| | Liberal | Steve Kochan | 315 | 1.29% | -1.86% |
| | Green | Tanya Herbert | 247 | 1.01% | – |
| | Alberta Independence | Vincent Loyer | 176 | 0.72% | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 24,482 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 27 | 64 | 16 |
| Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | 35,555 | 68.98% | 7.94% |
| | New Democratic hold | New Democratic hold | Swing | Swing | -10.05% |
| Source(s) Source: "33 - Edmonton-Gold Bar, 2019 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved 21 May 2020. |||||||

### 2015 general election

vte2015 Alberta general election: Edmonton-Gold Bar :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | New Democratic | Marlin Schmidt | 15,349 | 68.89% | 40.17% |
| | Progressive Conservative | David C. Dorward | 4,147 | 18.61% | -14.35% |
| | Wildrose | Justin J. James | 1,422 | 6.38% | -9.21% |
| | Liberal | Ronald Brochu | 702 | 3.15% | -16.91% |
| | Alberta Party | Cristina Stasia | 662 | 2.97% | 1.27% |
| Total | Total | Total | 22,282 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 96 | 25 | 16 |
| Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | 36,688 | 61.04% | -1.25% |
| | New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative | New Democratic gain from Progressive Conservative | Swing | Swing | 23.01% |
| Source(s) Source: "35 - Edmonton-Gold Bar, 2015 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved 21 May 2020. |||||||

### 2012 general election

vte2012 Alberta general election: Edmonton-Gold Bar :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Progressive Conservative | David C. Dorward | 6,701 | 32.97% | -4.64% |
| | New Democratic | Marlin Schmidt | 5,836 | 28.71% | 14.96% |
| | Liberal | Josipa Petrunic | 4,078 | 20.06% | -24.83% |
| | Wildrose Alliance | Linda Carlson | 3,169 | 15.59% | – |
| | Alberta Party | Dennis O'Neill | 345 | 1.70% | – |
| | Evergreen | David J. Parker | 198 | 0.97% | – |
| Total | Total | Total | 20,327 | – | – |
| Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | Rejected, spoiled and declined | 144 | 18 | 1 |
| Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | Eligible electors / turnout | 32,868 | 62.29% | 14.43% |
| | Progressive Conservative gain from Liberal | Progressive Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | Swing | -1.51% |
| Source(s) Source: "35 - Edmonton-Gold Bar, 2012 Alberta general election". officialresults.elections.ab.ca. Elections Alberta. Retrieved 21 May 2020. |||||||