# Kevin Arseneau

Kevin Arseneau is a Canadian politician, who was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick in the 2018 election and served in the New Brunswick Legislative Assembly until 2024. He represented the electoral district of Kent North as a member of the Green Party, of which he is one of the Deputy Leaders. He is the first Acadian to be elected as a third-party MLA in New Brunswick as well as the first Francophone in North America to be elected under the Green Party banner.

## Early life and education

Arseneau was born on August 25, 1985, in Robertville, New Brunswick. In 2003, he graduated from École Secondaire Népisiguit in Bathurst. He holds an education degree from the Université de Moncton with a major in geography and a minor in history. He also has a diploma in adventure tourism from the Cégep de la Gaspésie et des Îles.

## Career

Arseneau is a farmer and member of the Ferme Terre Partagée workers’ cooperative, a farm that produces organic fruit and vegetables and raises animals humanely, and which received an award in 2018 from RDÉE Canada (Réseau de développement économique et d’employabilité) in the young entrepreneur category. He is also a storyteller and musician who has given hundreds of performances in New Brunswick, elsewhere in Canada, and in Europe. He has also taught at École W.-F.-Boisvert, in Rogersville, and contributed to implementing a philosophy program for children in kindergarten to Grade 4 classes, in cooperation with the Université de Moncton.
He previously chaired the Rogersville Local Service District Advisory Committee and was President of the Acadian Society of New Brunswick (SANB). He has served on the boards of the Kent Regional Service Commission, the Société nationale de l’Acadie (SNA), the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne du Canada (FCFA), and the Rogersville Cooperative. He was President of the Fédération des étudiants et étudiantes du Centre universitaire de Moncton (FÉÉCUM) and served on the Équiterre family farmers network follow-up committee.

## Political career

He was first elected on September 24, 2018, to represent the riding of Kent North and reelected in the 2020 provincial election.
Arseneau was the Green Party's critic in the following areas: developing and strengthening communities; food sovereignty; fiscal, economic, and social justice. He is a member of the Legislative Administration Committee, the Standing Committee on Estimates and Fiscal Policy, and the Standing Committee on Economic Policy.
On September 14, 2023, Arseneau as well as Megan Mitton were both appointed as Deputy Leaders of the Green Party of New Brunswick.
In the 2024 New Brunswick general election, he was defeated by Liberal challenger Pat Finnigan.

## Electoral record

vte2024 New Brunswick general election: Kent North :
| ** Preliminary results — Not yet official ** |||||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Pat Finnigan | 3,928 | 44.81 | +9.0 |
| | Green | Kevin Arseneau | 3,251 | 37.09 | -5.9 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Carl Cosby | 1,441 | 16.44 | -2.2 |
| | People's Alliance | Carole Boudreau | 145 | 1.65 | +1.1 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 8,765 | 99.72 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 25 | 0.28 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,790 | 67.99 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 12,929 |
| | Liberal gain from Green | Liberal gain from Green | Swing | Swing | +7.5 |
| Source: Elections New Brunswick |||||||
2020 New Brunswick general election: Kent North :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Green | Kevin Arseneau | 4,021 | 47.47 | +1.55 |
| | Liberal | Bertrand LeBlanc | 2,933 | 34.62 | -2.74 |
| | Progressive Conservative | Stephen Robertson | 1,363 | 16.09 | +3.50 |
| | Independent | Roger Richard | 154 | 1.82 | -1.94 |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 8,471 |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | 15 | 0.18 | -0.33 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,486 | 69.44 | -2.70 |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | 12,220 |
| | Green hold | Green hold | Swing | Swing | +2.15 |
| Source: Elections New Brunswick |||||||
2018 New Brunswick general election: Kent North :
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Green | Kevin Arseneau | 4,056 | 45.91% |
| | Liberal | Emery Comeau | 3,301 | 37.37% |
| | Progressive Conservative | Katie Robertson | 1,112 | 12.59% |
| | Independent | Roger Richard | 194 | 2.20% |
| | New Democratic | Neil Gardner | 171 | 1.94% |
| Total valid votes | Total valid votes | Total valid votes | 8,834 | 100.00% |
| Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | Total rejected ballots | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | |
| Eligible voters | Eligible voters | Eligible voters | |