Marco Mendicino
Marco Mendicino (; born July 28, 1973) is a Canadian politician who has been the minister of public safety since October 26, 2021. A member of the Liberal Party, Mendicino represents Eglinton—Lawrence in the House of Commons, sitting as a member of Parliament (MP) since 2015. He was the minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship from 2019 to 2021. Background. Mendicino was born to Italian immigrant parents. He studied political science at Carleton University, before attending law school at the University of Windsor. Later in his career he also studied human resources management at York University's Schulich  School of Business. He worked as a federal prosecutor for ten years, during which time he was involved in the handling of the Toronto 18 terrorism case. He also worked for the Law Society of Upper Canada, served as the president of the Association of Justice Counsel, and taught as an adjunct professor at Osgoode Hall Law School. Political career. An occasional member of the Eglinton—Lawrence Liberal riding executive, and having served as legal counsel to provincial Liberal candidate Mike Colle's campaign in 2014. Mendicino stood for the federal nomination for the 2015 general election. He faced a  major battle for the nomination after Conservative MP Eve Adams crossed the floor to join the Liberal Party. With the support of party leader Justin Trudeau, sought the Liberal nomination in Eglinton—Lawrence. Mendicino secured the support of former interim Liberal leader Bob Rae and nearby incumbent MP Judy Sgro. He defeated Adams at the July 26, 2015, nomination meeting by 1,936 to 1,100 votes. In the general election, Mendicino faced the incumbent Conservative MP Joe Oliver, who was Minister of Finance, as well as a surprise New Democratic Party nominee in former Saskatchewan finance minister Andrew Thomson. Mendicino attacked  Thomson as a parachute candidate. Ultimately, Mendicino won the election. Trudeau Government. Parliamentary Secretary. On January 30, 2017, Mendicino was appointed as Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada serving under Jody Wilson-Raybould. On August 31, 2018, he became Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Infrastructure and Communities serving under François-Philippe Champagne. Cabinet Minister. He was re-elected in the 2019 federal election and subsequently named Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship. He was also re-elected in the 2021 federal election, and made Minister of Public Safety on October 26. As minister , Mendicino oversaw the first ever invocation of the Emergencies Act as a result of the 2022 Freedom Convoy protests in February 2022.