predecessor successor party office birth_date term_start residence article_title term_end name occupation
glenn hagel lorne calvert greg lawrence new democratic party mayor of moose jaw mla for moose jaw wakamow 1954 2012 1999 moose jaw , saskatchewan deb higgins
 2011 deb higgins labour activist
deb higgins

debra elaine higgins is a canadian provincial politician , who was the saskatchewan new democratic party member of the legislative assembly of saskatchewan for the constituency of moose jaw wakamow from 1999 to 2011 .
she is currently the mayor of moose jaw , saskatchewan , having been elected as the city 's first female mayor in the saskatchewan municipal elections , 2012 .
she was first elected in the 1999 election and was re-elected in the 2003 and 2007 elections .
higgins served in the cabinet of lorne calvert as the minister of labour and later as the minister of learning .
after the defeat of the ndp government in the 2007 election , higgins has served as the ndp critic for municipal affairs , liquor and gaming , and women 's issues .
on january 30 , 2009 , she announced her bid to succeed calvert as saskatchewan ndp leader at the party 's june 2009 leadership convention .
higgins ran on the theme of renewal and defeating premier brad wall .
in the end she finished last of four candidates with dwain lingenfelter being the victor .
in the 2011 election higgins was defeated in her riding by greg lawrence of the saskatchewan party .
higgins got her start in politics when she became involved with the ufcw -lrb- united food & commercial workers -rrb- union in 1982 while working at a safeway grocery store .
she later served as the president of the ufcw council from 1993 to 1999 , during which period she also served as a table officer for the moose jaw & district labour council .
on september 14 , 2012 , higgins announced her candidacy for the mayor of moose jaw .
on october 23 , 2012 , higgins was elected mayor of moose jaw in the 2012 municipal election .
she is the city 's first female mayor in moose jaw city council history .
