Matt DeCourcey
Matthew DeCourcey (born April 4, 1983) is a Canadian Liberal politician, who represented the riding of Fredericton in the House of Commons of Canada from 2015 until 2019.[1]
Matt DeCourcey | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs | |
| In office January 30, 2017 – May 3, 2019 | |
| Minister | Chrystia Freeland |
| Preceded by | Pamela Goldsmith-Jones |
| Succeeded by | Rob Oliphant |
| Member of the Canadian Parliament for Fredericton | |
| In office October 19, 2015 – September 11, 2019 | |
| Preceded by | Keith Ashfield |
| Succeeded by | Jenica Atwin |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 4, 1983 Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Residence | Fredericton, New Brunswick |
| Alma mater | St. Thomas University Mount Saint Vincent University |
| Profession | community outreach specialist |
Family and education
Matthew Carey DeCourcey is the son of Harold DeCourcey a retired probation officer for the Province of New Brunswick and Dawn DeCourcey, a retired teacher in Fredericton, New Brunswick. His sister, Michelle DeCourcey, is the coach of the St. Thomas University women's soccer team.
DeCourcey graduated from Fredericton High School in 2001. DeCourcey graduated from St. Thomas University in 2005. DeCourcey graduated from Mount St. Vincent University in 2007 with a Master's degree in public relations (MPR) and was valedictorian.
In 2019, he announced his engagement to Liberal member of Parliament Maryam Monsef.[2]
Career
DeCourcey first became involved in politics during his studies at St. Thomas University, volunteering for Paul Martin's successful federal Liberal leadership bid in 2003.[3] He worked for Fredericton MP Andy Scott from 2005 to 2006, and subsequently worked for Labrador MP Todd Russell.[4][3] He was a director on the board of the Fredericton YMCA and taught Child and Youth Rights at Saint Thomas Aquinas University.[3]
He spent five months in The Gambia on an international development initiative, and on his return to Canada he became the director of communications for New Brunswick's Child and Youth Advocate.[4]
Politics
DeCourcey became the Liberal Party's candidate in Fredericton during the 2015 federal election, and won, ousting Conservative incumbent and former cabinet minister Keith Ashfield.
DeCourcey was appointed to the House of Commons Special Committee on Electoral Reform, which was established due to the campaign promise made by DeCourcey and the Liberal Party that 2015 would be the last Federal election decided under the first-past-the-post system. That committee travelled across Canada in 2016 to consult with Canadians as to their preference for electoral reform, and in doing so, heard widespread support for a switch from the first-past-the-post electoral system to proportional representation.[5] DeCourcey and the Liberal Party ultimately refused to table any legislation to enact electoral reform.
In spring 2018 DeCourcey was criticized for violating House of Commons rules by using his taxpayer-funded M.P. newsletter to recruit volunteers for the Liberal Party. [6]
He was defeated in the 2019 federal election by Jenica Atwin of the Green Party.
Electoral record
| 2019 Canadian federal election: Fredericton | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Green | Jenica Atwin | 16,640 | 33.68 | +21.26 | ||||
| Conservative | Andrea Johnson | 15,011 | 30.38 | +1.96 | ||||
| Liberal | Matt DeCourcey | 13,544 | 27.41 | −21.85 | ||||
| New Democratic | Mackenzie Thomason | 2,946 | 5.96 | −3.93 | ||||
| People's | Jason Paull | 776 | 1.57 | New | ||||
| Animal Protection | Lesley Thomas | 286 | 0.58 | New | ||||
| Libertarian | Brandon Kirby | 126 | 0.26 | New | ||||
| Communist | Jacob Patterson | 80 | 0.16 | New | ||||
| Total valid votes/Expense limit | 49,409 | 100.0 | $101,795.92 | |||||
| Total rejected ballots | 301 | 0.61 | +0.20 | |||||
| Turnout | 49,710 | 75.52 | −0.21 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 65,825 | |||||||
| Green gain from Liberal | Swing | +21.56 | ||||||
| Source: Elections Canada[7][8] | ||||||||
| 2015 Canadian federal election | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Liberal | Matt DeCourcey | 23,016 | 49.26 | +25.24 | – | |||
| Conservative | Keith Ashfield | 13,280 | 28.42 | -18.55 | – | |||
| Green | Mary Lou Babineau | 5,804 | 12.42 | +8.27 | – | |||
| New Democratic | Sharon Scott-Levesque | 4,622 | 9.89 | -14.41 | – | |||
| Total valid votes/Expense limit | 46,722 | 100.0 | $194,784.13[9] | |||||
| Total rejected ballots | 188 | – | – | |||||
| Turnout | 46,910 | – | – | |||||
| Eligible voters | 60,587 | |||||||
| Source: Elections Canada[10][11] | ||||||||
References
- Matt DeCourcey wins Fredericton, CBC News, October 19, 2015.
- "Liberal Minister Announces Engagement To Defeated MP". HuffPost Canada. 2019-11-07. Retrieved 2019-11-08.
- Alex Corbett, Matt DeCourcey, the picture of Liberal ambition Archived 2015-10-15 at the Wayback Machine, The New Brunswick Beacon, October 14, 2015.
- Meet Matt DeCourcey, Liberal.ca.
- Howe, P. (2018). A New Electoral System for New Brunswick. Journal of New Brunswick Studies, Issue 9, p. 5.
- https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/nb-conservative-mp-fredericton-liberal-newsletter-1.4664387Jacques Poitras, CBC News New Brunswick, May 16, 2018
- "Results Validated by the Returning Officer". Elections Canada. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
- "Final Election Expense Limits for Candidates: 43rd General Election - October 21, 2019". Elections Canada. Retrieved 2 December 2019.
- Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates Archived 2016-03-04 at the Wayback Machine
- Elections Canada – List of candidates Fredericton (New Brunswick), General Election (Monday, October 19, 2015)