Quick Facts
Biography
Bowinn Ma is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2017 provincial election. She represents the electoral district of North Vancouver-Lonsdale as a member of the British Columbia New Democratic Party caucus. She also serves as the Parliamentary Secretary for TransLink.
Defeating two-term BC Liberal Cabinet Minister Naomi Yamamoto, rookie candidate Ma is the first New Democrat to win a seat on the North Shore since David Schreck in 1991. The North Vancouver-Lonsdale upset result is often credited in part to increased turnout from Squamish Nation voters and the political mobilization of the Iranian-Canadian community, both of which strongly favoured Ma.
Ma is the youngest member of the current BC Legislative Assembly and the Canadian born daughter of Taiwanese immigrants. Ma, Katrina Chen, and Anne Kang are the first MLAs of Taiwanese heritage to be elected to the British Columbia Legislative Assembly.
Background
Ma graduated from the University of British Columbia in 2008 with a Bachelor of Applied Science degree in civil engineering and from the UBC Sauder School of Business in 2009 with a Master of Management degree. She is currently a Professional Engineer registered with the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia as well as a Project Management Professional. She served as an engineer and project manager at Vancouver International Airport prior to her election.
Prior to becoming involved in provincial politics, Ma led grassroots efforts against Bill C-51 after publicly challenging Justin Trudeau on his support for the bill during a public Q&A event at the University of British Columbia.
A former student politician, Ma was only the fourth female president of the notorious UBC Engineers, and played a prominent role in the reform of the organisation. Created in 2008 in honour of Ma's contributions to the organisation, the Engineering Undergraduate Society of the University of British Columbia awards the "Bowinn Ma Award" annually "in recognition of exceptional dedication, service, and self-sacrifice by an individual in completing their duties, both within and beyond the purview of their position".
Electoral record
| British Columbia general election, 2017: North Vancouver-Lonsdale | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||||
| New Democratic | Bowinn Ma | 12,361 | 45.45 | |||||
| Liberal | Naomi Yamamoto | 10,373 | 38.14 | |||||
| Green | Richard Warrington | 4,148 | 15.25 | |||||
| Libertarian | Donald N.S. Wilson | 316 | 1.16 | |||||
| Total valid votes | 27,198 | 100.00 | ||||||
| Source: Elections BC | ||||||||