Thomas Dang
| Thomas Dang MLA | |
|---|---|
 Dang in 2015 | |
| MLA for Edmonton-South West | |
|
Assumed office May 5, 2015 | |
| Preceded by | Matt Jeneroux |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
April 7, 1995 Edmonton, Alberta |
| Political party | Alberta New Democratic Party |
| Residence | Edmonton, Alberta |
| Occupation | Student |
Thomas Kyle Dang (born April 7, 1995) is a Canadian politician who was elected in the Alberta general election, 2015 to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta representing the electoral district of Edmonton-South West.[1] Dang is the youngest MLA to ever be elected in Alberta. [2]
Dang was a computer science student at the University of Alberta. He also writes a blog on provincial politics. He defeated incumbent Progressive Conservative MLA Matt Jeneroux on the May 5, 2015 election that saw the Alberta NDP sweep the city of Edmonton and win a majority government, the first switch of governing parties in the province since the 1971 election.[3] As of 2014–15, he is a member of the Delta Upsilon fraternity at the University of Alberta,[4][2] of which former Premier Peter Lougheed was also a member.
Political career
Dang entered politics as a candidate for the New Democratic Party of Alberta. He currently serves as a member of the Standing Committee on Resource Stewardship. He previously served as a member of the Standing Committee on Private Bills.[5]
Bills and Motions
Fall 2015 Session
Motion 503
In his first session as an MLA, Dang moved Motion 503, urging the Government to consult with school boards and youth to encourage student participation on boards. This was aimed to increasing dialogue and student engagement on democratic governance. The motion was passed unanimously with bi-partisan support in the assembly.[6] The motion read as follows:
Be it resolved that the Legislative Assembly urge the Government to consult with school boards and youth to encourage senior high school student participation on boards with a view to increasing dialogue, increasing student engagement in board policy and planning, and educating students about democratic governance.
Spring 2016 Session
Dang gave notice of Motion 507 and sponsored Bill 204 in the Spring 2016 session of the Legislature.
Bill 204
Dang tabled Bill 204, The Alberta Tourism Week Act. This bill would create a tourism week in legislation that would occur in the first week of June starting 2017. The Bill has currently passed first and second reading in the Legislature.[7]
Motion 507
Notice of Motion 507 was given on Day 2 of the second session on the order paper. This motion was aimed at ensuring that students and parents were ready to deal with all facets of bullying in an ever evolving technological world. The notice of motion reads as follows:[8]
Be it resolved that the Legislative Assembly urge the Government to take steps to increase awareness in Alberta's schools of the effects of cyberbullying.
Motion 507 was passed unanimously with bi-partisan support in the assembly.[9]
Personal life
Dang played competitive table tennis as a junior for many years, competing across Canada and in the United States of America. He was a member of the Edmonton Table Tennis Club.[10]
He also plays the Alternate Reality Game, Ingress created by Niantic.[11]
Electoral history
2015 general election
| Alberta general election, 2015 | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |||||
| New Democratic | Thomas Dang | 11,729 | 53.0% | |||||
| Progressive Conservative | Matt Jeneroux | 6,319 | 28.6% | |||||
| Wildrose | Cole Kander | 2,291 | 10.4% | |||||
| Liberal | Rudy Arcilla | 1,202 | 5.4% | |||||
| Alberta Party | Krishna Tailor | 575 | 2.6% | |||||
References
- ↑ "Riding results: Edmonton — South West". Edmonton Journal. Retrieved May 11, 2015.
- 1 2 "Five questions with Thomas Dang, The Alberta NDP's 20-year-old MLA". Globe and Mail. Retrieved May 25, 2015.
- ↑ Jen Gerson (4 May 2015). "A yoga teacher, a Hugo Chavez fan and students: What an NDP government might look like in Alberta". National Post.
- ↑ "Undergraduate Chapter Officers". Delta Upsilon Alberta Chapter. Archived from the original on 2015-05-18. Retrieved 2015-12-11.
- ↑ "MLA Biography". Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Archived from the original on 2015-12-11. Retrieved 2015-12-11.
- ↑ Jones, Braeden (2015-11-03). "Motion for student involvement on Alberta school boards passes". Metro News. Edmonton. Retrieved 2015-12-07.
- ↑ "Bill 204: Alberta Tourism Week Act (Dang)". Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Legislative Assembly of Alberta. Retrieved 2016-05-16.
- ↑ "29th Legislature Day 2 Order Paper". Alberta Hansard. Legislative Assembly of Alberta. 2016-03-09. Archived from the original on 2016-03-11. Retrieved 2016-03-10.
- ↑ "Legislative Assembly House Records" (PDF).
- ↑ "ETTC Member Thomas Dang Elected To Alberta Government". ETTC Blog. 2015-05-08. Archived from the original on 2015-11-26. Retrieved 2015-11-26.
- ↑ Neuman, Doug (2015-11-21). "A secret war rages on". St. Albert Gazette. Retrieved 2015-11-30.