Kevin Arseneau is a Canadian politician, who was first elected to the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick in the 2018 election and served in the New Brunswick Legislative Assembly until 2024.[1] He represents the electoral district of Kent North as a member of the Green Party,[2][3][4] of which he is one of the Deputy Leaders. He is the first Acadian to be elected as a third-party MLA in New Brunswick as well as the first Francophone in North America to be elected under the Green Party banner.
Kevin Arseneau | |
|---|---|
| Member of the New Brunswick Legislative Assembly for Kent North | |
| In office September 24, 2018 – September 19, 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Bertrand LeBlanc |
| Succeeded by | Pat Finnigan |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 25, 1985 Robertville, New Brunswick, Canada |
| Political party | Green Party of New Brunswick |
| Residence | Nouvelle-Arcadie, New Brunswick |
| Alma mater | Université de Moncton |
| Occupation | Farmer and Teacher |
Early life and education
editArseneau was born on August 25, 1985, in Robertville, New Brunswick. In 2003, he graduated from École Secondaire Népisiguit in Bathurst. He holds an education degree from the Université de Moncton with a major in geography and a minor in history. He also has a diploma in adventure tourism from the Cégep de la Gaspésie et des Îles.[5]
Career
editArseneau is a farmer and member of the Ferme Terre Partagée workers’ cooperative, a farm that produces organic fruit and vegetables and raises animals humanely, and which received an award in 2018 from RDÉE Canada (Réseau de développement économique et d’employabilité) in the young entrepreneur category. He is also a storyteller and musician who has given hundreds of performances in New Brunswick, elsewhere in Canada, and in Europe. He has also taught at École W.-F.-Boisvert, in Rogersville, and contributed to implementing a philosophy program for children in kindergarten to Grade 4 classes, in cooperation with the Université de Moncton.[5]
He previously chaired the Rogersville Local Service District Advisory Committee and was President of the Acadian Society of New Brunswick (SANB). He has served on the boards of the Kent Regional Service Commission, the Société nationale de l’Acadie (SNA), the Fédération des communautés francophones et acadienne du Canada (FCFA), and the Rogersville Cooperative. He was President of the Fédération des étudiants et étudiantes du Centre universitaire de Moncton (FÉÉCUM) and served on the Équiterre family farmers network follow-up committee.[5]
Political career
editHe was first elected on September 24, 2018, to represent the riding of Kent North and reelected in the 2020 provincial election.
Arseneau was the Green Party's critic in the following areas: developing and strengthening communities; food sovereignty; fiscal, economic, and social justice. He is a member of the Legislative Administration Committee, the Standing Committee on Estimates and Fiscal Policy, and the Standing Committee on Economic Policy.[5]
On September 14, 2023, Arseneau as well as Megan Mitton were both appointed as Deputy Leaders of the Green Party of New Brunswick.[6]
In the 2024 New Brunswick general election, he was defeated by Liberal challenger Pat Finnigan.[7]
Electoral record
edit| 2020 New Brunswick general election: Kent North | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Green | Kevin Arseneau | 4,021 | 47.47 | +1.55 | ||||
| Liberal | Bertrand LeBlanc | 2,933 | 34.62 | -2.74 | ||||
| Progressive Conservative | Stephen Robertson | 1,363 | 16.09 | +3.50 | ||||
| Independent | Roger Richard | 154 | 1.82 | -1.94 | ||||
| Total valid votes | 8,471 | |||||||
| Total rejected ballots | 15 | 0.18 | -0.33 | |||||
| Turnout | 8,486 | 69.44 | -2.70 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 12,220 | |||||||
| Green hold | Swing | +2.15 | ||||||
| Source: Elections New Brunswick[8] | ||||||||
| 2018 New Brunswick general election: Kent North | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | ||||
| Green | Kevin Arseneau | 4,056 | 45.91% | |||||
| Liberal | Emery Comeau | 3,301 | 37.37% | |||||
| Progressive Conservative | Katie Robertson | 1,112 | 12.59% | |||||
| Independent | Roger Richard | 194 | 2.20% | |||||
| New Democratic | Neil Gardner | 171 | 1.94% | |||||
| Total valid votes | 8,834 | 100.00% | ||||||
| Total rejected ballots | ||||||||
| Turnout | ||||||||
| Eligible voters | ||||||||
References
edit- ^ Kalvapalle, Rahul. "David Coon retains Fredericton South as New Brunswick Greens pick up three seats". Global News. Retrieved 2020-07-01.
- ^ Poitras, Jacques (18 October 2018). "Ties matter: Green MLA will represent New Brunswickers by sporting their neckties | CBC News". CBC. Fredericton, NB: CBC. Archived from the original on 19 October 2018. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
- ^ Doiron, Jean-Marc (25 September 2018). "Kevin Arseneau cause la surprise dans Kent-Nord - Acadie Nouvelle". Acadie Nouvelle (in French). Acadie Nouvelle. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
- ^ Bissett, Kevin (10 October 2018). "N.B. Greens say no deal with Liberals, Tories as legislature resumes Oct. 23". CTV News. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Member of the Legislative Assembly : Kevin Arseneau - Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick". www.legnb.ca. Retrieved 2022-02-01.
- ^ Fach, Addison (14 September 2023). "Green Party Leader Appoints Megan Mitton and Kevin Arseneau as Deputy Leaders". Green Party of New Brunswick. Retrieved 1 May 2024.
- ^ Sam Farley, "David Coon hangs on, Greens reduced to 2 seats". CBC News New Brunswick, October 21, 2024.
- ^ "Provincial Election Results". Elections New Brunswick. Archived from the original on 2020-09-16. Retrieved 14 September 2020.