Fort Garry (electoral district)
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Fort Garry is a provincial electoral division in the Canadian province of Manitoba. It was created by redistribution in 1957, and has formally existed since the provincial election of 1958. The riding is located in the south-central region of the City of Winnipeg; it is named for the historical Fort Garry which was occupied by supporters of Louis Riel during the Red River Rebellion of 1870.
Fort Garry is bordered on the east by Riel, to the south by St. Norbert, to the north by Lord Roberts, and to the west by Fort Whyte. It is a mostly middle-class residential area, with some small businesses. The University of Manitoba is located in the riding.
The riding's population in 1996 was 20,383. As of 1999, the average family income was $50,720, and the unemployment rate was 6.40% (though, conversely, it may be noted that 26% of the riding's residents are listed as low-income). Over 16% of Fort Garry's residents are immigrants, with 5% listing German as their ethnic origin. Almost 23% of the riding's residents have a University degree.
The service sector accounts for 17% of Fort Garry's industry, with a further 12% in the retail trade and 12% in educational services.
Historically, Fort Garry has been safe for the Progressive Conservatives, who represented the riding from 1958 to 1988 and again from 1990 to 2003. In the provincial election of 1999, however, the NDP came extremely close to winning the riding. They made it their primary target in the election of 2003, and won it for the first time in their history.
The current MLA is Kerri Irvin-Ross of the NDP.
