Marc Dalton

Marc Dalton
MLA
Member of the British Columbia Legislative Assembly
for Maple Ridge-Mission
In office
May 12, 2009 – May 9, 2017
Preceded by Randy Hawes
Personal details
Born (1960-06-03) June 3, 1960
Canadian Forces Base Baden Soelingen, Germany
Political party BC Liberal
Conservative Party of Canada (federal)
Residence Maple Ridge, British Columbia

Marc Dalton is a Canadian politician, who was elected as a BC Liberal Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2009 provincial election, representing the riding of Maple Ridge-Mission by 68 votes. Marc was re-elected by a margin of 1498 votes in the May 13, 2013 election. He formerly worked as a long-time teacher in the Maple Ridge School District at both the elementary and high school levels. He made a name for himself, when he crossed an illegal union picket lines in 2005, midway through a strike.[1] He has a bachelor's degree in French and History and a master's degree in Educational Leadership, both from Simon Fraser University. Marc was raised in a military family and he lived in bases across the country, including Quebec. He served in the Canadian Armed Forces Reserves after graduating and is a member of the Royal Canadian Legion. [2]

Biography

Dalton is Aboriginal (Métis) and speaks French. He has led student exchanges to Quebec to promote unity, French language fluency and an appreciation of Canadian culture. He attended the Teachers Institute of Parliamentary Democracy in Ottawa which was instrumental in seeking to run for public office. He has been active in politics at different levels over the past 30 years.

Marc is currently the Parliamentary Secretary for Métis Relations reporting to the Minister of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation. There are 70,000 Métis in the province, by far the largest Aboriginal people in British Columbia. He currently also serves on the Select Standing Committees for Health and for Children and Youth and the Cabinet Committee for Secure Tomorrow.

Formerly, Marc was the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Education for Independent Schools. He has also been the Deputy Chair, Committee of the Whole at the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, and served on Public Accounts, Aboriginal Affairs, the Finance Committee and the Committee for Freedom of Information and Privacy.

Marc has represented British Columbia at francophone events in the province and country and is the Section President of the Francophone Parliamentary Assembly in the Legislature, a non-partisan role.

Marc is also the provincial political lead on the Experience the Fraser steering committee, a trails and tourism project stretching from the mouth of the Fraser to Hope.[3] Several million dollars have been invested in this collaborative initiative working with the Fraser Valley Regional District, Metro, Aboriginal communities and non-government organizations.

Dalton previously ran as a Conservative candidate in Burnaby—New Westminster in the 2006 federal election, losing to incumbent MP Peter Julian. In February 2015, Dalton announced he was running for the Federal Conservative nomination of Pitt Meadows—Maple Ridge, and sat independent MLA in the interim.[4] Dalton rejoined the BC Liberals after losing the nomination to Randy Kamp's Executive Assistant Mike Murray.[5]

Beliefs

As a devout Christian, Marc Dalton believes that homosexuality is a moral issue, stating in an email, "I am not against homosexuals as a people, but I do not support their lifestyle choices...I believe homosexuality is a moral issue.”[6]

Dalton was criticized for his comments regarding child poverty in British Columbia, stating, "I have not met children starving in British Columbia in the past 50-some years. If they were, then I think that would be, normally, willful or criminal negligence.” [7]

Personal life

Dalton is a resident of Maple Ridge and has been married to his wife, Marlene, for 30 years. They have three grown children. Marc was a pastor for a number of years and for quite some time after graduating, he worked volunteering with youth and reaching out to the needy in Third World countries and in Canadian inner cities. Prior to getting elected, Marc and his wife were regular volunteers with the Salvation Army serving food to the under-privileged.

Electoral record

British Columbia general election, 2017: Maple Ridge-Mission
Party Candidate Votes%
New DemocraticBob D'Eith 9,843 41.46
LiberalMarc Dalton 9,723 40.95
GreenPeter Pak Chiu Tam 3,181 13.40
ConservativeTrevor Hamilton 850 3.58
LibertarianJeff Monds 144 0.61
Total valid votes 23,741100.00
Source: Elections BC[8]

See also

References

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