Canada elects first lawmaker of Turkish descent
OTTAWA
Canada's 2025 federal election made history with the election of Şima Açan, the first member of parliament of Turkish descent, initial result has shown.
Running for the Liberal Party, Açan won the new district of Oakville West in Ontario. The 45-year-old engineer and businesswoman immigrated to Canada at least 21 years ago.
"We made it," Açan told supporters after election results were released late on April 28 and described her win as "life-changing."
Açan had 30,440 votes (52.7 percent) as of April 29 afternoon.
Born in Turkish capital Ankara and a 2003 graduate of Işık University, Açan has been living in Canada since 2007 and is a mother of two.
As the owner of a local robotics company, she works in the fields of engineering and innovation, while she has extended her success in business into community service. Açan, who is also the former president of the Federation of Turkish Associations in Canada, is a well-known and well-loved figure within the Turkish community in Canada.
"I didn’t enter the political scene based on my ethnicity, but that doesn’t mean I’ll be distant from the Turkish community. In the end, there will be someone in parliament who understands us, speaks our language and knows our concerns," she said.
Following her election victory, Açan shared her thoughts with the "Turkish Voice of Canada" channel, expressing her excitement about being a Turkish member of the Canadian parliament who is aware of the issues faced by expats.
The Turkish community in Canada has been visibly growing in recent years.
Around 100,000 Turks live in the country, with the majority concentrated in major cities such as Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Ottawa and Edmonton.
In the coming term, Açan aims to take an active role particularly in areas such as immigration policy, supporting youth in education and increasing investment in technology.
Another Turkish-Canadian candidate, Yusuf Sinan Ulukanligil, ran for the New Democratic Party (NDP) in York Centre, but was not elected.
Prime Minister Mark Carney won Canada's election on April 28, leading his Liberal Party to a new term in power after convincing voters his experience managing crises had prepared him to confront U.S. President Donald Trump.
