List of female political party leaders in Canada

The following women have served as leaders of political parties represented in the House of Commons or a provincial legislature.

Federal

Portrait Name Political party Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Highest position
Audrey McLaughlin New Democratic 5 December 1989 14 October 1995 5 years, 313 days
Kim Campbell Progressive Conservative 13 June 1993 14 December 1993 184 days Prime Minister (1993)
Alexa McDonough[1] New Democratic 14 October 1995 25 January 2003 7 years, 103 days
Elsie Wayne (interim) Progressive Conservative 2 April 1998 14 November 1998 226 days
Deborah Grey (interim) Canadian Alliance 27 March 2000 8 July 2000 103 days
Elizabeth May Green 26 August 2006 4 November 2019 13 years, 70 days
19 November 2022 incumbent 3 years, 89 days
Vivian Barbot (interim) Bloc Québécois 11 May 2011 11 December 2011 214 days
Nycole Turmel (interim) New Democratic 22 August 2011 24 March 2012 215 days Leader of the Opposition (2011–2012)
Rona Ambrose (interim) Conservative 5 November 2015 27 May 2017 1 year, 203 days Leader of the Opposition (2015–2017)
Martine Ouellet Bloc Québécois 14 March 2017 11 June 2018 1 year, 89 days
Jo-Ann Roberts (interim) Green 4 November 2019 3 October 2020 334 days
Annamie Paul Green 3 October 2020 14 November 2021 1 year, 42 days
Candice Bergen (interim) Conservative 2 February 2022 10 September 2022 220 days Leader of the Opposition (2022)

Alberta

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Bettie Hewes (interim) 1994 1994 Liberal
Pam Barrett 8 September 1996 2 February 2000 3 years, 178 days New Democratic
Nancy MacBeth 18 April 1998 15 March 2001 2 years, 331 days Liberal Leader of the Opposition (1998–2001)
Eleanor Maroes (interim) 2005 2005 Alberta Alliance
Danielle Smith 17 October 2009 17 December 2014 5 years, 61 days Wildrose Leader of the Opposition (2012–2014)
Alison Redford 1 October 2011 23 March 2014 2 years, 173 days Progressive Conservative Premier (2011–2014)
Rachel Notley 18 October 2014 22 June 2024 9 years, 248 days New Democratic Premier (2015–2019)
Heather Forsyth (interim) 22 December 2014 28 March 2015 96 days Wildrose Leader of the Opposition (2014–2015)
Danielle Smith 6 October 2022 incumbent 3 years, 133 days United Conservative Premier (2022–)

British Columbia

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Rita Johnston 2 April 1991 7 March 1992 340 days Social Credit Premier (1991)
Grace McCarthy (interim) 6 November 1993 May 1994 176 days Social Credit None[a]
Joy MacPhail (interim) 16 May 2001 23 November 2003 2 years, 191 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2001–2005)[b]
Carole James 23 November 2003 20 January 2011 7 years, 58 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2005–2011)[c]
Jane Sterk 2007 2013 ? Green None
Dawn Black (interim) 20 January 2011 17 April 2011 87 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2011)
Christy Clark 26 February 2011 4 August 2017 6 years, 159 days Liberal Premier (2011–2017)
Sonia Furstenau 14 September 2020 28 January 2025 4 years, 167 days Green None
Shirley Bond (interim) 23 November 2020 5 February 2022 1 year, 74 days Liberal Leader of the Opposition (2020–2022)[d]
Dallas Brodie (interim) 9 June 2025 incumbent 252 days OneBC None
Emily Lowan[2] 24 September 2025 incumbent 145 days Green None

Manitoba

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Sharon Carstairs 4 March 1984 5 June 1993 9 years, 93 days Liberal Leader of the Opposition (1998–1990)
Ginny Hasselfield 19 October 1996 17 October 1998 1 year, 363 days Liberal
Rana Bokhari 26 October 2013 24 September 2016 2 years, 334 days Liberal
Flor Marcelino (interim)[3] 7 May 2016 16 September 2017 1 year, 132 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2016–2017)
Judy Klassen (interim) 21 October 2016 13 June 2017 235 days Liberal
Heather Stefanson 30 October 2021 15 January 2024 2 years, 77 days Progressive Conservative Premier (2021–2023)
Cindy Lamoureux (interim) 17 October 2023 incumbent 2 years, 122 days Liberal

New Brunswick

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Shirley Dysart (interim) 1985 4 May 1985 Liberal Leader of the Opposition (1985)
Elizabeth Weir 1991 2003 New Democratic
Susan Holt[4] 6 August 2022 incumbent 3 years, 194 days Liberal Premier (2024–)

Newfoundland and Labrador

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Lynn Verge (interim) 29 April 1995 1996 Progressive Conservative
Lorraine Michael[5] 28 May 2006 7 March 2015 283 days New Democratic
Yvonne Jones 13 November 2007 14 August 2011 3 years, 274 days Liberal Leader of the Opposition (2007–2012)
Kathy Dunderdale[5] 3 December 2010 24 January 2014 3 years, 52 days Progressive Conservative Premier (2010–2014)
Alison Coffin 5 March 2019 19 October 2021 2 years, 228 days New Democratic

Nova Scotia

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Alexa McDonough 16 November 1980 19 November 1994 14 years, 3 days New Democratic
Helen MacDonald 17 July 2000 24 April 2001 281 days New Democratic
Karen Casey (interim) 2009 2010 Progressive Conservative
Maureen MacDonald (interim) 23 November 2013 27 February 2016 2 years, 96 days New Democratic
Karla MacFarlane (interim) 24 January 2018 27 October 2018 276 days Progressive Conservative Leader of the Opposition (2018)
Claudia Chender[6] 25 June 2022 incumbent 3 years, 236 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2024–)

Ontario

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Lyn McLeod 1992 1996 Liberal Leader of the Opposition (1992–1996)
Andrea Horwath 7 March 2009 28 June 2022 13 years, 113 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2018–2022)
Kathleen Wynne 26 January 2013 7 June 2018 5 years, 132 days Liberal Leader of the Opposition (2013–2018)
Marit Stiles 4 February 2023 incumbent 3 years, 12 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2023–)
Bonnie Crombie[7] 2 December 2023 14 January 2026 2 years, 43 days Liberal

Prince Edward Island

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Catherine Callbeck 23 January 1993 5 October 1996 3 years, 256 days Liberal Premier (1993–1996)
Sharon Cameron 19 November 2022 6 April 2023 138 days Liberal
Karla Bernard (interim) 21 July 2023 7 June 2025 1 year, 321 days Green

Quebec

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Monique Gagnon-Tremblay (interim) 2 March 1998 30 April 1998 59 days Liberal
Louise Harel (interim) 6 June 2005 15 November 2005 162 days Parti Québécois
Françoise David 4 February 2006 19 January 2017 10 years, 350 days Québec solidaire
Pauline Marois 27 June 2007 7 June 2014 6 years, 345 days Parti Québécois Premier (2012–2014)
Manon Massé 19 January 2017 26 November 2023 6 years, 311 days Québec solidaire
Dominique Anglade[8] 11 May 2020 10 November 2022 2 years, 183 days Liberal Leader of the Opposition (2020–2022)
Émilise Lessard-Therrien 26 November 2023 29 April 2024 155 days Québec solidaire
Christine Labrie (interim) 2 May 2024 16 November 2024 198 days Québec solidaire
Ruba Ghazal 16 November 2024 incumbent 1 year, 92 days Québec solidaire

Saskatchewan

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Lynda Haverstock 2 April 1989 12 November 1995 6 years, 224 days Liberal Leader of the Opposition (1995)
Nicole Sarauer (interim) 20 June 2017 3 March 2018 256 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2017–2018)
[9] Carla Beck 26 June 2022 incumbent 3 years, 235 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2022–)

Yukon

Portrait Name Date assumed office Date departed office Duration Political party Highest position
Hilda Watson 1978 1979 Progressive Conservative
Pat Duncan 1998 2005 Liberal Premier (2000–2002)
Elizabeth Hanson 26 September 2009 5 May 2019 9 years, 221 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2011–2016)
Stacey Hassard (interim) 17 November 2016 23 May 2020 3 years, 188 days Yukon Party Leader of the Opposition (2016–2021)
Kate White[10] 4 May 2019 incumbent 6 years, 288 days New Democratic Leader of the Opposition (2025–)

Notes

  1. ^ Grace McCarthy served as deputy premier in the Bill Bennett and Vander Zalm ministries prior to becoming leader of the party.
  2. ^ Joy MacPhail served as deputy premier in the Dosanjh ministry prior to becoming leader of the party.
  3. ^ Carole James served as deputy premier in the Horgan ministry after her tenure as leader of the party.
  4. ^ Shirley Bond served as deputy premier in the Campbell ministry prior to becoming leader of the party.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Trailblazing former NDP leader Alexa McDonough dies at 77". The Globe and Mail. 15 January 2022. Archived from the original on 25 January 2022. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  2. ^ "Emily Lowan Elected Leader of the BC Green Party". BC Greens. 24 September 2025. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  3. ^ "Flor Marcelino, interim Manitoba NDP leader, says she's 'really not a debater'". CBC News. 9 May 2016. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  4. ^ "Susan Holt elected as New Brunswick Liberal leader". CBC News. 6 August 2022. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  5. ^ a b Tsicos, Stephanie; Garrett, Crystal (1 June 2025). "From Catholic nun to NDP Leader: New documentary puts spotlight on Newfoundland's Lorraine Michael". CTV News. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  6. ^ "Speaker of House of Assembly Chosen". Nova Scotia. 10 December 2024. Archived from the original on 11 January 2025. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  7. ^ Jones, Allison (14 September 2025). "Ontario Liberal leader Bonnie Crombie says she'll resign once successor is chosen". CP24. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  8. ^ "Marc Tanguay named interim leader of Quebec Liberals following Rodriguez resignation". iPolitics. 19 December 2025. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  9. ^ Mihalik, Halyna (10 November 2024). "Sask. NDP wins all but 1 seat in Regina and Saskatoon after final votes counted". CBC News. Archived from the original on 10 November 2024. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
  10. ^ Hatherly, Dana (24 November 2025). "Opposition NDP shadow cabinet set to criticize Yukon Party government". Yukon News. Retrieved 17 January 2026.
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