George Chahal
George Chahal | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Member of Parliament for Calgary Skyview | |
| In office September 20, 2021 – March 23, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Jag Sahota |
| Succeeded by | Amanpreet Gill |
| Calgary City Councillor | |
| In office 2017–2021 | |
| Preceded by | Ray Jones |
| Succeeded by | Raj Dhaliwal |
| Constituency | Ward 5 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Harnirjodh Chahal[1] June 5, 1975 |
| Party | Liberal |
| Occupation | Politician |
Harnirjodh "George" Chahal is a Canadian politician who was the Member of Parliament for Calgary Skyview as a member of the Liberal Party of Canada.[2] He was the Liberal candidate for the federal riding of Calgary McKnight in the 2025 federal election.[3] Before entering federal politics, he was a Councillor for Ward 5 on the Calgary City Council from 2017 to 2021.[4][5][6]
Early life
[edit]George was born at Calgary’s Holy Cross Hospital in 1975 to Ram and Surinder Chahal, who had recently immigrated from the United Kingdom to pursue the challenges and opportunities of Western Canada and raise their young family.
Municipal politics
[edit]Chahal was responsible for securing funding for the Genesis Centre's outdoor artificial turf field, which began construction in April 2021 to replace the aging natural turf, and provide enhanced recreational infrastructure for Calgary’s northeast community.[7] As part of his ongoing efforts for his constituents, Chahal launched annual community cleanups, including a large-scale event coinciding with Calgary’s Neighbour Day celebrations.[8]
Chahal introduced a motion at Calgary City Council in 2019 calling on the city to formally oppose Quebec’s Bill 21, which bans certain public servants from wearing religious symbols—a move that garnered national attention and marked Calgary as one of the first municipalities in Canada to take a formal stance on the issue.[9]
Following the retirement of longtime Councillor Ray Jones, parts of Jones's former ward were incorporated into Ward 5. Chahal assumed responsibility for representing those constituents, ensuring continued support and representation for the affected communities.[10]
Federal politics
[edit]On July 8, 2021, Chahal, who was originally slated to seek re-election to city council, announced that he was nominated to be the candidate for the Liberal Party in Calgary Skyview in the 2021 Canadian federal election.
On September 20, 2021, Chahal won the election, making him the only victorious Liberal candidate in Calgary (incumbent Conservative MPs won in the city's other nine ridings).
Chahal served on the Standing Committee on Transport, Infrastructure and Communities from December 2021 until September 2023. He continued serving on the Standing Committee on Natural Resources and was elected Chair of that committee on September 27, 2023.[11] He oversaw the review of various studies, and two pieces of legislation: Bill-C50 (An Act respecting accountability, transparency and engagement to support the creation of sustainable jobs for workers and economic growth in a net-zero economy) which was referred to the committee on October 17, 2023, and sent back to the House with amendments on December 11, 2023,[12] and Bill C49 (An Act to amend the Canada—Newfoundland and Labrador Atlantic Accord Implementation Act and the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Petroleum Resources Accord Implementation Act and to make consequential amendments to other Acts) which was referred to the committee on October 23, 2023, and sent back the House with amendments on April 18, 2024.[13]
In his riding, he organized annual community cleanup events, including its sixth installment in 2023, which brought residents together to clean-up their neighbourhood.[14] He also launched an annual Faith and Community Breakfast to bring together religious and civic leaders from across his constituency for dialogue and relationship-building.[15] To support workers, Chahal organized job fairs in his riding, connecting job seekers with employers from various sectors. His third annual job fair featured over 1,000 well-paying job opportunities and drew significant attendance from constituents.[16]
Chahal helped facilitate federal investments in Calgary, including over $13 million in funding through PrairiesCan to help innovative companies scale up and create new employment opportunities in the region.[17]
In the 2025 Liberal Party of Canada leadership election, he endorsed Mark Carney.[18] In the 2025 Canadian federal election, Chahal contested Calgary McKnight.[19] He was unseated by Conservative candidate Amanpreet Gill.[20] His old riding also went Conservative.[21]
Election flyer controversy
[edit]On September 24, 2021, the Calgary Police's Anti-Corruption Unit announced that they were investigating George Chahal over a doorbell camera video that appeared to show Chahal removing a flyer for his Conservative opponent, Jag Sahota, from a constituent's door on the eve of the election.[22]
Chahal's campaign said that he removed the flyer supposedly because it identified an incorrect polling location for the voter's area; however, the homeowner said that Chahal's flyer was the one with the incorrect information, and that Sahota's matched the official information given to them by Elections Canada.[23]
In January 2022, Chahal accepted and paid a $500 administrative monetary penalty assessed by the Commissioner of Canada Elections in the matter,[24] saying, "It’s just a late night on an election campaign. Call it a dumb mistake or brain fog—it really doesn’t matter why I did what I did. I think what matters is I did it. And I acknowledged it fully, openly, publicly."[25]
Electoral record
[edit]| 2025 Canadian federal election: Calgary McKnight | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ** Preliminary results — Not yet official ** | ||||||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Conservative | Dalwinder Gill | 20,850 | 49.13 | +14.91 | ||||
| Liberal | George Chahal | 19,516 | 45.99 | +2.23 | ||||
| New Democratic | Arlington Antonio Santiago | 1,204 | 2.84 | –13.34 | ||||
| People's | Najeeb Butt | 323 | 0.76 | –3.18 | ||||
| Green | Evelyn Tanaka | 273 | 0.64 | –0.49 | ||||
| Canadian Future | Benjamin Cridland | 162 | 0.38 | N/A | ||||
| Centrist | Syed Hasnain | 107 | 0.25 | N/A | ||||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | ||||||||
| Total rejected ballots | ||||||||
| Turnout | 42,435 | 56.22 | ||||||
| Eligible voters | 75,474 | |||||||
| Conservative notional gain from Liberal | Swing | +6.34 | ||||||
| Source: Elections Canada[26][27] | ||||||||
| 2021 Canadian federal election: Calgary Skyview | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Liberal | George Chahal | 20,092 | 42.36 | +14.02 | $102,944.51 | |||
| Conservative | Jag Sahota | 17,111 | 36.07 | –16.42 | $82,418.22 | |||
| New Democratic | Gurinder Singh Gill | 7,690 | 16.21 | +1.29 | $15,396.31 | |||
| People's | Harry Dhillon | 1,720 | 3.63 | +2.44 | $3,904.85 | |||
| Green | Janna So | 432 | 0.91 | –0.67 | none listed | |||
| Independent | Lee Aquart | 184 | 0.39 | – | $4,123.83 | |||
| Marxist–Leninist | Daniel Blanchard | 111 | 0.23 | –0.03 | none listed | |||
| Centrist | Nadeem Rana | 93 | 0.20 | – | $674.40 | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 47,433 | 98.95 | – | $116,250.12 | ||||
| Total rejected ballots | 502 | 1.05 | +0.08 | |||||
| Turnout | 47,935 | 54.50 | –5.62 | |||||
| Eligible voters | 87,956 | |||||||
| Liberal gain from Conservative | Swing | +15.22 | ||||||
| Source: Elections Canada[28][29] | ||||||||
References
[edit]- ↑ Dippel, Scott (March 25, 2018). "Five Calgary city councillors talk about their real names". CBC News. Retrieved October 15, 2021.
- ↑ "Harnirjodh Chahal". Parliament of Canada. Retrieved 2 October 2021.
- ↑ "George Chahal, LPC". www.votegeorge.ca. Retrieved 2026-04-24.
- ↑ "George Chahal leaving Ward 5 race for federal Liberal nomination in Calgary Skyview". Calgary Herald. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
- ↑ "Calgary city councillor will run federally for the Liberal Party". CBC News. Retrieved 21 September 2021.
- ↑ Pearson, Heide (September 4, 2017). "Calgary election 2017: George Chahal wins Ward 5". Global News. Retrieved September 21, 2021.
- ↑ "City breaks ground on new sports field construction in northeast Calgary". 9 April 2021.
- ↑ https://www.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=3415209245158709&id=281170505229281&_rdr [bare URL]
- ↑ "'Discrimination has no jurisdiction': Calgary council passes motion opposing Quebec's Bill 21 | Globalnews.ca".
- ↑ "Longest-serving city councillor Ray Jones steps down, citing health concerns". calgaryherald.
- ↑ "Roles - George Chahal - Current and Past - Members of Parliament - House of Commons of Canada".
- ↑ "C-50 (44-1) - LEGISinfo - Parliament of Canada".
- ↑ "C-49 (44-1) - LEGISinfo - Parliament of Canada".
- ↑ "6th Annual Community Cleanup". www.georgechahalmp.ca. Archived from the original on 2025-08-03. Retrieved 2025-11-25.
- ↑ 19 reactions | My inaugural Faith and Community Breakfast was a huge success, thanks to the incredible support of our community leaders, organizations, and of course, my amazing team. Together, we proved that diversity truly is our strength, just as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau likes to remind us. When we come together as a community, there's no limit to what we can achieve for our city and country. So let's continue working towards building a more vibrant and inclusive society for all. | George Chahal. Retrieved 2025-11-25 – via www.facebook.com.
- ↑ "Events". www.georgechahalmp.ca. Archived from the original on 2025-08-03. Retrieved 2026-04-24.
- ↑ "MP Chahal announces federal investments to enable Calgary businesses to scale-up and create jobs". 17 October 2024.
- ↑ Heintz, Lauryn (2025-01-15). "Calgary Liberal MP endorsing Carney for new party leader". CityNews Calgary. Retrieved 2025-01-16.
- ↑ "EXCLUSIVE: CPC to nominate Jeremy Nixon, Amanpreet Gill to Calgary ridings". True North Wire. 2025-03-23. Retrieved 2025-03-24.
- ↑ "Liberal hopes for breakthrough in Calgary appear to fall short". calgaryherald. Archived from the original on 2025-04-29. Retrieved 2025-11-25.
- ↑ Brennan, Noah (29 April 2025). "Celebratory cake untouched as George Chahal defeated in Calgary McKnight". Calgary Herald. Postmedia Network. Retrieved 5 April 2026.
- ↑ "Calgary police anti-corruption unit to investigate incoming Liberal MP George Chahal". Calgary. 2021-09-24. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
- ↑ McGarvey, Dan (September 23, 2021). "Voter, opponent shocked to see Calgary Liberal MP-elect replace election flyer on security video". CBC News. Retrieved 2021-09-24.
- ↑ "Publication of AMPs: Key facts of violation". Commissioner of Canada Elections. January 28, 2022.
- ↑ Smith, Madeline (January 25, 2022). "Calgary Skyview MP George Chahal pays $500 penalty for removing opponent's flyer". Calgary Herald.
- ↑ "Voter information service". Elections Canada. Retrieved April 18, 2025.
- ↑ "Election Night Results - Electoral Districts". Elections Canada. 29 April 2025. Retrieved 29 April 2025.
- ↑ "Forty-Fourth General Election 2021 — Poll-by-poll Results: Calgary Skyview". elections.ca. Elections Canada. 2021.
- ↑ Canada, Chief Electoral Officer (2021). "Candidate Campaign Returns, 2021 General Election: Part 3C – Summary of Electoral Campaign Expenses and Other Outflows – Election expenses subject to the limit – Total". elections.ca. Elections Canada.
Expenses are reported "as amended" where amendments have been filed; otherwise, they are reported "as submitted".