Kris Austin (born 1979) is the former leader of the

People's Alliance of New Brunswick The People's Alliance of New Brunswick (PANB) is a provincial political party in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. In the 2018 election, the party won three seats in the provincial legislature for the first time since its founding. The p ...

and current member of the

Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick The Progressive Conservative Party of New Brunswick is a centre-right, conservative political party in the Canadian province of New Brunswick. The party has its origins in the pre-Canadian confederation Conservative Party that opposed the granti ...

and an MLA in the

Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick A legislature is an assembly with the authority to make laws for a political entity such as a country or city. They are often contrasted with the executive and judicial powers of government. Laws enacted by legislatures are usually known a ...

. On October 13, 2022 he was appointed minister of public safety and solicitor-general by Premier

Blaine Higgs Blaine Myron Higgs (born March 1, 1954) is a Canadian politician who is the 34th and current premier of New Brunswick since 2018 and leader of the New Brunswick Progressive Conservative Party (PC Party) since 2016. Higgs graduated from the Un ...

. Austin led the People's Alliance into the 2010 provincial election and 2014 provincial elections in which the party won no seats. In the 2018 provincial election the party won three seats including Austin's riding of Fredericton-Grand Lake. He was re-elected in the 2020 provincial election in which his party lost one seat, electing two MLAs. On March 30, 2022, Austin announced he will be leaving the

to join the

. Austin is a Baptist minister and has worked in public relations. Austin's appointment to provincial cabinet in the Higgs government was denounced by the Societe de l’Acadie du Nouveau-Brunswick due to his opposition to

Acadian The Acadians (french: Acadiens , ) are an ethnic group descended from the French who settled in the New France colony of Acadia during the 17th and 18th centuries. Most Acadians live in the region of Acadia, as it is the region where the des ...

rights and

official bilingualism An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority, (either their own or that of their su ...

Election results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Austin, Kris New Brunswick political party leaders Living people People's Alliance of New Brunswick MLAs 1979 births 21st-century Canadian Baptist ministers Politicians from Hamilton, Ontario New Brunswick municipal councillors Politicians from Fredericton