Benjamin Byung Kyu Chin (born 1964), known for short as Ben Chin, is a

Canadian Canadians () are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of their being ''C ...

political advisor and former public and private sector executive. He had an earlier career as a television journalist.

Personal life and education

Chin was born in

Geneva Geneva ( , ; ) ; ; . is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland and the most populous in French-speaking Romandy. Situated in the southwest of the country, where the Rhône exits Lake Geneva, it is the ca ...

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

. He first came to

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

as a child from 1970 to 1974, when his father served as the

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

n Ambassador to Canada in

Ottawa Ottawa is the capital city of Canada. It is located in the southern Ontario, southern portion of the province of Ontario, at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the cor ...

. After his father fell out of political favour with the

South Korean government The government of South Korea () is the national government of the Republic of Korea, created by the Constitution of South Korea as the executive, legislative and judicial authority of the republic. The president acts as the head of state and ...

, Chin was sent to

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

on his own to continue his education and attend junior high school. After completing high school at

East York Collegiate Institute East York Collegiate Institute (East York CI, EYCI, or East York), formerly East York High School is a public high-school in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located in the former borough of East York at the corner of Coxwell and Cosburn Avenues. I ...

(with a brief stint living in the

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, area with his parents), Chin went to the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public university, public research university whose main campus is located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park (Toronto), Queen's Park in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It was founded by ...

. He lived with his older brother and sister, who were both students at the

. His brother, Jik Chin, is currently a chemistry professor at the

Career

Chin turned to journalism, working at

Citytv Citytv (sometimes shortened to City, which was the network's official branding from 2012 to 2018) is a Television in Canada, Canadian television network owned by the Rogers Sports & Media subsidiary of Rogers Communications. The network consis ...

as a general assignment reporter and anchor from 1989 to 1997. He was best known for covering the

Paul Bernardo Paul Kenneth Bernardo (born August 27, 1964), also known as Paul Jason Teale, is a Canadian serial rapist and serial killer dubbed the Scarborough Rapist, the Schoolgirl Killer and, together with his former wife Karla Homolka, one of the Ken an ...

murder trial. He then left Citytv and headed east to Halifax as Atlantic Bureau Chief for CTV News. In 1998 he returned to Toronto and joined

CBC Newsworld CBC News Network (formerly CBC Newsworld) is a Canadian English-language specialty news channel owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC). It is Canada's first all-news channel, and the world's third-oldest television service of this ...

, where he anchored '' The National'' on weekends. In 2003, he joined then-new Toronto-based television station

CKXT-TV CKXT-DT (channel 52) was a broadcast television station in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, which broadcast to much of southern and eastern Ontario. It was owned by Quebecor Media through its Groupe TVA unit. Although beginning as a general interest ind ...

and co-hosted the nightly evening newscast, '' Toronto Tonight'' with Sarika Sehgal. In 2005, Chin joined the communications staff of

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

Premier Premier is a title for the head of government in central governments, state governments and local governments of some countries. A second in command to a premier is designated as a deputy premier. A premier will normally be a head of govern ...

Dalton McGuinty Dalton James Patrick McGuinty Jr. (born July 19, 1955) is a Canadian former politician who served as the 24th premier of Ontario from 2003 to 2013. He was the first Liberal leader to win two majority governments since Mitchell Hepburn nea ...

. On February 16, 2006, Chin was the

Liberal Party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. For example, while the political systems ...

nominee for the provincial by-election in Toronto—Danforth, held to fill the vacancy created when

NDP NDP may stand for: Computing * Neighbor Discovery Protocol, an Internet protocol * Nortel Discovery Protocol, a layer two Internet protocol, also called SONMP * Nondeterministic programming, a type of computer language Government * National Dev ...

incumbent

Marilyn Churley Marilyn Churley (born May 7, 1948) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. She was a New Democratic member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1990 to 2005 who represented the downtown Toronto ridings of Riverdale and Toronto—Danf ...

resigned to run in the 2006 federal election. Chin was defeated by his NDP opponent,

Peter Tabuns Peter Charles Tabuns (born October 3, 1951) is a Canadian politician who served as the interim leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party and the Leader of the Official Opposition (Ontario), leader of the Official Opposition from 2022 to 2023. ...

, the former executive director of

Greenpeace Canada Greenpeace is an independent global campaigning network, founded in Canada in 1971 by a group of environmental activists. Greenpeace states its goal is to "ensure the ability of the Earth to nurture life in all its diversity" and focuses its c ...

and a former

Toronto City Council Toronto City Council is the governing body of the municipal government of Toronto, Ontario. Meeting at Toronto City Hall, it comprises 25 city councillors and the mayor of Toronto. The Toronto City Council 2022–2026, current term began on Nove ...

lor for part of the riding. He did not run in the 2007 provincial elections, returning as a senior advisor in the Premier's Office, and subsequently worked on the central campaign team. Also, during the election, Chin did a series of YouTube videos under the banner Liberal TV for the Ontario Liberals. After working in the private sector, Chin joined the

Ontario Power Authority The Ontario Power Authority (OPA) was an independent, non-profit corporation established through the Electricity Restructuring Act, 2004 (Bill 100). Licensed by the Ontario Energy Board, it reported to the Ontario legislature through the Ministry ...

as Vice President of Communications and then joined AIR MILES for Social Change as Vice President, Conservation. Chin was appointed communications director to

British Columbia British Columbia is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Situated in the Pacific Northwest between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains, the province has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that ...

Christy Clark Christina Joan Clark (born October 29, 1965) is a Canadian politician who served as the 35th premier of British Columbia from 2011 to 2017. Clark was the second woman to be premier of BC, after Rita Johnston in 1991, and the first female premi ...

in 2012, subsequently becoming Executive Director, Communications and Issues Management in the office of the Premier of BC. He held this position until the defeat of Clark's

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * Generally, a supporter of the political philosophy liberalism. Liberals may be politically left or right but tend to be centrist. * An adherent of a Liberal Party (See also Liberal parties by country ...

government and the swearing in of her successor,

John Horgan John Joseph Horgan (August 7, 1959 – November 12, 2024) was a Canadian politician and diplomat who served as the 36th premier of British Columbia from 2017 to 2022 and the ambassador of Canada to Germany from 2023 to 2024. He led the Briti ...

of the

British Columbia New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party of British Columbia (BC NDP) is a social democratic political party in British Columbia, Canada. The party sits on the centre-left of the political spectrum and is one of the two major parties in British Columbia; since ...

. He joined federal Finance Minister

Bill Morneau William Francis Morneau Jr. (born October 7, 1962) is a Canadian businessman and former politician who served as minister of finance and member of Parliament (MP) for Toronto Centre from 2015 to 2020. Morneau was the executive chairman of ...

's ministerial office as senior advisor in October 2017, rising to chief of staff in May 2018. On February 27, 2019, Chin became a figure of criticism after former Attorney General

Jody Wilson-Raybould Jody Wilson-Raybould (born March 23, 1971), also known by her initials JWR and by her Kwak’wala name Puglaas, is a Canadian lawyer, author, and former politician who served as the member of Parliament (MP) for the British Columbia (BC) ri ...

accused him, among others, of applying inappropriate pressure to a decision regarding a

deferred prosecution agreement A deferred prosecution agreement (DPA), which is very similar to a non-prosecution agreement (NPA), is a voluntary alternative to adjudication in which a prosecutor agrees to grant amnesty in exchange for the defendant agreeing to fulfill certain ...

for Quebec contractor SNC-Lavalin. On May 14, 2019, Chin was appointed as Senior Advisor to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Chin, Ben 1964 births Living people Canadian political consultants Canadian television news anchors Ontario Liberal Party candidates in Ontario provincial elections South Korean emigrants to Canada South Korean expatriates in Switzerland University of Toronto alumni