Elizabeth Hanson (born 1951), also known as Liz Hanson, is a Canadian politician from the

Yukon Yukon () is a Provinces and territories of Canada, territory of Canada, bordering British Columbia to the south, the Northwest Territories to the east, the Beaufort Sea to the north, and the U.S. state of Alaska to the west. It is Canada’s we ...

. She was the leader of the

Yukon New Democratic Party The Yukon New Democratic Party (YNDP; ) is a social democratic political party in the Yukon, Canada. It is the territorial section of the federal New Democratic Party. The Yukon NDP first formed the government of the territory under the leaders ...

from 2009 until 2019, and represented the electoral district of Whitehorse Centre in the

Yukon Legislative Assembly The Yukon Legislative Assembly () is the legislative assembly for Yukon, Canada. Unique among Canada's three territories, the Yukon Legislative Assembly is the only territorial legislature which is organized along political party lines. In contr ...

from 2010 to 2021. On November 22, 2018, Hanson announced her intent to resign as leader of the Yukon NDP.

Early life

Prior to attending university, Hanson's resume included involvement with high school student council, youth groups and community social action/justice movements including organizing committee(s) Miles for Millions, Arusha Cross Cultural Centre. Hanson attended the

University of Calgary {{Infobox university , name = University of Calgary , image = University of Calgary coat of arms without motto scroll.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of arms , former ...

and obtained degrees in political science and social work. After graduating university, Hanson took a job as a social worker in Souris,

Prince Edward Island Prince Edward Island is an island Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. While it is the smallest province by land area and population, it is the most densely populated. The island has several nicknames: "Garden of the Gulf", ...

. In Yukon, Hanson first worked as a regional social worker for the Department of Indian and Inuit Affairs, with a region that spanned from

Old Crow Old Crow is a low-priced brand of Kentucky-made straight bourbon whiskey distilled by Suntory Global Spirits, which also produces Jim Beam and several other brands of whiskey. The current Old Crow product uses the same mash bill and yeast as ...

, Yukon to Good Hope Lake,

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 ...

. She subsequently worked for INAC in

Nanaimo Nanaimo ( ) is a city of about 100,000 on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in British Columbia, Canada. "The Harbour City" was previously known as the "Hub City", which was attributed to its original layout design with streets radiating fr ...

, British Columbia and 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 ...

, returning to Yukon in 1989 to lead a federal self-government negotiations team. She served as Yukon director of land claims and Indian government for the federal government until 2003, when she became the regional director general of Indian and Northern Affairs Canada in the Yukon, charged with reorganizing the department's regional presence to reflect the federal presence "post land claims and devolution". She retired from this position in 2007. Hanson and her family completed a federal interchange to

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

, with the Aboriginal and Torres Islander Commission. She owns a property at Crag Lake, Yukon

Political career

After her retirement from INAC, Hanson became actively involved with the

and became president of the party. On September 26, 2009, Hanson was acclaimed as leader of the Yukon NDP, following the resignation of previous leader Todd Hardy, who had resigned due to an ongoing struggle with leukemia. Following Hardy's death on July 28, 2010, Hanson won the resulting

by-election A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, or a bypoll in India, is an election used to fill an office that has become vacant between general elections. A vacancy may arise as a result of an incumben ...

on December 13, 2010 in Whitehorse Centre by a large margin. She retained her seat comfortably in the 2011 election, leading the Yukon New Democrats from third party status to Official Opposition, with six of the legislature's 19 seats. During both the 32nd and 33rd Legislative Assemblies, Hanson served on the Members’ Services Board and the Standing Committee on Public Accounts. She Chaired the Standing Committee on Public Accounts in the 33rd Legislative Assembly (2011-2016). Hanson sought re-election again in 2016 election, and although she was narrowly successful in her own riding, Hanson's party lost four of its six seats to the Yukon Liberals and was reduced to third party status - it was also the Yukon New Democrat's worst electoral showing since 1978. The Yukon Liberals, formerly the Third Party, formed a majority government. Hanson has stayed on as New Democrat leader since the election. She is currently a member of the Members' Services Board, the Standing Committee on Public Accounts, and the Standing Committee on Rules, Elections and Privileges. Additionally, she serves as the New Democrat caucus critic for the Department of Finance, the Executive Council Office, the Department of Energy, Mines and Resources, the Department of Economic Development, the Department of Justice, the Department of Highways and Public Works, the Public Service Commission, the Department of Tourism and Culture, the Yukon Workers Compensation Health and Safety Board, and the Yukon Liquor Corporation. Hanson announced her intent to resign as leader of the Yukon New Democrats in November 2018, though she remained as MLA for Whitehorse Centre. A leadership convention to replace her on May 4, 2019 selected

Kate White Kate White is an American author, former magazine editor, and speaker. From 1998 to 2012, she served as the editor-in-chief of ''Cosmopolitan (magazine), Cosmopolitan'' and left to concentrate full time on writing suspense fiction. She is the ...

as the next leader of the Yukon NDP. Hanson endorsed Ontario Member of Parliament

Charlie Angus Charles Joseph Angus (born November 14, 1962) is a Canadian author, journalist, broadcaster, musician and politician. A member of the New Democratic Party (NDP), Angus served as the federal Member of Parliament for the riding of Timmins—Jame ...

for leader of the federal

New Democrats New Democrats may refer to: * New Democratic Party, a social democratic party in Canada * New Democrats (United States), the ideological centrist faction of the Democratic Party ** New Democrat Coalition, the related caucus in the United State ...

in the race to replace outgoing leader

Thomas Mulcair Thomas Joseph Mulcair (born October 24, 1954) is a Canadian lawyer and retired politician who served as the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) from 2012 to 2017 and leader of the Official Opposition from 2012 to 2015. He was elected to ...

. Hanson cited Angus' "commitment to reconciliation, and understanding economic inequalities that are only amplified in the North", in addition to their history of collaboration, as reasons for her endorsement.Niki Ashton gains support of Manitoba NDP leader, Charlie Angus woos Yukon leader
''The Hill Times'' (Chelsea Nash), May 10, 2017. Access May 10, 2017. Angus ultimately lost to Ontario MPP

Jagmeet Singh Jagmeet Singh Jimmy Dhaliwal (born January 2, 1979) is a Canadian former politician who served as the leader of the New Democratic Party (NDP) from 2017 to 2025 and as the Member of Parliament (Canada), member of Parliament (MP) for Burnaby Sou ...

Electoral record

2016 general election

, - , NDP , Liz Hanson , align="right", 487 , align="right", 43.8% , align="right", -18.3% , Liberal , Tamara Goeppel , align="right", 432 , align="right", 38.9% , align="right", +23.6% , - , - ! align=left colspan=3, Total ! align= 1,112 ! align= 100.0% ! align= –

2011 general election

, - , NDP , Liz Hanson , align="right", 525 , align="right", 62.1% , align="right", +9.6% , - , - , Liberal , Patrick Singh , align="right", 104 , align="right", 12.3% , align="right", -13.9% , - ! align=left colspan=3, Total ! align= 846 ! align= 100.0% ! align= –

2010 by-election

, NDP , Liz Hanson , align="right", 356 , align="right", 51.6% , align="right", +5.0% , - , Liberal , Kirk Cameron , align="right", 181 , align="right", 26.2% , align="right", -1.3% , - , - ! align=left colspan=3, Total ! align= 690 ! align= 100.0% ! align= – *''Held upon the death of Todd Hardy, July 28, 2010.''

References

External links

Yukon NDP
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hanson, Elizabeth 1957 births Female Canadian political party leaders Living people Politicians from Whitehorse Politicians from Edmonton Leaders of the Yukon CCF/NDP Yukon New Democratic Party MLAs Women MLAs in Yukon 21st-century members of the Yukon Legislative Assembly 21st-century Canadian women politicians