Jill Andrew is a Canadian politician who represented Toronto—St. Paul's in the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA; ) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly are given royal as ...

from 2018 until 2025 as a member of the

Ontario New Democratic Party The Ontario New Democratic Party (NDP; , NPD) is a social democratic political party in Ontario, Canada. The party sits on the centre-left of the political spectrum. It is Ontario’s provincial section of the federal New Democratic Party. The ...

(NDP).

Education

Andrew attended

Humber College The Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, rebranded as Humber Polytechnic since 2024, is a public Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, college in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Founded in 1967, Humber has three mai ...

, where she earned a child and youth worker diploma. She also holds a Bachelor of Education (BEd) from

York University York University (), also known as YorkU or simply YU), is a public university, public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, and it has approximately 53,500 students, 7,000 faculty and staff, ...

amongst her other undergraduate degrees, a master’s degree from 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 ...

in women and gender studies, a PhD from the York University Faculty of Education.

Political career

Andrew ran as the NDP candidate in Toronto—St. Paul's in the 2018 provincial election and was elected as a member of Provincial Parliament (MPP). She was the critic for culture and women's issues and was part of the Ontario NDP Black caucus, along with fellow MPPs Laura Mae Lindo,

Faisal Hassan Faisal Ahmed Hassan is a Canadian politician, who was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 2018 until his defeat in the 2022 Ontario general election. He represented the riding of York South—Weston as a member of the Ontario ...

, Rima Berns-McGown and

Kevin Yarde Kevin Yarde is a Canadian politician and former weather presenter who was elected to the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in the 2018 provincial election for the riding of Brampton North. Initially elected as a member of the Ontario New Democr ...

. She is the first Black and Queer person to be elected to the Ontario Legislature. Andrew served as official opposition critic on a number of portfolios, including women's issues, culture and heritage. Andrew has passed several pieces of legislation, including Bill 61 which proclaims the week beginning February 1 in each year as Eating Disorders Awareness Week. Bill 61 received Royal Assent in December 2020. As of August 11, 2024, Andrew served as the Official Opposition critic for Women's Social and Economic Opportunity as well as for Culture and Heritage. She was defeated in the

2025 Ontario general election The 2025 Ontario general election was held on February 27, 2025, to elect the 124 members of the 44th Parliament of Ontario. Premier Doug Ford's Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario, Progressive Conservatives were re-elected to a third cons ...

by Liberal candidate

Stephanie Smyth Stephanie Smyth (born October 20, 1964) is a Canadian politician and retired broadcaster who has served as a Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Toronto—St. Paul's since 2025. A member of the Ontario Liberal Party, she unseated two-t ...

Personal life

Andrew identifies as

queer ''Queer'' is an umbrella term for people who are non-heterosexual or non- cisgender. Originally meaning or , ''queer'' came to be used pejoratively against LGBTQ people in the late 19th century. From the late 1980s, queer activists began to ...

. Andrew and her partner Aisha Fairclough, a television producer and diversity consultant, are members of the community consortium that own

Glad Day Bookshop Glad Day Bookshop is an independent bookstore and restaurant located in Toronto, Ontario, specializing in LGBT literature. Previously located above a storefront at 598A Yonge Street for much of its history, the store moved to its current location ...

, an

LGBT LGBTQ people are individuals who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, or questioning. Many variants of the initialism are used; LGBTQIA+ people incorporates intersex, asexual, aromantic, agender, and other individuals. The gro ...

bookstore in Toronto's

Church and Wellesley Church and Wellesley is an gay village, LGBT-oriented enclave in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is roughly bounded by Gerrard Street (Toronto), Gerrard Street to the south, Yonge Street to the west, Charles Street to the north, and Jarvis Street ...

gay village. Andrew cofounded the group Body Confidence Canada."‘It was a trifecta of hate’: Body image activist recalls moment she was accosted by a man over her weight, race"
.

Global News Global News is the news and Current affairs (news format), current affairs division of the Canadian Global Television Network. The network is owned by Corus Entertainment, which oversees all of the network's national news programming as well as ...

, April 9, 2018.

Electoral record

References

External links

Official website

Parliamentary history
{{DEFAULTSORT:Andrew, Jill Living people 21st-century Canadian women politicians Activists from Toronto Black Canadian politicians Black Canadian women Businesspeople from Toronto Canadian LGBTQ people in provincial and territorial legislatures Ontario New Democratic Party MPPs Politicians from Toronto Women MPPs in Ontario Black Canadian LGBTQ people Canadian queer women Black Canadian activists Year of birth missing (living people) 21st-century Canadian LGBTQ people 21st-century members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario