Doly Begum

Doly Begum
MP
Doly Begum MP
ডলি বেগম
	Begum in 2023
Member of Parliament; for Scarborough Southwest
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; April 13, 2026
Preceded by	Bill Blair
Member of Provincial Parliament ; for Scarborough Southwest
	In office; June 7, 2018 – February 3, 2026
Preceded by	Lorenzo Berardinetti
Succeeded by	Fatima Shaban
Deputy leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party
	In office; July 13, 2022 – February 3, 2026 Serving with Sol Mamakwa
Leader	Peter Tabuns (interim); Marit Stiles;
Preceded by	John Vanthof and Sara Singh
Personal details
Born	September 5, 1989 (age 37); Moulvibazar District, Bangladesh
Party	Liberal (since 2026)
Other political; affiliations	Ontario New Democratic (2018–2026)
Spouse	Rizuan Rahman (died 2024)
Education	University of Toronto (BA); University College London (MA);
Website	dolybegum.liberal.ca

Doly Begum (Bengali: ডলি বেগম; born September 5, 1989) is a Canadian politician who has been the member of Parliament (MP) for Scarborough Southwest since 2026 as a member of the Liberal Party. Previously, she was the member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Scarborough Southwest from 2018 to 2026 and a member of the Ontario New Democratic Party (NDP), serving as deputy leader from 2022 to 2026. She resigned as MPP and deputy provincial NDP leader in 2026 to run for the federal Liberal Party in the 2026 Scarborough Southwest federal by-election. She is the first person of Bangladeshi origin to serve as an MP.

Early life, education and career

Begum was born September 5, 1989, in the Moulvibazar District of Bangladesh.^[1] She immigrated to Canada as a child with her family,^[2] and was raised in Scarborough, Ontario, attending W. A. Porter Collegiate Institute in the Clairlea neighbourhood of Toronto.^[1]

She obtained a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Toronto in political science, and a Master of Arts in development, administration and planning from University College London. Prior to her candidacy, she was co-chair of the Scarborough Health Coalition, vice-chair of Warden Woods Community Centre, a research analyst at the Society of Energy Professionals, and was the chief coordinator of the province-wide Keep Hydro Public campaign.^[3]

Political career

Provincial politics

In the 2018 Ontario general election, Begum ran as the NDP candidate for Scarborough Southwest. The riding has a large immigrant population, constituting 45 per cent of the riding's population, with Bangladeshi Canadians accounting for 16 per cent. She won the riding with 46 per cent of the vote, defeating 15-year Liberal incumbent Lorenzo Berardinetti.^[1] At 29, Doly Begum was the youngest member of her party's caucus^[4] and is the first Bangladeshi-Canadian to be elected to a legislative body in Canada.^[5]

She was named the Official Opposition critic for immigration services and for international credentials on August 11, 2024. Begum previously served as the Official Opposition critic for citizenship, foreign credentials and immigration services,^[6] deputy opposition whip from August 2019 to February 2021, critic for early learning and childcare from August 2018 to February 2021 and a member of the Standing Committee on Social Policy from July 2018 to October 2019.

In 2020, Begum introduced a private member's bill that would mark June as Filipino Heritage Month.^[7] The bill passed its final reading and received Royal Assent on May 20, 2021, officially proclaiming June as Filipino Heritage Month in Ontario.^[8]

On July 13, 2022, Begum was named a deputy leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party, alongside Sol Mamakwa.^[9]

Federal politics

On February 3, 2026, she announced her resignation from the Ontario NDP and the Ontario legislature in order to contest the 2026 Scarborough Southwest federal by-election as the Liberal Party candidate.^[10] She won the by-election on April 13 and was elected the member of Parliament (MP) for the riding of Scarborough Southwest,^[11] becoming Canada's first Bangladeshi MP.^[12]

Election results

v t e Canadian federal by-election, April 13, 2026: Scarborough Southwest Resignation of Bill Blair
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Doly Begum	20,121	69.60	+8.12
	Conservative	Diana Filipova	5,433	18.79	–11.77
	New Democratic	Fatima Shaban	1,714	5.92	+0.92
	Green	Pooja Malhotra	711	2.46	+1.08
	Independent	April Francisco	422	1.50	N/A
	People's	Peter Koubakis	265	0.92	-0.12
	Christian Heritage	David Vedova	143	0.49	N/A
	Centrist	Lyall Sanders	100	0.35	+0.04
Total valid votes			28,909
Total rejected ballots			89
Turnout			28,998	33.80	–29.52
Eligible voters			85,796
	Liberal hold		Swing		+8.12
Source: Elections Canada

v t e 2025 Ontario general election: Scarborough Southwest
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	New Democratic	Doly Begum	14,557	42.89	–4.78	$120,161
	Progressive Conservative	Addie Dramola	10,400	30.65	+3.04	$45,342
	Liberal	Qadira Jackson	7,786	22.94	+4.38	$39,544
	Green	Mark Bekkering	1,194	3.52	–0.02	$3,247
Total valid votes/expense limit			33,937	99.31		$131,827
Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots			235	0.69	–0.01
Turnout			34,172	41.73	–2.61
Eligible voters			81,880
	New Democratic hold		Swing		–3.91
Source: Elections Ontario^[13]

v t e 2022 Ontario general election: Scarborough Southwest
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%	Expenditures
	New Democratic	Doly Begum	16,842	47.68	+2.02	$103,194
	Progressive Conservative	Bret Snider	9,750	27.60	−3.62	$67,267
	Liberal	Lisa Patel	6,556	18.56	−0.38	$65,227
	Green	Cara Brideau	1,251	3.54	+0.84	$2,506
	New Blue	Peter Naus	383	1.08		$609
	Ontario Party	Barbara Everatt	320	0.91		$0
	None of the Above	James McNair	114	0.32	−0.19	$0
	Independent	Michelle Parsons	110	0.31		$0
Total valid votes/expense limit			35,326	99.31		$112,311
Total rejected, unmarked, and declined ballots			247	0.69	−0.33
Turnout			35,573	44.34	−11.69
Eligible voters			80,222
	New Democratic hold		Swing		+2.82
Source(s) "Summary of Valid Votes Cast for Each Candidate" (PDF). Elections Ontario. 2022. Archived from the original on May 18, 2023. "Statistical Summary by Electoral District" (PDF). Elections Ontario. 2022. Archived from the original on May 21, 2023.

v t e 2018 Ontario general election: Scarborough Southwest
Party	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	New Democratic	Doly Begum	19,835	45.66	+22.09
	Progressive Conservative	Gary Ellis	13,565	31.22	+10.25
	Liberal	Lorenzo Berardinetti	8,228	18.94	–30.99
	Green	David Del Grande	1,174	2.70	–1.36
	None of the Above	Allen Atkinson	222	0.51	N/A
	Libertarian	James Speirs	195	0.45	N/A
	Special Needs	Willie Little	160	0.37	N/A
	Trillium	Bobby Turley	64	0.15	N/A
Total valid votes			43,443	98.97
Total rejected, unmarked and declined ballots			451	1.03
Turnout			43,894	56.04
Eligible voters			78,329
	New Democratic notional gain from Liberal		Swing		+26.54
Source: Elections Ontario^[14]

Personal life

Begum was married to Bangladeshi-Canadian lawyer Rizuan Rahman until his death from cancer in September 2024.^[1]^[15]

References

1 2 3 4 Shafiq, Tahmeed (December 30, 2024). "Doly Begum". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
↑ "NDP candidate Doly Begum ends Liberal reign in Scarborough Southwest". Toronto Star. June 7, 2018. Retrieved June 9, 2018.
↑ Chaleff, Adam (June 20, 2018). "Society Staff Researcher Doly Begum elected to Ontario Legislature". Society of United Professionals. Retrieved April 14, 2026.
↑ "73 new MPPs ride Ontario's wave of change to Queen's Park". CBC News Toronto, June 16, 2018.
↑ "Bangladeshi-origin Doly Begum becomes MP of a Canadian provincial House". Dhaka Tribune. June 8, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
↑ Raza, Ali (February 5, 2021). "Scarborough Southwest MPP Begum takes on new critic role for NDP at Queen's Park". Beach Metro Community News. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
↑ "MPP Begum introduces bill to recognize June as Filipino Heritage Month in Ontario". Ontario NDP. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
↑ "Filipino Heritage Month Act, 2021". Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Retrieved May 25, 2021.
↑ "Scarborough Southwest MPP Doly Begum named deputy leader of Ontario NDP". Beach Metro Community News. July 13, 2022. Retrieved December 12, 2023.
↑ "Ontario NDP MPP resigns to run for federal Liberals in upcoming byelection". Global News. February 3, 2026. Retrieved February 3, 2026.
↑ Snisarenko, Alina (April 14, 2026). "Doly Begum wins Scarborough Southwest federal byelection". CBC News. Retrieved April 15, 2026.
↑ "Doly Begum becomes first Bangladesh-origin federal MP in Canada". The Daily Star. April 15, 2026. Retrieved September 22, 2026.
↑ "Vote Totals From Official Tabulation" (PDF). Elections Ontario. March 3, 2025. Retrieved March 4, 2025.
↑ "Summary of Valid Votes Cast for each Candidate" (PDF). Elections Ontario. p. 8. Retrieved January 20, 2019.
↑ "Expression of Condolence for Rizuan Rahman by Toronto City Council" (PDF) (Press release). Toronto City Council. October 9, 2024. Retrieved December 30, 2024.

External links

[TCE-1] 1 2 3 4 Shafiq, Tahmeed (December 30, 2024). "Doly Begum". The Canadian Encyclopedia. Retrieved April 14, 2026.

[2] "NDP candidate Doly Begum ends Liberal reign in Scarborough Southwest". Toronto Star. June 7, 2018. Retrieved June 9, 2018.

[3] Chaleff, Adam (June 20, 2018). "Society Staff Researcher Doly Begum elected to Ontario Legislature". Society of United Professionals. Retrieved April 14, 2026.

[4] "73 new MPPs ride Ontario's wave of change to Queen's Park". CBC News Toronto, June 16, 2018.

[5] "Bangladeshi-origin Doly Begum becomes MP of a Canadian provincial House". Dhaka Tribune. June 8, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2021.

[6] Raza, Ali (February 5, 2021). "Scarborough Southwest MPP Begum takes on new critic role for NDP at Queen's Park". Beach Metro Community News. Retrieved December 12, 2023.

[7] "MPP Begum introduces bill to recognize June as Filipino Heritage Month in Ontario". Ontario NDP. Retrieved May 25, 2021.

[8] "Filipino Heritage Month Act, 2021". Legislative Assembly of Ontario. Retrieved May 25, 2021.

[9] "Scarborough Southwest MPP Doly Begum named deputy leader of Ontario NDP". Beach Metro Community News. July 13, 2022. Retrieved December 12, 2023.

[resignation-10] "Ontario NDP MPP resigns to run for federal Liberals in upcoming byelection". Global News. February 3, 2026. Retrieved February 3, 2026.

[11] Snisarenko, Alina (April 14, 2026). "Doly Begum wins Scarborough Southwest federal byelection". CBC News. Retrieved April 15, 2026.

[12] "Doly Begum becomes first Bangladesh-origin federal MP in Canada". The Daily Star. April 15, 2026. Retrieved September 22, 2026.

[13] "Vote Totals From Official Tabulation" (PDF). Elections Ontario. March 3, 2025. Retrieved March 4, 2025.

[14] "Summary of Valid Votes Cast for each Candidate" (PDF). Elections Ontario. p. 8. Retrieved January 20, 2019.

[15] "Expression of Condolence for Rizuan Rahman by Toronto City Council" (PDF) (Press release). Toronto City Council. October 9, 2024. Retrieved December 30, 2024.

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