Representative Marci Ien Contact information

Marci Ien PC MP, born on July 29, 1969, is a Canadian politician and current Minister for Women and Gender Equality and Youth. She has been serving in this role since October 26, 2021. As a member of the Liberal Party, Ien represents Toronto Centre in the House of Commons. Before entering politics, she had a successful career as a broadcast journalist for CTV.

Born and raised in Toronto’s St. James Town neighborhood, Marci Ien is a Black Canadian of Trinidadian descent. Her father, Joel Ien, arrived in Canada in the late 1960s to pursue higher education. He later established a career in education as a teacher, principal, and school superintendent in Toronto. Marci attended Stephen Leacock Collegiate Institute and Agincourt Collegiate Institute in Scarborough.

During her childhood, Marci Ien appeared regularly on the Christian children’s show Circle Square. She went on to graduate with a degree in radio and television arts from Ryerson Polytechnical Institute in 1991. Her journalism career began at CHCH-TV in Hamilton, Ontario, where she worked as a news writer and general assignment reporter. In 1995, she started reporting from Queen’s Park in Toronto, covering stories for both CHCH’s local news and WIC’s national newscast Canada Tonight.

In 1997, Marci Ien joined CTV as a reporter for CTV Atlantic, reporting on major events such as the crash of Swissair Flight 111 off Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia. She returned to Toronto in 1998 and became an anchor for CTV Newsnet, which was then known as CTV’s all-news channel. From 2003 onwards, Ien co-anchored the nationwide morning broadcast show Canada AM, and she continued in this role until the show’s cancellation in 2016. During the 2010 Winter Olympics, she participated in the Halifax leg of the torch relay.

Following her time on Canada AM, Marci Ien became a guest and then a permanent host of the daytime talk show The Social, which aired on CTV from 2016 to 2020. In 2020, she made the decision to enter politics and was announced as the Liberal Party of Canada’s candidate for Toronto Centre in a by-election to fill the seat left vacant by former Finance Minister Bill Morneau’s resignation. Ien won the by-election on October 26, 2020, defeating Annamie Paul, the leader of the Green Party of Canada.

Marci Ien was re-elected in the general election held on September 20, 2021, with increased support from her constituents. As a result of her dedication and success, she was appointed to Cabinet as the Minister for Women, Gender Equality, and Youth on October 26, 2021.

In addition to her accomplishments in journalism and politics, Marci Ien has received several awards for her outstanding contributions. In 1995, she won a Radio Television Digital News Association Award for her news series “Journey to Freedom,” which explored the Underground Railroad. In 2008, she was honored with a Black Business and Professional Association Harry Jerome Award in the media category. In 2014, she received the Planet Africa Award for excellence in media, and in 2016, she was recognized with an African Canadian Achievement Award for her journalistic achievements.