Bal Gosal

The Honourable
Baljit Singh Gosal
ਬਲਜੀਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਗੋਸਲ
PC
Minister of State for Sport
In office
May 18, 2011 – November 4, 2015
Prime Minister Stephen Harper
Preceded by Gary Lunn
Succeeded by Carla Qualtrough
Member of the Canadian Parliament
for Bramalea—Gore—Malton
In office
May 2, 2011 – October 19, 2015
Preceded by Gurbax Singh Malhi
Succeeded by Riding Abolished
Personal details
Born Baljit Singh Gosal
(1960-05-04) May 4, 1960
Ratainda, Shaheed Bhagat Singh Nagar district, Punjab, India
Political party Conservative
Spouse(s) Pawanjit Gosal
Profession Insurance broker

Baljit Singh Gosal (Punjabi: ਬਲਜੀਤ ਗੋਸਲ; born May 4, 1960) is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the House of Commons of Canada in the 2011 federal election.[1] He represents the electoral district of Bramalea—Gore—Malton as a member of the Conservative Party, and served as Minister of State (Sport) in the cabinet of Prime Minister Stephen Harper.[2] Gosal was one of five Visible Minorities serving in the Harper Ministry in Cabinet. He was defeated by Liberal candidate Ramesh Sangha in the 2015 election.

Early life

Born in India, Gosal immigrated to Canada in 1981 settling in Northern British Columbia.[3] Soon after, he moved to Brampton with his wife, Pawanjit.[3] His formal education includes a Bachelor of Science degree from DAV College Jalander/Punjab University India in 1981 and a Stationary Engineer 4th class Certificate. Gosal began working in the financial sector first in 1984 for McDonnell Douglas Canada and later in 1994 for Prudential Insurance, which later became London Life. He started working in the Property and Casualty Insurance by joining Holman Insurance Brokers Ltd. and then later in 2004 Gosal joined Goodison Insurance and Financial Services and in 2008 he joined Rai Grant insurance brokers where he worked as an Insurance Broker and a Financial Security Advisor.[3]

2011 election

In the 2011 election Gosal defeated long-time Liberal Member of Parliament Gurbax Singh Malhi and future NDP MPP Jagmeet Singh Dhaliwal in a close three-way race.

Parliamentarian

As Minister of State for Sport, Gosal was the Minister responsible for Canada at the 2012 summer Olympics in London and lead the Canadian delegation to the 2014 Sochi winter Olympics. On June 29, 2012, Gosal announced the endorsement of all Canadian provincial ministers responsible for sport of the New Canadian Sport Policy.[4]

According to a social media analysis, Bal Gosal was one of Canada's most active MPs on Twitter.[5]

Background

An active member of the Brampton community, Gosal had been a member of the Peel Regional Police Services Board, Peel Children's Aid Society and on the Brampton Board of Trade Marketing Committee.[6] He also has coached and organized amateur soccer and volunteered at the YMCA.[3] Gosal served as the Treasurer and founding member of the Ontario Federation of Sports and Cultural Organization, and as the Director, past Secretary, and Treasurer of the Ontario Khalsa Darbar Sports and Cultural Centre.[3] He and his wife have three children.[7]

Controversy

During the 2015 federal election, one volunteer from Bal Gosal's campaign team were caught on video, destroying campaign signs for opposition candidates, prompting Liberal candidate Ramesh Sangha to file a complaint with Peel Regional Police and Elections Canada.[8] In a written statement, the Gosal campaign stated that it admonished the actions of the videotaped volunteers and had dismissed them from the campaign.[9]

Electoral record

Brampton Centre

Canadian federal election, 2015
Party Candidate Votes%
LiberalRamesh Sangha19,27748.8%
ConservativeBal Gosal13,34533.8%
New DemocraticRosemary Keenan5,89314.9%
GreenSaul Marquard T. Bottcher8442.1%
Marxist–LeninistFrank Chilelli1730.4%
Turnout 39,53261.16%

Bramalea—Gore—Malton

Canadian federal election, 2011
Party Candidate Votes%±%Expenditures
ConservativeBal Gosal19,90734.44%-2.68%–
New DemocraticJagmeet Singh Dhaliwal19,36833.51%+24.49%–
LiberalGurbax Singh Malhi16,40229.40%-15.65%–
GreenJohn Moulton1,7483.02%-2.14%–
Marxist–LeninistFrank Chilelli3710.64%+0.02%
Total valid votes 57,796100.00%–
Total rejected ballots –––
Turnout ––––

Source: Elections Canada

Brampton West

Canadian federal election, 2006
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalColleen Beaumier27,98849.1+4.7
ConservativeBal Gosal20,34535.7-4.3
New DemocraticJagtar Singh Shergill6,31011.1+0.6
GreenJaipaul Massey-Singh2,3404.1+0.7
Total valid votes 56,983100.0

Etobicoke North

Ontario general election, 2003
Party Candidate Votes%±%
LiberalShafiq Qaadri16,72753.98+19.95
Progressive ConservativeBaljit Gosal6,97822.52-15.75
New DemocraticKuldip Singh Sodhi3,51611.35-12.57
IndependentFrank Acri1,9906.42
Family CoalitionTeresa Ceolin1,2754.11+2.41
GreenMir Kamal5031.62
Total valid votes 30,989100.00

References

  1. ↑ Election 2011: Bramalea—Gore—Malton. The Globe and Mail, May 2, 2011.
  2. ↑ The Ministry - Prime Minister of Canada Archived 2008-10-02 at the Wayback Machine.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 About- Bal Gosal http://www.balgosal.com/?page_id=2
  4. ↑ Bal Gosal [@BalGosal] (27 June 2012). "Just received endorsement of our New Canadian Sport Policy by the Provincial and Territorial Ministers in Inuvik NWT" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  5. ↑ http://www.ipolitics.ca/2014/01/07/mps-tweet-big-but-fall-short-on-social/
  6. ↑ The Canadian Ministry http://www.pm.gc.ca/eng/bio.asp?id=98
  7. ↑ http://www.pch.gc.ca/eng/1307462014191/1307464332128
  8. ↑ Fraser, Laura (16 October 2015). "Brampton Liberals file police complaint alleging Conservatives broke signs". CBC News. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
  9. ↑ Belgrave, Roger (16 October 2015). "VIDEO: Conservative volunteers booted after election signs toppled". Brampton Guardian. Retrieved 16 October 2015.
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