Banff Mayor Karen Sorensen is one of five people named as independent Senators by Gov. Gen. Mary Simon on Thursday.
The five appointees include:
Sorensen is currently in her third term as mayor and before that she spent six years as a town councillor and four years as a school board trustee.
She also spent 17 years working in the hotel industry in Ontario, B.C. and Alberta.
Sorensen was named Alberta Centennial Ambassador in 2005 and was a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal and YWCA Banff 2019 Woman of Distinction Award.
The new Senators were recommended by the Independent Advisory Board for Senate Appointments, and chosen using "the merit-based process open to all Canadians," read a release.
"I am pleased to welcome Parliament’s newest independent Senators. Their combined experience, perspectives, and dedication to serving Canadians will further strengthen the Senate and help shape our country’s future," said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau in a statement.
"I look forward to working with them, and all senators, as we take steps toward our recovery and to building back a more resilient and inclusive Canada for everyone.”
In 2016, the selection process for senators was opened to all Canadians. Candidate submissions are reviewed by the Independent Advisory Board for Senate Appointments, which provides recommendations to the prime minister.
"Once appointed by the Governor General, new Senators join their peers to examine and revise legislation, investigate national issues, and represent regional, provincial, and minority interests – important functions in a modern democracy," read a release.
Who should fill the remaining vacant Senate seat in Alberta will be a question on municipal ballots this October. Albertans will see a list of Senate candidates on the ballot, and choose who they want appointed for Alberta. Premier Jason Kenney will then submit the Top 3 names to Trudeau.
Kenney’s intent was that he would ask Trudeau to appoint the Top 2 to two vacant Alberta Senate seats, with the third held in reserve for the next retirement opening. But with Sorensen’s appointment, only one seat remains vacant in Alberta.
Kenney issued a statement Thursday afternoon, saying Trudeau showed "contempt for democracy in Alberta" by the appointment.
"The prime minister knows full well that Alberta will be holding elections for Senate nominees in October of this year. I personally informed him of our forthcoming Senate elections at our July 7 meeting in Calgary, and told him that the Alberta legislature had adopted a motion calling on the Prime Minister not to fill the two current Senate vacancies but to wait for Albertans to choose their own preferred Senate candidates," it read.
“Alberta’s tradition of electing Senate nominees goes back to the 1980s. We have had four Senate elections in the past, and five nominees to the Senate selected by Albertans in these elections went on to be appointed and to represent Albertans in Parliament democratically.
“The Prime Minister’s decision shows contempt for democratic decision-making, and for Alberta voters in particular."
After spending nearly three years in a Chinese prison, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have finally landed in Canada. The Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that a Canadian Air Forces passenger plane carrying the two Michaels had landed in Calgary early Saturday morning.
An executive of Chinese global communications giant Huawei Technologies returned from Canada Saturday night following a legal settlement that also saw the release of two Canadians held by China, potentially bringing closure to a nearly 3-year-long feud embroiling Ottawa, Beijing and Washington.
A colleague of Michael Kovrig says that he's ‘thrilled’ to hear that the Canadian is finally home after being detained in China for more than 1,000 days.
While the release of the two Michaels is reason for celebration, there are at least four other Canadians still detained in China.
Ontario health officials are reporting just under 650 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday.
Germany's closely fought election on Sunday will set the direction of the European Union's most populous country after 16 years under Angela Merkel, whose party is scrambling to avoid defeat by its center-left rivals after a rollercoaster campaign. The environmentalist Greens also are eyeing at least a share of power.
Four years before a mother and her 16-month-old son were killed in western Alberta, police had warned the public that a registered sex offender would be released and there was a chance he could harm 'a female, including children.'
Israel is pressing ahead with its aggressive campaign of offering coronavirus boosters to almost anyone over 12 and says its approach was further vindicated by a U.S. decision to give the shots to older patients or those at higher risk.
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops has apologized for the first time for the horrors that occurred in residential schools it ran for the federal government for more than a century.
With Alberta’s health care system now the focus of a military mission, the people who work within it are reaching a breaking point as stress compounds with negative patient interactions.
Four years before a mother and her 16-month-old son were killed in western Alberta, police had warned the public that a registered sex offender would be released and there was a chance he could harm 'a female, including children.'
After spending nearly three years in a Chinese prison, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have finally landed in Canada. The Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that a Canadian Air Forces passenger plane carrying the two Michaels had landed in Calgary early Saturday morning.
A 57-year-old man with schizophrenia and epilepsy has gone missing in Vancouver, and police are asking for help in locating him.
The demographic makeup of COVID-19 cases in B.C. has shifted dramatically in recent weeks, with children under 10 years old now making up the biggest share of confirmed new infections in the province.
Six residents and one staff member at the assisted living centre have tested positive for COVID-19, and one resident has died.
John plays for more than just his ever-expanding family (two children, seven grandchildren, thirteen great-grandchildren). Since the start of the pandemic, he's been taking musical rides around the neighbourhood, playing harmonica from his scooter every day.
A Nanaimo man is facing numerous charges after police allegedly found him in possession of multiple firearms and a pipe bomb during a traffic stop in July.
The new cases were among 743 cases found across the province over the past 24 hours.
New Brunswick is announcing another COVID-19 related death, as well as 61 new cases on Saturday.
Due to rising case counts in Atlantic Canada, Prince Edward Island asking residents to avoid out of province travel unless necessary.
As parent Brittany Snow peruses a list of Nova Scotia schools affected by COVID-19 exposures, she worries what it means for the safety of her children, who are too young to be vaccinated.
After spending nearly three years in a Chinese prison, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have finally landed in Canada. The Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that a Canadian Air Forces passenger plane carrying the two Michaels had landed in Calgary early Saturday morning.
Peel Public Health is asking guests that attended a wedding in the Greater Toronto Area last week to seek testing and self-isolate due to a confirmed COVID-19 exposure.
Ontario health officials are reporting just under 650 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday.
After spending nearly three years in a Chinese prison, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have finally landed in Canada. The Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that a Canadian Air Forces passenger plane carrying the two Michaels had landed in Calgary early Saturday morning.
Ottawa Public Health says another 50 people in Ottawa have tested positive for COVID-19.
A one-year pilot of the automated speed enforcement system at eight locations in Ottawa resulted in 101,778 tickets issued for speeding between July 2020 and July 2021
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) issued a statement Friday acknowledging what it described as "grave abuses that were committed by some members of our Catholic community" at the schools.
One person has died, injuries are being monitored and bullet casings were found following a slew of what appear to be violent crimes occurring overnight in Montreal.
Montreal mayoral candidate Valerie Plante made a campaign-defining pledge Saturday to spend $110 million on public security if re-elected.
Waterloo Regional Police have identified 18-year-old Joshua Bennett from Etobicoke as the man who was found dead in Kitchener on Friday morning.
Waterloo Region public health declared a COVID-19 outbreak among a student cohort at Tait Street Public School in Cambridge
Ontario health officials are reporting just under 650 new COVID-19 cases on Saturday.
Despite nearly $20 million spent over the last five years to solve homeless issues in the North Bay area, a new report finds the funding has not provided many benefits for those experiencing homelessness.
Sudbury police officers, retirees, civilians, volunteers, family, and friends took part in a peace officers memorial awareness run on Saturday. The event is part of a national event to honour peace officers who have lost their lives in the line of duty.
The environmental action group Clean, Green, Beautiful North Bay is wrapping up its last major beautification initiative for the season on Saturday.
COVID-19 infection rates are climbing in the Southern Health Region at a pace much quicker than the more densely populated Winnipeg Health Region.
After spending nearly three years in a Chinese prison, Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor have finally landed in Canada. The Prime Minister’s Office confirmed that a Canadian Air Forces passenger plane carrying the two Michaels had landed in Calgary early Saturday morning.
The pandemic halted many live events, auctions included. This weekend, however, a special automobile auction is marking the return to in-person bidding for one auction house.
A project one year in the making and will now provide a place for the students of Milestone school to learn outside in comfort.
QR codes are being temporarily removed from Saskatchewan COVID-19 vaccination records due a privacy breach.
A pair of Saskatchewan doctors say the province should share COVID-19 modelling data to help both physicians and residents prepare for what could be coming.
QR codes are being temporarily removed from Saskatchewan COVID-19 vaccination records due a privacy breach.
A pair of Saskatchewan doctors say the province should share COVID-19 modelling data to help both physicians and residents prepare for what could be coming.
A COVID-19 outbreak has been declared at the Elizabeth Middle School in Kindersley, Sask.
