Full disclosure: if you call out “Jim Rafferty!” while walking down the street, you will get John Rafferty’s attention.
But it’s probably better to have the right name.
Whoops. Sorry, John.
Aside from my own confusion, I was quite happy to see this delightful and well known public figure, out and about enjoying the Open Streets event a few weeks ago.
More full disclosure: John is a local politician and I did not vote for him. However, I’d like to amend that I would have voted for him if I lived in his riding!
Anything you need or want to know about this fair-faced political ingenou can be easily gleaned by a simple google search, but I think we should go over the basics anyway.
John was born deep in the southern most part of Southern Ontario and earned an English degree and a teaching degree before winding up in the north. In Thunder Bay he attended Lakehead (certificate in dispute resolution) and Con College (diploma in Broadcast Journalism) before opening up a small business.
Prior to running for election, John’s business, Rafferty Communications, produced components for health, training, and safety videos.
John also worked as a teacher—and was the first-ever high school principal in Rankin Inlet. As well, he spent time abroad teaching with World University Service Canada (WUSC) in Africa.
John first ran for office in 2000, and eventually found success when he was elected as a Member of Parliament (with the NDP) in 2008. He represented the Thunder Bay/Rainy River district until 2015.
I think it’s worth noting that he lost his first election by only fifty votes! How cool is that? I hope he runs again.
John lives in the country with his wife Pam and together they have three lovely adult children.
Thank you, John, for taking time out of your day to placate this overexcitable blogger.
Oh, one more thing!
John placed 3rd in a secret NDP Beauty Pageant: Handsome New Democrats of Canada. True story.