Rachel Notley

Early life

Rachel Notley was born on April 17, 1964, in Fairview, Alberta, Canada. Her parents were Grant Notley and Sandy Kao, both of whom were active in politics in Alberta. Her brothers are Paul Notley and Stephen Notley, author and illustrator of Bob the Angry Flower.

As the daughter of Grant Notley, a former leader of the Alberta NDP, and a prominent social democrat in Alberta politics, Rachel grew up surrounded by politics and had a keen interest in current events from an early age.

She attended the University of Alberta where she studied political science and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in 1986. She later earned her law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School at York University in Toronto.

She has been married to the love of her life, Lou Arab for 25 years, and they have two children, Ethan Arab and Sophie Arab. In her free time, she is an active cyclist, jogger, and skier.

Career

After law school, Notley articled for Edmonton labor lawyer Bob Blakely and went on to work for the Alberta Union of Provincial Employees representing members with Workers’ Compensation cases. She was passionate about activism and legal issues from the start of her career.

In 1994, Notley moved to Vancouver, British Columbia. Here, she worked for the Health Sciences Association of BC as their occupational health and safety officer. She also worked for a year as a ministerial assistant to Attorney General Ujjal Dosanjh. As part of this team, she would help expand BC’s family relations laws to same-sex couples, several years before the Government of Canada took similar initiatives.

Notley began her career working for various labor unions before joining the provincial New Democratic Party (NDP) in 1995 as a senior policy advisor for the then-leader of the opposition, Brian Mason.

In 2004 she was elected to office as a Member of Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Edmonton-Strathcona and held several cabinet positions over the next decade including Minister of Justice & Attorney General, Minister of Health & Wellness, Minister of Advanced Education & Technology, and other ministerial roles.

In her career as a lawyer and worked in the areas of labor law and human rights. In 2008, she was elected as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Alberta, representing the Edmonton-Strathcona riding. She was re-elected in 2012 and served as the Official Opposition critic for Justice and Solicitor General.

In the 2015 Alberta general election, Notley led the NDP to a historic victory, winning 53 of the 87 seats in the legislature and ending the Progressive Conservative party’s 44-year-long hold on power. She was sworn in as the Premier of Alberta on May 24, 2015.

She did so as the first time her party won a major government in over 40 years. Notley held office until April 30th, 2019, when her party lost to the United Conservative Party led by Jason Kenney.

During her tenure as Premier, Notley implemented several progressive policies, including raising the minimum wage, introducing a climate change plan, and implementing a royalty review for the oil and gas industry. She also oversaw the passing of the Alberta Human Rights Amendment Act, which included gender identity and expression as protected grounds.

Despite her progressive policies, Notley’s government faced significant challenges due to the decline in oil prices and the resulting economic downturn in Alberta. In the 2019 Alberta general election, the United Conservative Party led by Jason Kenney defeated Notley’s NDP, and she stepped down as Premier on April 30, 2019.

Throughout her political career, Rachel Notley has become one of Canada’s most influential female politicians whose legacy will continue to impact Albertans long after she has left office. Due to bold decisions made while serving as premier which helped shape the province’s social and economic landscape for decades to come, she has stamped her name on the political landscape.

Net Worth

Rachel Notley’s net worth is not publicly disclosed. However, as a politician, her income would have been publicly disclosed and available on Alberta’s Public Sector Compensation Disclosure website.

Notley has amassed an estimated net worth during her career but currently, there is no estimate available on how much money she is actually worth in present day, and accounting for potential stocks and investments.

Achievement

All throughout her career, Rachel Notley has been praised for taking bold stances on important issues such as environmental protection and climate change initiatives. This earned her international recognition from prominent figures such as former US President Barack Obama who stated “I was just so impressed with Rachel. She’s somebody who I think could serve not only well in Canada but around the world.”

In addition to being awarded numerous honorary degrees from universities located across North America, also received accolades from organizations such as World Wildlife Fund for her work toward protecting natural resources in Alberta.

Here are some highlights of her achievements:

• Rachel Notley became the first woman to serve as Premier of Alberta in 2015.
• She led the Alberta NDP to a historic victory in the 2015 Alberta general election, winning 53 of the 87 seats in the legislature and ending the Progressive Conservative party’s 44-year-long hold on power.
• Notley implemented a number of progressive policies during her tenure as Premier, including raising the minimum wage, introducing a climate change plan, and implementing a royalty review for the oil and gas industry.
• She oversaw the passing of the Alberta Human Rights Amendment Act, which included gender identity and expression as protected grounds.