A look at Ontario New Democratic Party Leader Marit Stiles

Marit Stiles has led the Ontario New Democratic Party since 2023.

Born: Sept. 20, 1969.

Early years: Stiles was born in St. John’s, N.L., and grew up on a small farm outside the city where her family raised goats, chickens and vegetables.

Family: She is married to Jordan Berger and the couple has two adult daughters.

Before politics: Stiles moved to Ottawa in the late 1980s, where she studied at Carleton University. She moved to Toronto in 1992 and began working with New Democrat Gilles Bisson as his executive assistant, starting a career that dipped in and out of being fully immersed in politics, but was almost always at least on the periphery. After working for Bisson, Stiles became an assistant to northern development minister Shelley Martel. She also worked as a national director at ACTRA for 10 years and served as the federal NDP party president, and as a Toronto District School Board trustee. She has also worked as a communications professional.

Politics: Stiles was elected in the Toronto riding of Davenport in the 2018 election that saw the NDP become the Official Opposition. She was the party’s education critic for years, and was re-elected in her riding in the 2022 election. Then-party leader Andrea Horwath stepped down after that election and Stiles threw her hat in the ring to succeed Horwath as leader. Hers ended up being the only leadership bid, and she was officially confirmed in the top job in February 2023.

Quote: “Governments can turn things around, but they can also devastate provinces, and I think that’s what’s happened with Doug Ford and the Conservatives, is we’ve seen a government that has just allowed things to get so bad for so many people when there were actually solutions, there are solutions out there. So it really matters, and that’s why I decided to run.”

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 9, 2025.

The Canadian Press