Working with a talented team of colleagues, Joel Harden serves Ottawa Centre as their Member of Provincial Parliament. Joel uses he/him pronouns, and is honoured to be a guest on the unceded territory of the Algonquin / Anishinabek peoples. He was first elected in 2018, and re-elected in 2022.
Joel is a community organizer, a writer, an art lover, a passionate cyclist, and a father of two young children. He brings all of these interests into politics.
Joel also serves the Province of Ontario as the Critic for Transit and Active Transportation, and sits as a permanent member of Ontario’s Standing Committee on Heritage, Infrastructure and Cultural Policy.
In his first term of office (2018-2022), Joel worked with community allies to win important victories. His Motion 129 (Voula’s Law) re-affirmed the visitation rights of residents in care homes, and was adopted unanimously on March 4, 2021. He also pushed the Ministry of Seniors and Accessibility to create exemptions for people with disabilities who require health services during pandemic lockdowns.
Joel campaigned for two years to convince the Ford Government to declare a judicial inquiry in December 2021 into Ottawa’s troubled Light Rail Transit system. He also worked tirelessly to ensure the safety and security of Ottawa residents during the “Freedom Convoy” movement of February 2022.