Carolyn Parrish was born on Karolina Janozeski; October 3,1946 and is a Canadian politician who has been the 7th and current mayor of Mississauga since June 24,2024.
32 Facts About Carolyn Parrish
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Carolyn Parrish was a Mississauga city councillor from 2006 to 2010 and later from 2014 to 2024 when she resigned to contest the 2024 by-election for mayor.
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Carolyn Parrish was born as Karolina Janozeski and is of Polish heritage.
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Carolyn Parrish studied at the University of Toronto, St Michael's College, graduating in 1969, and became a high school teacher.
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Carolyn Parrish served as a Trustee on the Peel Board of Education from 1985 to 1990, and was chairperson from 1988 to 1990.
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Carolyn Parrish was first elected to the House of Commons as a Liberal in the 1993 election and was re-elected in the three subsequent general elections of 1997,2000 and 2004.
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Never promoted from the parliamentary backbench, Carolyn Parrish was largely unknown nationally until the eve of the US-led Invasion of Iraq in 2003.
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Carolyn Parrish said that "America is completely out of touch with the rest of the free world" and blamed this on collective "profound psychological damage" due to the September 11,2001 attacks.
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Carolyn Parrish explained that she wasn't at the meeting, but that even if she had been, it wouldn't have stopped her from speaking her mind.
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Carolyn Parrish went on to say that she had no loyalty towards the Liberal Party and that if it were defeated in the next election, she "would not shed a tear," as she had felt betrayed by Martin's lack of help for her during her nomination and election campaigns.
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Carolyn Parrish said that had she been in Martin's place, she would have done the same.
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Carolyn Parrish went on to say that the party under Martin had fallen into disarray and that Martin and his inner circle ran the party using guerrilla warfare tactics.
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Carolyn Parrish said she would still vote with the Liberals on the vast majority of legislation, but would now be free to express her views without fear of reprisal.
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On November 30,2004, Carolyn Parrish appeared on CNN in an interview with Wolf Blitzer and Tucker Carlson, defending her position against Bush and her recent actions that led to ousting from the Liberal party.
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Carolyn Parrish defended the overall Canadian stance regarding the Iraq War and the National Missile Defence program.
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Blitzer talked about several MPs attacking Bush and Martin replied that only Carolyn Parrish had made attacks and that they had been condemned throughout Parliament.
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Carolyn Parrish announced in December 2004 that she would oppose the Martin government's proposed legislation to legally establish same-sex marriage in Canada.
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Carolyn Parrish's support was critical to the government's survival, given the even division in the house.
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Carolyn Parrish attended the vote, which the government won by one vote.
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On October 13,2005, Carolyn Parrish's spokeswoman announced that the MP had sent a letter to her constituents stating that she would not stand for re-election.
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Carolyn Parrish publicly supported the Liberal candidate, Omar Alghabra, ahead of the 2006 election.
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However, at the 2010 municipal election, Carolyn Parrish lost to McCallion ally Ron Starr by 1,889 votes.
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Carolyn Parrish subsequently announced her retirement from political life, although has left the way open for re-entering at some point.
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Carolyn Parrish contested a by-election in neighbouring Ward 5 on September 19,2011, losing to Bonnie Crombie by 241 votes.
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Carolyn Parrish told media that she felt the election result would have been different had this been known.
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Carolyn Parrish was the councillor for Ward 5 in Mississauga City Council, after winning the seat in the 2014 municipal election.
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Carolyn Parrish has stated that she believes non-citizen permanent residents should have the right to sit on municipal committees, though not on the city council itself.
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On February 20,2024, Carolyn Parrish sent a letter to the Mississauga ward 5 constituents informing them that she would be resigning her councillor's seat effective March 15,2024, in order to run for the mayor's seat in a citywide by-election to be held June 10,2024, to replace former mayor Bonnie Crombie.
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Carolyn Parrish was sworn in as the 7th mayor of Mississauga on June 24,2024.
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In November 2024, Carolyn Parrish resigned from the Peel Police Services Board to protest the board's planned $136 million budget increase for the Peel Regional Police when residents' cost of living was an issue.
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In November 2024, Carolyn Parrish faced criticism for her response to a planned vigil honoring Hamas leader Yahya Sinwar at Mississauga's Celebration Square.
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Carolyn Parrish initially defended the event's right to proceed under the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, despite Hamas being designated as a terrorist entity by Canada since 2002.