Rachel Bendayan is a Canadian politician who served as the minister of immigration, refugees and citizenship from March to May 2025. A member of the Liberal Party, Bendayan was elected to the House of Commons following a by-election on February 25, 2019, serving as the member of Parliament (MP) for Outremont.
Bendayan worked as a lawyer before entering politics. She ran in Outremont during the 2015 federal election, where she placed second to Thomas Mulcair, the leader of the Official Opposition and New Democratic Party (NDP). Following Mulcair's resignation as MP, a by-election was held in February 2019, where Bendayan flipped the seat for the Liberal Party.Annabelle Olivier, "Liberal Party’s Rachel Bendayan wins federal byelection in Outremont". Global News, February 25, 2019. She was subsequently re-elected in the October general election, and in 2021.
Early life Bendayan was born and raised in a Moroccan-Jewish family.Canada : Rachel Bendayan remporte la circonscription d'Outremont. CCME She studied law at McGill University and obtained her degree in 2007, specializing in commercial litigation and international arbitration.
After graduating, Bendayan was employed by the Norton Rose Fulbright law firm"Liberal candidate launches Outremont byelection bid". Canadian Jewish News, January 27, 2019. and also teaches at the Faculty of Law of the Université de Montréal.
Political career A member of the Liberal Party of Canada, she was a candidate for the first time in Outremont in the 2015 federal election, against Thomas Mulcair, the leader of the official opposition. She finished second with 33.4% of the vote. After the elections, she then became chief of staff to Bardish Chagger, Minister of Small Business and Tourism.
Following Thomas Mulcair's departure from political life in June 2018, Bendayan announced her intention to once again be a candidate for the Liberal Party in the next election. She was nominated as a candidate against the teacher and activist Kim Manning in December 2018, after a vote by members of the constituency. The elections were finally called to take place on February 25. She was elected after winning with 40.4% of votes, 2,161 votes more than her nearest opponent, the NDP's Julia Sánchez with 26.1%.Les libéraux reprennent Outremont, tandis que les conservateurs gardent York–Simcoe. Radio-Canada
Bendayan was re-elected in the 2019 federal election, obtaining 46.2% of the votes and beating her closest opponent by 10,829 votes.2019 Canada election results: Outremont. Global News She was then appointed Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Small Business, Export Promotion and International Trade, Mary Ng, by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Bendayan was elected for a third time in the 2021 federal election with 45.4% of the votes.
On December 20, 2024, she became the minister of Official Languages and associate minister of public safety. On March 14, 2025, she was sworn in as Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship under the new Liberal government led by Mark Carney. Bendayan was reelected in the 2025 federal election on April 28, 2025 and dropped from the 30th Canadian Ministry on May 13, 2025.
Antisemitic attacks Along with other Jewish Liberal Party candidates, Bendayan was a victim of anti-Semitic attacks during the campaign for the 2021 Canadian federal election.Jewish Liberal candidates, Singh face racist attacks during election campaignThere’s no place for the swastika in Canadian political discourse. Toronto Star
Controversies In the election year of 2025, Rachel Bendayan's campaign team sent Ramadan calendars to Muslim constituents. She was criticized for her data collection practices, using a loophole in the Canadian Privacy Act to collect data without the constituents consent and for sending the calendars to non-Muslims. The electoral strategy was also criticized by former Parti Quebecois leader Jean-Francois Lisee.
Electoral record
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