Naomi Rankin

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Preceded byNorman Brudy
Born1951 or 1952 (age 73–74)[1]
ProfessionPolitician, programmer
Naomi Rankin
Rankin in 2015
Leader of the Communist Party – Alberta
Assumed office
1992
Preceded byNorman Brudy
Personal details
Born1951 or 1952 (age 73–74)[1]
PartyCommunist
ProfessionPolitician, programmer

Naomi Rankin (born 1951 or 1952) is a Canadian politician who has served as the leader of the Communist Party – Alberta since 1992. She is the longest-serving party leader in Alberta, and has been a perennial candidate in the province's federal and provincial elections since 1982.[2][3]

Rankin became leader of the Communist Party in Alberta in 1992, after the collapse of the Soviet Union sent the party into crisis.[2] Since 1982, she has run in every provincial and federal election for the Communist Party – Alberta and the Communist Party of Canada respectively. Rankin herself usually fields around 100 votes.[4]

In a typical election campaign, Rankin goes door-to-door and distributes pamphlets, as she tries to engage voters in discussions about the party's main platforms.[4] In the 1980s, these included the nationalization of transnational oil and gas companies, and making Alberta a nuclear weapons-free zone.[5] Since then, issues on the Communist Party agenda have included opposing privatization,[6] doubling the corporate tax rate, and making drastic cuts to military spending.[4] She also appears in forums, debates, and media interviews, in which she tries to debunk popular myths about the Communist Party and socialism.[6] As a candidate, Rankin has aimed to spread her message beyond the party's traditional targets such as trade unions, environmental groups, women's organizations, and farmers.[7]

Personal life

Rankin is widowed with two children, and is retired from her career as a computer programmer.[4] She has lived in Edmonton since 1963.[8] A social activist since her teens, she has been active in peace and women's organizations.[5] Rankin sings in the "Notre Dame des Bananes” choir,[9] which performs songs about social justice,[7][9] and has also sung as a tenor with the Richard Eaton Singers.[10]

Electoral record

References

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