Ruba Ghazal

Ghazal was born in Beirut, Lebanon to a family of Palestinian refugees. She lived in the United Arab Emirates until she was 10, when her family immigrated to Quebec.^[2] She studied at HEC Montréal.^[3]

Ghazal was a founding member of Québec solidaire in 2006, and was the party's candidate for Laurier-Dorion in the 2007 and 2008 general elections.^[4] In 2018, she was elected to the National Assembly of Quebec for Mercier, succeeding Amir Khadir.^[5]

Following re-election in the 2022 provincial election, she became the opposition critic for Education, Culture and Communications, the French Language, and the Status of Women.

In 2023, Ghazal ran for the female co-spokesperson election of Québec solidaire. Ghazal lost the election in the second round, getting 49.7% for Ghazal against Émilise Lessard-Therrien who obtained 50.3%.^[6] After Lessard-Therrien stepped down in April 2024, she again ran for the co-spokesperson position. On November 16, she was acclaimed co-spokesperson after an uncontested election.^[7] She will be the party's candidate for premier in the 2026 Quebec general election.^[8]

Language issues

Ghazal has pushed for government policies to reverse the decline of the French language in Montreal.^[9] As Québec solidaire's critic for language issues, Ghazal has advocated for the creation of a special branch of the Office québécois de la langue française (OQLF) for Montreal.^[10]

Foreign policy

In 2021, Ghazal attended protests amid the 2021 Israel–Palestine crisis against the Israeli government's actions in actions in Sheikh Jarrah. Ghazal stated that "One day we will look back and declare this a humanitarian crime against Palestinians."^[11] Ghazal was among the signatories of a 2021 letter opposing Canada's bid for a seat on the United Nations Security Council due to the country's position on Palestine.^[12]

Ghazal is in a relationship with Hubert Proulx since 2021.^[13][14]