Michael David Chong (born November 22, 1971) is a Canadian politician who has represented the Ontario riding of Wellington—Halton Hills in the House of Commons since 2004. A member of the Conservative Party, he served in the cabinet of Prime Minister Stephen Harper as Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs and Minister of Sport, as well as the President of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada from February 6, 2006 to November 27, 2006. On September 8, 2020, Chong was appointed the Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs.
Chong is best known for his Red Tory views and he ran for the leadership of the Conservative Party in 2017, coming in fifth place out of fourteen candidates.
Early life and career
Chong was born on November 22, 1971, in Windsor, Ontario, the oldest son of Cornelia de Haan and Paul Chong. His father was born in Hong Kong and immigrated to Canada in 1952, becoming a doctor. His mother arrived in Canada in 1960 from the Netherlands, and worked as a nurse. Chong has three siblings; Peter, Andrew and Joanna. He was raised near Fergus in Wellington County, a small town in rural Southern Ontario, and attended Centre Wellington District High School. In 1978, when Chong was six years old, his mother was killed in a car accident at an intersection near Fergus. Two years after her death his father married Adriana, who raised him and his three siblings as if they were her own. In 1999, Chong's father was also killed in a car accident at the same intersection where his mother had been killed 21 years earlier.
Chong attended Trinity College at the University of Toronto where he studied philosophy, history and politics. In his final year at university he landed a job with Canadian Tire as an assistant to a senior executive. He has worked in information technology for Barclays Bank and Research Capital Corporation. Chong worked as a senior technology consultant to the Greater Toronto Airports Authority for the redevelopment of Pearson International Airport and prior to entering politics he worked for the National Hockey League Players’ Association.
Chong was a founding member of The Dominion Institute. He served on the board of the Groves Memorial Hospital from 2002 to 2004, later serving on the board of the Elora Festival and Elora Festival Singers as well as the Corporation of Trinity College.
Chong is married to Carrie Davidson, whom he met while at university. She has roots in both Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador. Her great-great grandfather was William Whiteway, a pro-Confederation politician and three-time premier of the colony of Newfoundland in the late 19th century. Another great-great grandfather, Charles Peers Davidson, was chief justice of the Superior Court of Quebec in the early 1910s. The couple live on a 100-acre farm in Fergus, located on the Grand River about 85 kilometres from Toronto, and have three sons; William, Alistair, and Cameron.
Politics
Described as a Red Tory, Chong joined the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada and the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario in the late 1980s. He ran for parliament in the 2000 federal election as a Progressive Conservative, and finished third Waterloo—Wellington against incumbent Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) Lynn Myers. Chong supported Peter MacKay for the leadership of the federal PC party in 2003.
38th Parliament
In early 2004, the Progressive Conservatives merged with the Canadian Alliance to create the Conservative Party of Canada. Chong joined the new party, and in March 2004 defeated Marty Burke to win its nomination for Wellington—Halton Hills. He was elected in the 2004 federal election, defeating Liberal Bruce Hood by over 2,000 votes.
Chong is primarily known as a fiscal conservative and is considered a moderate in his party. He declared his personal support for the Kyoto Protocol during the 2004 federal election, despite his party's opposition to the measure. He supported Elizabeth Witmer's bid to lead the Progressive Conservative Party of Ontario in 2001–02, and supported John Tory for the same position in 2004.
Chong wrote an opinion editorial for The Globe and Mail newspaper in late 2004 entitled "Canadians without hyphens", criticizing John Barber's suggestion that there were not enough Chinese-Canadian MPs representing areas with large Chinese populations. Chong noted he was elected in a riding with a 97% Caucasian population, while John McCallum was elected in Markham—Unionville, which is more than 60% Asian. Chong argued that these results reflected his idea of Canada, adding that he favoured the creation of a "common Canadian identity that will allow for greater understanding among ethnic groups".