New national group gives Black politicians a shared voice across Canada
A new national organization for Black politicians in Canada is now officially up and running. The Canadian Congress of Black Politicians formally incorporated this month after about ten years of informal work. The group announced the milestone at an event on August 7, 2026, covered by CPAC, the Cable Public Affairs Channel. The Globe and Mail
Liberal MP Michael Coteau, who helped start the Congress about a decade ago, told a press conference last week that it is "refreshing" to see the organization grow. The Congress is chaired by Colleen James, a Waterloo regional councillor. The group says it is non-partisan, meaning it does not take sides between political parties, and it is the only national organization representing Black elected officials. It has 150 members at all levels of government across Canada. The Globe and Mail
The news comes as visible minority representation in the House of Commons keeps growing. A report from the Canadian Parliamentary Review found that the 2025 federal election was the fifth election in a row to set a record for visible minority Members of Parliament. Sixty-two visible minority politicians were elected, up from 53 in 2021. That raised the share of the Commons made up of visible minority MPs from 15.7 per cent to 18.1 per cent. The Globe and Mail
But those gains sit alongside ongoing barriers. A 2025 study by Carleton University and Operation Black Vote Canada found that most Black Canadians in public life report facing discrimination from the public, other politicians, legislative and municipal staff, and media while running for office or serving in it. The same study found that a lack of money and volunteers are key barriers for Black candidates, and that most Black Canadians who do run for office run at the local level rather than provincially or federally. The Globe and Mail
The Congress says it wants to be a way for Black elected officials to work together on issues facing the Black community, according to a CPAC broadcast on August 7. Becoming an incorporated national body gives the group a formal legal structure so it can operate across provincial and municipal lines, which is where most of its members are.
The broader context here is that the playing field for getting into politics is not level. The Carleton-Operation Black Vote Canada study found that Black candidates tend to run at the municipal level, where campaigns cost less and party organizations have less control over who gets nominated. At the federal and provincial levels, party machinery, fundraising capacity and local riding associations play a bigger role in deciding who runs. A national organization with formal incorporation can work across those different levels of government in ways that informal networks cannot, which could help with the money and volunteer shortages the study points to.
The growth in visible minority MPs is steady but slow. Going from 53 to 62 seats between 2021 and 2025 is about a 17 per cent increase. But the 2021 Census found that visible minorities make up 26.5 per cent of Canada's population, meaning the share of seats in Parliament still falls well short of the share of the population.
For an organization whose members include municipal councillors, provincial legislators and federal MPs, incorporating nationally also has practical benefits. Think of it like incorporating a business: instead of being a loose group of individuals whose status changes with every election, the Congress becomes a single legal body that can sign contracts, receive funding and speak with one voice.
Coteau's comment that the growth is "refreshing" reflects how long this has taken. The Congress worked informally for about a decade before incorporating, meaning it went through several federal and provincial elections without the legal and organizational tools that incorporation provides.
The 150 members span all levels of government, which fits the reality of how Canada is governed. Issues that matter to Black communities, from policing and municipal services to employment and housing, fall under different levels of government. An organization that operates nationally while keeping members in local and provincial offices is set up to follow those issues wherever they land.
