Tenzin Nyidon
DHARAMSHALA, Nov. 26: Bhutila Karpoche, a Canadian politician of Tibetan origin, has been officially announced as the New Democratic Party (NDP) candidate for Taiaiako’n—Parkdale–High Park in the 2025 Canadian federal election as a Member of Parliament. Currently serving as the Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Parkdale–High Park in Toronto, home to one of the largest concentrations of Tibetans, Bhutila is widely recognised for her advocacy on affordable housing, workers’ rights, and public healthcare.
The Taiaiako’n—Parkdale–High Park NDP confirmed her candidacy via social media, stating, “It’s official: @BhutilaKarpoche is our @NDP candidate for Taiaiako’n—Parkdale–High Park in the next federal election. Bhutila will stand up for our community in Ottawa to make life easier and lower the cost of living. It’s time for our community’s voice to be heard again.”
MPP Bhutila first made history in 2018 as the first person of Tibetan origin to be elected to public office in North America when she secured a seat in the Ontario Legislative Assembly. She proposed a bill during her first term to designate July as Tibetan Heritage Month, which became law in Ontario in September 2020. “The recognition of the month of July as Tibetan Heritage Month in Ontario is significant. The systematic destruction of Tibetan culture, heritage, and way of life in Tibet makes this month all the more important,” wrote Phayul’s Guest reporter Tenzin Dechen in her 2021 article describing this move as “a feat no other jurisdiction in the world has achieved.”
Re-elected as MPP in 2022, Bhutila has served as the First Deputy Chair of the Ontario Legislative Assembly since November 2022. Her leadership and dedication to social justice have earned her numerous accolades, including being named Toronto’s Best MPP by NOW Magazine readers, one of Canada’s Top 25 Immigrants by Canadian Immigrant Magazine, and a Champion of Mental Health by the Canadian Alliance on Mental Illness and Mental Health in 2023.
Bhutila holds degrees from the University of British Columbia and the University of Toronto and is currently pursuing a PhD in public health policy at Toronto Metropolitan University. She has also been recognised for her work in immigrant diversity and inclusion, receiving the RBC Immigrant, Diversity, and Inclusion Project Award.
Speaking to RFA Tibetan, Bhutila addressed challenges faced by Tibetan immigrants in Canada. She highlighted the need for policy reforms that support the settlement and integration of marginalised communities.
