WINNIPEG -- A former mayor of Winnipeg has announced he has entered the race to become the national leader of the Green Party of Canada.
Glen Murray, who served as Mayor of Winnipeg from 1998 to 2004 and was the first openly gay mayor in the city, announced his candidacy on Wednesday.
Murray was born and raised in Quebec and has served as a liberal cabinet minister in the Ontario government, serving as the Minister of Environment and Climate Change for four years. He also served as a city councillor in Winnipeg before becoming mayor.
In a news release, Murray said the impact of COVID-19 is a reminder of the massive disruption that global health and environmental crisis can have on Canadians.
"In the background of this pandemic are the worsening impacts of climate change underlining the need for us to act more boldly and rapidly," said Murray in the release. "I realized it was time for me to take up this challenge and bring everything I have to offer to get us a path to a restored and safer planet."
Murray said in a news release that he supports the Green Party of Canada and Canadians, adding that the country's economy should be built on transitions to cleantech, food security, mass transit, social housing, and clean energy.
-with files from CTV's Rachel CrowSpreadingWings
