Jessie Sunner was first elected in October 2024 as the NDP MLA for Surrey Newton and moved quickly into cabinet, becoming Minister of Post-Secondary Education and Future Skills in July 2025 after serving as parliamentary secretary for anti-racism initiatives, a role she took on right after the 2024 election and held until joining cabinet. She succeeded Anne Kang in the post-secondary portfolio, The Canadian Press reported.
Her background is in fighting for people. Before the legislature she was a human rights lawyer and trade unionist with the Hospital Employees' Union. Her community resume runs deep: vice-president of the Surrey Women's Centre, vice-chair of the Surrey Police Board, the civilian board that oversees the Surrey Police Service, and board work with the South Asian Bar Association, the BC College of Social Workers and the United Nations Association in Canada. She holds a criminology degree from SFU and a law degree from the University of Calgary. She was raised in Surrey, where she still lives with her husband and their dog Simba, and her community office sits on 137 Street in the heart of Newton.
The post-secondary portfolio matters enormously in her own backyard. Her ministry oversees public colleges and universities, skills training and student aid across the province, and Surrey is home to fast growing campuses and thousands of students, many of them the first in their families to attend college or university. The new SFU medical school in Surrey welcomed its first class of 48 students this year. Having the minister responsible for their future also be Newton's MLA is not a small thing.
Her local record is visible beyond the portfolio too. She announced $200,000 in provincial funding for a universally accessible playground at Georges Vanier Elementary, saying every child deserves a place to play and explore, joined Amna Shah to highlight employment skills training at Indigenous Community for Leadership and Development Inc., and stood with her fellow Surrey MLAs behind disaster preparedness funding and the 125-bed Guru Nanak Diversity Village long-term care home.
Editor's note: the legislature was dissolved on September 22, 2026 and a provincial election was called for October 24, 2026. Offices above reflect the 43rd Parliament.
This profile is part of Apna News' Candidates series, introducing the people who represent Surrey and its neighbouring communities. Apna News is Surrey's new multilingual news platform. If you spot something to correct or add, reach us at info@apnanews.ca.
Official links: Government bio
