Michael Morrice (born July 22,1984) is a Canadian politician who served as the member of Parliament (MP) for Kitchener Centre from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Green Party,Morrice was elected to the House of Commons in the 2021 federal election,becoming the party's first MP elected in Ontario and the second elected outside of British Columbia.
Before entering federal politics,Morrice worked as a Social Entrepreneur,founding the environmental non-profit Sustainable Waterloo Region and co-founding Green Economy Canada,organizations that work to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and support low-carbon economic development.
Early life and education
Morrice grew up on Montreal's West Island until 1997 when his family relocated to Newmarket,Ontario. In 2003,he enrolled at Wilfrid Laurier University where he received a dual degree in business and computer electronics.[1][2] While still a student,Morrice became involved in campus research on climate policy and carbon pricing.[3]
Together with fellow student Chris DePaul,Morrice developed the idea for a regional non-profit that would help local organizations measure and reduce their emissions through collaborative targets.[4] In 2008,that project became Sustainable Waterloo Region[4],a non-profit social enterprise that works with businesses,public institutions and community partners on greenhouse gas reduction plans. In 2013,he co-founded Green Economy Canada,a national organization that supports a network of “Green Economy Hubs”across the country,helping businesses track and cut their emissions.[5] Morrice served as its founding executive director and received recognition including EY’s Ontario Social Entrepreneur of the Year award in 2018 for his work advancing corporate sustainability.[5][6]
In 2021,Wilfrid Laurier University appointed Morrice as its first Social Entrepreneur in Residence,a part-time role focused on mentoring students and supporting social innovation at the university.[3]
Political career
2019
Morrice was selected as the Green Party's candidate in the 2019 federal election for Kitchener Centre.[1] Morrice lost to incumbent Liberal MP Raj Saini,but increased the Green Party's vote share from 3% to 26%. Morrice later revealed that he was diagnosed with cancer during his 2019 campaign.[7][8][9]
2021
In 2021,while still serving in his role at Laurier,Morrice again sought the Green nomination in Kitchener Centre and was confirmed as the party’s candidate.[10] During the campaign,Saini ended his re-election effort after multiple sexual harassment allegations from former staffers became public. Because the withdrawal came after Elections Canada’s deadline,Saini’s name remained on the ballot. Several local Liberal figures subsequently endorsed Morrice’s candidacy.[10] On election night,Morrice was elected MP with roughly one-third of the vote,flipping the riding from Liberal to Green. His victory made him the first Green MP ever elected in Ontario and,at the time,one of only two federal Green MPs,alongside former (and future) leader Elizabeth May in Saanich—Gulf Islands.[11][12]
Parliamentary career
Morrice at the Waterloo Region Rally for Proportional Representation,2025
As an opposition MP in a minority Parliament,Morrice did not hold formal committee chairships or critic roles,but he was active on a number of files. Morrice became a parliamentary advocate for the Canada Disability Benefit (CDB),and in early 2022,he sponsored a national petition calling on the government to fast-track the benefit so that working-age people with disabilities would receive benefits,a petition that gathered more than 17,000 signatures.[13] He later proposed multiple amendments to Bill C-22,the Canada Disability Benefit Act,including provisions on indexation to inflation and simplified applications.[14]
Morrice pushed for a more stringent federal definition of “affordable housing”tied to incomes rather than market rents,and in 2024 introduced a motion calling on the federal government to revise its criteria for housing funds.[15] Morrice was also a prominent advocate of electoral reform. In 2023,he helped build support in Parliament for a motion calling for a citizens’assembly on electoral reform, working with civil society organizations and MPs from other parties.[16]
2025
In the 2025 federal election,Morrice,who was one of two Green Party MPs in the House of Commons of Canada,was narrowly ousted from the Kitchener Centre,Ontario riding after losing to Conservative challenger Kelly DeRidder. Following the result,Morrice told media that he intended to take time to reflect on his next steps but remained committed to political issues.[17][18]
Deputy leader of the Green Party of Canada
On November 28,2025,the Green Party of Canada announced that Morrice had been appointed deputy leader. In the announcement,party officials cited his record as a community organizer,his environmental background,and his experience as an MP as reasons for the appointment. Reports on the appointment noted that Morrice would also serve as the party’s candidate in Kitchener Centre in the next federal election.[19]
Potential leadership candidate
After the 2025 election,and especially after Elizabeth May confirmed that she would step down as Green leader before the next federal campaign[20],commentators began to discuss possible successors. In July 2024,the Waterloo Region Record reported that there was a vacancy in the Green Party’s co-leadership and asked whether Morrice would consider running. Morrice replied that he was not interested “for now,”and emphasized his focus on his riding.[21]
In August 2025,local media,while discussing the coming Green leadership contest named Morrice as one of the figures who could step forward as a candidate,noting his profile within the party and his continued advocacy after losing his seat.[22]
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