
Maurine Karagianis
Appointed for a term ending December 31, 2022.
Maurine Karagianis served three terms in elected office as an MLA from 2005 to 2017, taking on a variety of Opposition portfolios including Transportation and Children and Families. In January 2011, Ms. Karagianis was elected as Opposition Caucus Whip and served in that role until 2017. She retired from provincial politics in May 2017 and is currently keeping bees and working with the non-profit sector. She is presently a Board member of the Victoria Women’s Transition House.
Prior to serving as an MLA, Ms. Karagianis was elected as a municipal councillor in Esquimalt in 1996, and re-elected in 1999 and again in 2002. During that time, she also served for five years as the CRD Arts Chair. Starting in 1998, Ms. Karagianis served three years with the provincial government as assistant to three NDP cabinet ministers – in the Social Services ministry and then in Transportation and Highways. From 2001 to 2005, she ran a consulting company working with non-profit organizations and First Nations to create seniors housing in BC. Prior to 2001, Ms. Karagianis was an entrepreneur, opening her own retail fashion store, operating a wholesale venture and a successful import/export business. She was also a co-founder of the Sunshine Folkfest in Powell River, BC.