Justice Minister Arif Virani won't run in next election

Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada Arif Virani rises during question period in the House of Commons on Parliament Hill in Ottawa on Monday, Dec. 9, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Sean Kilpatrick

OTTAWA — Justice Minister Arif Virani says he won’t be running in the coming federal election.

Virani says in a social media post that the past decade in public office has taken a toll on his family life.

The Toronto-area MP says he made his decision after doing “considerable soul searching” over the past several weeks.

Virani is the latest Liberal MP to decline to seek re-election as the party faces an uphill battle against a popular Conservative party.

The three-term MP was first elected in 2015 in the big wave that swept Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberals into office.

Virani beat high-profile NDP MP Peggy Nash in the progressive downtown riding of Parkdale—High Park.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 10, 2025.

Kyle Duggan, The Canadian Press