Former Chilliwack, B.C., MP Chuck Strahl dead at 67

Former Chilliwack-Fraser Canyon MP Chuck Strahl has died at the age of 67, according to his family. 

Strahl died after a battle with mesothelioma, a rare form of cancer, according to a family statement that his son, Chilliwack-Hope MP Mark Strahl, posted to social media.

"Our loss is deep and profound," his family said. "Our dad was our best friend, our greatest defender, our biggest promoter and our rock."

Strahl served as an MP for more than 17 years, winning six consecutive elections. He was first elected to the House of Commons in 1993, in the Fraser Valley East riding. 

During his time in government, Strahl worked in former prime minister Stephen Harper's cabinet in several roles, including minister of agriculture and agri-food, minister of transport, infrastructure and communities, and what was then called the minister of Indian affairs and northern development. 

He helped negotiate the Tsawwassen First Nation Final Agreement, an agreement between the Tsawwassen First Nation, Canada and B.C. which outlines the nation's jurisdiction. During his time in government, Strahl also sponsored an act that overhauled how the federal Indigenous governments manage oil and gas found on Indigenous land. 

"He didn't let his job define who he was," reads his son's statement. "He never lost sight of what was truly important: his faith, his family and his friends."

Worked as logger and businessman

Strahl was born on Feb. 25, 1957, in New Westminster, B.C., according to the House of Commons website. According to his son's statement, Strahl's family moved around rural B.C. until settling near Ryder Lake, in Chilliwack, when he was 10. 

There, Strahl met his wife, Debby Bateman. They married in 1975, and the two had four children and 13 grandchildren, the statement said.

Early in his career, Strahl worked as a logger and a businessman in British Columbia. 

Strahl entered federal politics in 1993 with the Reform Party, representing Fraser Valley East. Strahl went on to be re-elected in 1997 and 2000 under the Canadian Alliance banner, which replaced the Reform Party. 

In 2001, Strahl left the Canadian Alliance, joining the breakaway Democratic Representative Caucus (DRC) that formed as a protest against the leadership of party leader Stockwell Day. Strahl served as the parliamentary leader of the DRC. Most DRC members, including Strahl, rejoined the Canadian Alliance once Stephen Harper assumed leadership.

Strahl was then elected to represent the new riding of Chilliwack-Fraser Canyon in 2004 as a member of the new Conservative Party of Canada, following the merger of the Progressive Conservatives and the Canadian Alliance, after the boundaries of his former riding of Fraser Valley East were changed. 

"He was a great guy to know," former West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast-Sea to Sky Country MP John Reynolds told On The Coast Wednesday. "Of all of the people you know in politics, Chuck is someone I remember just being a good friend."

In 2005, at the age of 48, Strahl announced he had lung cancer. That July, Strahl said he'd had a collapsed lung — he was hospitalized when it collapsed a second time. 

He left the House of Commons in 2011, before going on to chair the security intelligence review committee, which oversaw the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, until he stepped down in 2014. The committee ended in 2019, the same year the federal government established the National Security and Intelligence Review Agency.

After his diagnosis, Strahl broke ranks with his party several times to speak out against Canadian exports of asbestos, a mineral that can cause mesothelioma after exposure. 

Conservative Party of Canada leader Pierre Poilievre said in a post to X (formerly Twitter) that he was saddened to hear of Strahl's passing.

"Chuck's unwavering commitment to our movement and his deep love for Canada were part of everything he did," Poilievre wrote. "He was a man of principle, integrity, and compassion, and a foundational member of our Conservative Party."