Provincial politics
In the 2018 Ontario general election, Begum ran as the NDP candidate for Scarborough Southwest. The riding has a large immigrant population, constituting 45 per cent of the riding's population, with Bangladeshi Canadians accounting for 16 per cent. She won the riding with 46 per cent of the vote, defeating 15-year Liberal incumbent Lorenzo Berardinetti.[1] At 29, Doly Begum was the youngest member of her party's caucus[4] and is the first Bangladeshi-Canadian to be elected to a legislative body in Canada.[5]
She was named the Official Opposition critic for immigration services and for international credentials on August 11, 2024. Begum previously served as the Official Opposition critic for citizenship, foreign credentials and immigration services,[6] deputy opposition whip from August 2019 to February 2021, critic for early learning and childcare from August 2018 to February 2021 and a member of the Standing Committee on Social Policy from July 2018 to October 2019.
In 2020, Begum introduced a private member's bill that would mark June as Filipino Heritage Month.[7] The bill passed its final reading and received Royal Assent on May 20, 2021, officially proclaiming June as Filipino Heritage Month in Ontario.[8]
On July 13, 2022, Begum was named a deputy leader of the Ontario New Democratic Party, alongside Sol Mamakwa.[9]
