Rakhi Pancholi

Rakhi Pancholi (born 16 August 1977) is a Canadian politician who was elected in the 2019 Alberta general election to the Legislative Assembly of Alberta representing the electoral district of Edmonton-Whitemud. Born to Tanzanian and Indian parents, she is a lawyer in Edmonton with a focus on education law.

On 8 February 2024, Pancholi announced that she is running for Leader of the Alberta NDP.

On June 24, 2024, the new leader of the New Democratic Party, Naheed Nenshi, appointed Pancholi as the Deputy Leader of the New Democratic Party.

Education
Pancholi completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Alberta, majoring in history and political science. She studied law at the University of Toronto, with a focus on Constitutional Law.

Career
Pancholi was a practising lawyer in Edmonton with a focus on labour/employment and education law. She has experience working with the Alberta School Boards Association and was a senior legislative consultant for Alberta Education.

Pancholi helped to establish LEAF's "No Means No" (NMN) program in 2007 which focused on youth and sexual assault issues. Between 2008 and 2013 Pancholi worked for the Alberta government in the Alberta Education Department. During that time she led the drafting the Education Act. Pancholi also worked for Alberta school boards.

In 2019 Pancholi entered politics and was elected Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Edmonton-Whitemud.

Personal life
Pancholi has two young children with her husband Owen, and have two rescue dogs as they are both advocates for animal rescue and adoption.