George Chow

George Chow is a Canadian politician. He was elected to the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia in the 2017 provincial election, representing the riding of Vancouver-Fraserview. A member of the British Columbia New Democratic Party (BC NDP), he has served in the cabinets of Premiers John Horgan and David Eby. Chow served as Minister of Citizens' Services from 2024 to 2025. Previously, he was the Minister of State for Trade from 2017 to 2022.

Prior to entering provincial politics, Chow served two terms as a Vancouver City Councillor, elected as a member of the Vision Vancouver party in 2005 and 2008.

Background Chow was born in China His father was a cook, and his mother a farm worker. After immigrating, Chow grew up in the Downtown Eastside. and was subsequently recruited by Vision Vancouver to join its slate for his successful 2005 campaign.

Provincial Legislature During the 2013 British Columbia general election, Chow contested the seat for Vancouver-Langara, a constituency which has only returned Liberal MLAs since its creation in 1991. The incumbent, Moira Stilwell, was viewed as vulnerable due to her aborted leadership campaign and subsequent demotion from cabinet. Chow was unsuccessful in his bid, losing to Stilwell by over 2700 votes (24%).

In the 2017 British Columbia general election, Chow contested Vancouver-Fraserview, a swing riding which has consistently elected MLAs from the party that formed government since its creation in 1991 and a launching pad for numerous high-profile candidates from both major parties. Chow defeated incumbent Attorney General Suzanne Anton. Like his three immediate predecessors, Chow was elevated to cabinet at the first shuffle after his election. He was re-elected in 2020, the first time the constituency re-elected its MLA.

Chow was one of the few caucus members who did not formally endorsed David Eby in the 2022 NDP leadership contest. In December 2022, Chow was demoted from cabinet by newly appointed Premier David Eby and served on the backbench for the first time. When asked about Chow's demotion, the Premier noted that Chow would take on "a leadership role" in addressing the homelessness crisis in Downtown Eastside and Chinatown instead. Prior to this appointment, the minister was assisted by a Minister of State.

On February 20, 2024, Chow returned to cabinet as the Minister of Citizens' Services, succeeding Lisa Beare.

Controversies during Tenure as Minister of State for Trade Chow served as Minister of State for Trade between 2017 and 2022, under the minister responsible for economic development affairs Bruce Ralston, Michelle Mungall, and Ravi Kahlon. His tenure overlapped with a period of dramatic deterioration of Sino-Canadian relations, and Chow attracted numerous controversies for his perceived close relationship with Chinese Communist Party and its supporters.

In December 2018, a week after Huawei CFO Meng Wanzhou was arrested at Vancouver International Airport on behalf of the U.S, Chow took a personal trip to Guangdong and met with Chinese officials of the United Front Work Department, despite his reporting minister having cancelled another minister's participation of another trade mission that same week.

During the 2020 election, #NoBCforXi, a coalition of pro-Hong Kong, Uyghur and Tibetan human rights activists, deemed Chow to be “CCP leaning”.

A month after Meng was released, Chow appeared at an October 2021 event at Jack Poole Plaza hosted by organizations with direct links the United Front Work Department to celebrate the countdown to the 2022 Winter Olympics in Beijing and the Chinese National Day Golden Week. A spokesperson of the BC Government stated that Chow's appearance was not in his capacity as a government minister but as an MLA and member of the Chinese community, despite him being introduced as a minister during his appearance.

In December 2022, less than a week prior to his demotion from cabinet and in the wake of rare protests in China and Vancouver calling for Chinese President Xi Jinping’s resignation, Chow attended the BC-Guangdong Economic and Trade Summit, hosted by the Canada China Business Council, and sat beside the newly arrived Chinese Consul General to Vancouver at the head table.

Electoral record