Matthew Luloff

Matthew J. Luloff (born c. 1984) is a Canadian politician who is the Ottawa City Councillor for Orléans East-Cumberland Ward, a suburb of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. He is a Canadian Forces veteran and served in Afghanistan.

Military service In 2003 he joined the Governor General's Foot Guards army reserve unit, participating in the Changing the Guard Ceremony on Parliament Hill for four summers and military exercises on the weekends. After training as a reconnaissance patrolman, he deployed to Afghanistan in February 2008. Part way through the tour, he was assigned to a rifle platoon and helped to navigate foot patrols.

Federal government Upon leaving the Canadian Armed Forces & completing a degree at the Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs at Carleton University in Ottawa,

Following Justin Trudeau's Liberal Party election victory in 2015, Luloff began a role as Issues Manager in the office of Harjit Sajjan, Minister of National Defence.

Municipal councillor In October 2018, Luloff ran in a field of 17 candidates vying for the role of City Councillor for Orleans Ward, winning by a margin of almost 300 votes. The program was expanded to include four local branches thanks to donations from Sun Life Financial. Luloff was also appointed the Council Liaison for Veteran and Military Issues. In this capacity, he launched the Veterans Task Force, a network of partners working to inspire social responsibility, proactive collaboration and support for veterans and their families.

In 2020, Luloff was chosen by council to become the city's newest Chair of the Public Library Board. In this role, he set to work to abolish overdue penalties for book lending, joining only a handful of other public library systems to go fine-free. Explaining why this move was important, Luloff said: "We can talk as a board all we want about addressing racial and income inequality, or we can actually address racial and income inequality." Luloff led the board in 2022 in establishing a new intellectual freedom policy for the Ottawa Public Library, one of the most liberal and permissive in North America.

Luloff was chosen by council in December 2020 to replace Jenna Sudds as Chair of Community and Protective Services Committee.

Luloff was easily re-elected in the 2022 Ottawa municipal election in the renamed Orléans East-Cumberland Ward.

In 2023, Luloff raised constituent concerns that the construction of 81 affordable housing units in his ward would adversely affect parking. The project was approved after a week and a half delay.

Federal politics Luloff was going to be the Conservative Party of Canada candidate in the 2025 Canadian federal election in Orléans. However, on July 10, 2024 he withdrew as a candidate. It was later revealed that he had been charged with impaired driving.

Personal life Luloff grew up in Orléans, graduated from St. Matthew High School, and spent his summers and weekends working as a lifeguard and instructor at a variety of pools including the Bob MacQuarrie and Ray Friel recreation complexes. Following his service, Matthew attended the Arthur Kroeger College of Public Affairs at Carleton University in Ottawa.

He lives in Orléans with his wife Laura and their two daughters.

Luloff pleaded not guilty to the impaired driving charges in provincial court. At the trial, which began in early 2026, the Crown presented witness testimony about allegedly erratic driving and evidence including a video of Luloff’s breath test showing readings above twice the legal limit, which was played in court. Defence counsel raised several Charter of Rights challenges regarding the admissibility of evidence, including arguments about police conduct and procedural issues.

In March 2026, he was found guilty of the impaired driving charges. He was fined $3,500, plus a 30 per cent victim surcharge, and was banned from driving for one year.

Music and podcast In addition to public service, Luloff is a musician. Starting at age 14, he has been involved in the local music scene in various bands and ensembles. He fronted the alternative rock group Hearts&Mines, a manifestation of both his passion for rock and roll plus the traumas suffered while serving overseas.

Luloff also produces music on his own, ranging from electronic dance music through his Still Cities project, to acoustic self-titled solo albums.

Additionally, Luloff hosts a regular podcast entitled Veteran X, a podcast about the scars of real battles. "What we start to see is a common thread that a lot of people are feeling the exact same way so basically what Veteran X tells you is you're not alone."

Electoral record

2018 Ottawa municipal election: Orléans Ward Council candidate Vote % Matthew Luloff 3,622 23.76 Catherine Kitts 3,358 22.02 Rick Bédard 2,799 18.36 Mireille Brownhill 1,900 12.46 Kevin Tetreault 685 4.49 Diego Elizondo 399 2.62 Qamar Masood 393 2.58 Jarrod Goldsmith 357 2.34 Dina Epale 336 2.20 Shannon Kramer 333 2.18 Guy Desroches 328 2.15 Miranda Gray 238 1.56 Don Yetman 212 1.39 Doug Feltmate 102 0.67 Toby Bossert 73 0.48 Geoffrey Nicholas Griplas 65 0.43 Louise Soyez 47 0.31