Michael C. Farnworth (born July 23, 1959) is a Canadian politician who has served as the 15th and current deputy premier of British Columbia since 2021, and the minister of public safety and solicitor general since 2017. A member of the British Columbia New Democratic Party (BC NDP), Farnworth represents the riding of Port Coquitlam in the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia, where he is the NDP's house leader, and the dean of the Legislative Assembly. Background Born in Bebington, England, Farnworth was raised in Port Coquitlam, British Columbia. He attended Simon Fraser University, earning a bachelor's degree in geography. Prior to entering elected office, Farnworth worked at CP Rail, Gulf Oil, and Mount Isa Mines. Farnworth has publicly acknowledged that he is gay. He has had a relationship with his partner, Doug, for over twenty five years. Political career After serving three terms on Port Coquitlam City Council and working for Port Moody—Coquitlam Member of Parliament Ian Waddell, Farnworth ran for the BC NDP in the 1991 provincial election, in which he was first elected Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) for Port Coquitlam. He was re-elected in 1996, and was appointed Minister of Municipal Affairs and Housing by Premier Glen Clark in January 1997, before becoming Minister of Employment and Investment and Minister Responsible for Housing in 1998. Under Premier Ujjal Dosanjh, Farnworth was named Minister of Health and Minister Responsible for Seniors in February 2000, before becoming Minister of Social Development and Economic Security in November that year. He ran in the redistributed riding of Port Coquitlam-Burke Mountain in 2001, but lost his seat amidst the party's province-wide wipeout. Following the election, Farnworth worked in the Balkans and Iraq for the U.S.-based National Democratic Institute. In the 2005 B.C. general election, Farnworth sought to take back his old seat, winning the riding with 11,844 votes (48.14% of valid votes). In 2009, he was re-elected to his fourth term in the recreated riding of Port Coquitlam with 54.71% of valid votes. He then ran in the 2011 NDP leadership election to replace outgoing leader Carole James; he lost to Adrian Dix after three rounds of voting. Farnworth was returned to the legislature in the 2013 B.C. general election with more than half of the riding's popular vote, but the BC NDP lost the election despite favourable opinion polls leading up to the vote. Following Dix's resignation as party