Linda Jackson comes by her political instincts quite naturally. She was 15 years old when her mother Lorna was first elected to Vaughan Council in 1974. Municipal politics became a regular topic of discussion in the Jackson household and Linda credits her mother with teaching her the importance of public service and how to effect change in the community. Lorna Jackson was Vaughan’s longest-serving Mayor, from 1982 until her death in office in April 2002.

In November, 2006, Vaughan residents chose Linda Jackson as their new Mayor. Her political career began in 2002 when she was first elected as a Ward Councillor in a by-election. She was then elected as a Regional Councillor in the November 2003 municipal election.

Vaughan has undergone great change over the past two decades and is on the verge of becoming a major urban centre. Linda has seen this transformation first-hand and been a part of it, as she and her family have called Vaughan home since 1966. She grew up in the Woodbridge neighbourhood of Pine Grove, and attended Woodbridge High School and Thornhill Secondary School. From an early age she was encouraged to become involved in the community. Her father and brothers were active in local hockey, and Linda was a founding member of the Pine Wood Angels in the early 1970s, the first girls’ hockey team in Vaughan, and later coached boys’ hockey.

Before running for public office, Linda worked in human resources and security management. The majority of her employment has been in the City of Vaughan with major corporations. She has been an avid gardener for many years, and her affinity with nature has shaped her pro-environment views. She is also an advocate for the disabled and persons with special needs.

In addition to being an ex-officio member of all the City’s local committees and boards in her capacity as Mayor, Linda has also served on the Vaughan Health Care Foundation, volunteered with Big Brothers and Big Sisters of York Region, and is the past chair of the York Region Abuse Program. Linda has also been on a number of York Region committees and currently sits on: the Spadina Subway Transit Oriented Development Advisory Task Force as Chair; Rapid Transit Public/Private Partnership Steering Committee as vice-chair; the Transportation and Works Committee and the Finance and Administration Committee.

Linda is married to Mario Campese, with a blended family of three adult daughters, a son and a grandson. Linda and her family live in the Vaughan community of Vellore Village.

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