Table of Biography
Jyoti Gondek is a well-known Canadian politician. Jyoti Gondek is currently serving as the 37th and current mayor of Calgary since October 25, 2021.
Early Life and Education
Jyoti Gondek was born Prabjhote Kaur Grewal in the year 1969, in London, England. Her age might be 53 or 54 as her exact birthdate is not available. She was born into an Indian Punjabi Sikh family to her father, a lawyer Jasdev Singh Grewal, and her mother Surjit Kaur Grewal, a housewife. Jyoti moved to Manitoba together with her parents to immigrate to Canada at the age of four. She holds Canadian nationality and is of mixed ethnic background.
Gondek completed her undergraduate studies in criminology and sociology at the University of Manitoba, where she also worked as a policy analyst for the Manitoba government. After moving to Calgary, she then took a job in sales and marketing with the Credit Union of Central Alberta. During her two years working for Greyhound, Gondek pursued a master’s in organizational sociology.
Jyoti Gondek established Tick Consulting, a strategic planning and communications firm while working toward a Ph.D. in urban sociology at the University of Calgary, where she also taught and later oversaw a real estate studies program at the Haskayne School of Business. From 2012 to 2016, Gondek served on the Calgary Planning Commission.
In 2014, Gondek successfully submitted her doctoral dissertation. The article’s title was Pressures of Hybridity: An Analysis of the Urban-Rural Nexus. It provided a case study of Rocky View County, a locality with both rural and urban characteristics. Most of Calgary’s western and eastern limits, as well as its northern boundary, are formed by Rocky View County.
Political Career
She served as the councilwoman for Ward 3 from 2017 to 2021. This area is made up of the settlements of Carrington, Country Hills, Country Hills Village, Coventry Hills, Harvest Hills, and Panorama Hills. Ward 3 is located in Calgary’s Northwest. Gondek served on the city’s planning commission as a citizen member before being elected to the council.
Caption: Jyoti Gondek’s poster for appealing votes
Source: Instagram
In 2021, it was revealed that the Urban Development Institute, a Calgary-based special interest group for the development sector, had employed Gondek’s consultancy in 2013 to change public opinion in favor of urban sprawl. This, together with the fact that 47% of her donations—above the average of 35%—in the 2017 municipal election came from developers, made her the focus of controversy.
Mayor of Calgary
She was chosen to serve as Calgary’s 37th mayor on October 18, 2021. On October 25, 2021, Gondek took the pledge of office alongside the newly elected city council, becoming the first female mayor in the history of the municipality. Gondek declined to swear in Sean Chu at the swearing-in ceremony for the new City Council since Chu was involved in a scandal due to claims of improper behavior with a juvenile while serving in the Calgary Police Service. Gondek participated in a protest demanding Chu’s resignation.
Gondek’s approval rating was 38% as of March 29, 2022, according to a survey by ThinkHQ Public Affairs, with 53% of respondents disliking and 9% undecided. The failed Calgary Event Centre sale, a 4% tax hike, and the COVID-19 outbreak, including the related protests in the Beltline neighborhood, have all been blamed for her extremely low approval rating in the first few months of her mayoral ship. In her response to the survey, Gondek noted that it was a “data point at a very specific point in time” and was reflective of the frustrations of locals with the unstable economy brought on by the pandemic.
Personal Life
Jyoti is a straight-gender person. As for her marital status, she is a married woman. She tied the knot with Todd Gondek in the year 1996. The couple met for the first time in the university, in a traditional Sikh wedding ceremony. However, there is no clear information about their wedding and married life.
Caption: Jyoti Gondek with her husband and daughter
Source: News UnZip
Jyoti Gondek – Net Worth 2024
Gondek has earned a hefty amount of money throughout her career as a politician. She has a net worth of between $4 million and USD 5 million as of 2023. But she hasn’t disclosed her salary and other asset values.
Social Media
Jyoti is quite active on social media sites like Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter. Her official Facebook page ‘Jyoti Gondek’ has more than 7.2K followers as of now. Likewise, her Instagram account ‘@jyotigondek’ has gained more than 18.2K followers and has shared 537 posts. Similarly, she joined Twitter in June 2013 and has more than 52.1K followers on her ‘@JyotiGondek’ account.
Jyoti Gondek – Body Measurements
Talking about her physical appearance, she has a well-maintained body personality. She stands at a height of 5 feet 7 inches and weighs 56kg. However, there are no details about her body size, dress size, waist size, shoe size, and so on. She has a pair of brown sparkling eyes with brown colored short hair.
Caption: Jyoti Gondek posing for a photo
Source: Instagram