He was a Liberal member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1997 to 2011 who represented the GTA riding of Richmond Hill[1] until his defeat during the 2011 federal election.

In June 2011, he was awarded the Order of the Rising Sun, Gold and Silver Star, Japan's second highest honour, by Emperor Akihito.

[4][5] In the 2011 election, he was defeated by Conservative Party candidate Costas Menegakis by 4,407 votes.

[8] After the election in 2006, Wilfert was appointed as official opposition critic of Foreign Affairs (Asia-Pacific).

[citation needed] Wilfert was the Caucus Liaison in the successful 2006 Liberal leadership bid by Stéphane Dion and previously served as his parliamentary secretary during his tenure as Minister of the Environment.