Poet Laureate of Ontario

The position was established in 2019 as an office of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario in honour of musician and writer Gord Downie.

[1] The Poet Laureate of Ontario Act (In Memory of Gord Downie), 2019 was introduced in December 2017 as a private member's bill to the legislature by Percy Hatfield, the Member of Provincial Parliament (MPP) for Windsor—Tecumseh.

[2][1] Passage of the bill into law on December 12, 2019 was attended by members of Downie's family, during which time MPPs read The Tragically Hip lyrics and paid tribute to Downie.

[1] The first poet laureate was originally scheduled to be named in 2020, after being selected by a legislative panel chaired by speaker Ted Arnott,[3] however the announcement was delayed until 2021.

[3] On April 28, 2021, Randell Adjei was named the first poet laureate.