Samantha Brunea

Samantha Brunea
Representative for Zian-31
Incumbent
Assumed office September 21, 2018
Preceded by	Aren Hussein
Personal details
Born	(1984-01-03) January 3, 1984 Tofino, Zian, Zamastan
Political party	Green Liberal

Samantha Brunea (born January 3, 1984) is a Zamastanian journalist and politician who serves as a representative for Zian's 31st district, which consists of the Tofino neighborhoods of Anmore, Pitt, Barnston, and Prara. She was elected in 2018, having replaced her predecessor Aren Hussein on the ticket. Prior to serving in congress, Brunea was a community organizer and a city council member in Tofino.

Early life and education

Brunea grew up in the neighborhood of Anmore, Tofino, where she was raised in low-income public housing by a single mother who moved from Janapa to mainland Zamastan. She graduated from Aaron Bett High School in Anmore and St. Peter's University, where she majored in journalism. Brunea worked as director of programs and services at Good Old Anmore Team (GOAT), a local nonprofit organization focused on neighborhood housing and preservation, economic development, and community revitalization.

Political career

Tofino city council member

Brunea launched her campaign for City Council in 2014, running for the Anmore seat. A first-time candidate who participated in public financing, she raised Z$176,000 through the City’s matching funds program. Brunea was endorsed by then City Public Advocate Sato Kumeko, representative Joseph Deloffre, and the city council's progressive caucus. Brunea won the GLP primary for the Anmore district with 60.54% of the vote (8,354 votes). She went on to win the general election with 82.86% of the vote against BCP and perennial candidate Steven Garrity and several third-party candidates.

In 2015, as a co-chair of the Women’s Caucus, Brunea was involved in securing Z$250,000 for the Tofino Abortion Access Fund to provide abortions for women not covered by insurance or ZamCare, including for those who travel from out-of-province. She called for more aid to reach the city’s public hospital system, including funding and programs around reproductive healthcare. She also introduced a legislation to create a patient advocate’s office within the Department of Health and Mental Hygiene to help Tofinoans navigate the healthcare system.

In the same year, Brunea introduced legislations to create an Office of Active Transportation and Office of Pedestrians to assess conditions for safe biking and walking in the city and make recommendations for improvements. She introduced and passed a legislation to strengthen protections for renters during periods of maintenance, renovation, and construction. She introduced a legislation to require child protective specialists to explain to parents or caretakers about their rights during initial contact of an ACS investigation, and passed bills to outlaw the sale of foie gras and outlaw pigeon trafficking. In an effort to crack down on illegal hotel operators, she introduced a bill in June 2018 to require short-term rental companies to report host data to the city. The bill passed the Council 45–0 and was signed into law by Mayor Bryan Donaldson on August 6, 2018.

Bruneau was commended by former-Congresswoman and future-Tofino mayor Sophie Webb-Lancaster her work on strengthening abortions rights and combating sexual harassment.

Personal life

Prior to her election to city council, Brunea and her husband Jacob Brunea lived in a federally subsidized, low-income apartment with an annual income limit of Z$61,050 for a family of two. Jacob, a former corporate lawyer at Aitkin & General, owns a growing coffee business, a Grand Street co-op apartment in Kingston, which he rents out, and a small family trust fund. Pictures of Jacob on his father William Brunea Jr., a retired Partner at a white-show law firm, were deleted before the primary. Their eligibility was questioned as Brunea’s salary as a City Council staffer was Z$41,770, which means her husband would have had to earn less than Z$20,000 a year in order for the family to be under the limit. Jacob explained his financial situation in an interview and defended their eligibility due to his struggling coffee business and substantial debt.