Sean Devine is serving his first term as Councillor for Knoxdale-Merivale. For the 2022-26 term, Sean is proud to have been named to sit on the Environment & Climate Change Committee, the Emergency Preparedness & Protective Services Committee, and the Transportation Committee. Sean has also been named the Mayor's Designate on the Board of Directors of the Ottawa Film Office.
Sean lives in Trend Arlington with his wife, a teacher, and their four kids. Born and raised in Montreal, Sean moved to Ottawa in 2014 after spending a decade in Vancouver. His family’s farming and mercantile roots originate in Prince Edward Island, where his grandfather was a three-term Member of the Legislative Assembly.
Sean ran as the NDP candidate for Nepean in the 2015 and 2021 federal elections but is most proud of his time with the Trend Arlington Community Association, where he served for seven years, including four as president.
For his work in leading the community’s recovery efforts after the 2018 tornado, Sean and his community association colleagues were recognized with the 2019 United Way Community Builder of the Year Award and the Mayor’s City Builder Award. For his wide-ranging community volunteering and leadership, Sean was recognized with a Ward 9 Volunteer of the Year Award and the Canada 150 Inspiration Award from Nepean MPP Lisa MacLeod. He was also the recipient of the Canada 150th Anniversary Medal from Nepean MP Chandra Arya.
Prior to being elected to Ottawa’s City Council, Sean worked as a program officer for the Canada Council of the Arts. His extensive and diverse career in Canada’s arts & culture sector spans three decades. As a graduate of the National Theatre School of Canada, Sean has performed in over fifty movies and television series, as well as on theatre stages across Canada. He has managed several non-profit arts organizations and festivals and was a co-founder and artistic director of Horseshoes & Hand Grenades Theatre, which continues to operate in Ottawa. He is most proud of his work as a playwright, and his most successful play Daisy had its Canadian premiere at Ottawa’s Great Canadian Theatre Company in 2022.
In his spare time Sean and two of his neighbourhood buddies play in a garage cover band called The Suburban Legends.