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Tracey Ramsey stood in awe, captivated by the beauty and history around her when she walked into the House of Commons for the first time.

It has been a whirlwind political education for the local New Democrat since she decided to run for office to represent the riding of Essex.

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She was one of 197 new Members of Parliament elected Oct. 19 and was soon in the middle of learning about budgeting, hiring staff and how to set up an office. There was ethics and procedure training, security preparation and talk of stepping up decorum in the house.

Her first days in office were taken up with tours at Parliament Hill, meetings and administrative issues.

Named NDP critic for international trade, she admits she initially didn’t think the portfolio was the right one for her but now says it is a perfect fit.

“I will bring a working-class perspective,” said Ramsey, who was an autoworker and union activist before being elected. “There’s a lot of voices inside the House of Commons that represent different business interests, different stakeholders (but) I come from labour and so I bring that perspective.