Early Career
Graham was born in Rexton, New Brunswick, Canada and raised in a political family, with his father Alan R. Graham being the longest serving member of the Legislative Assembly of New Brunswick. The family has ancestral homes in the communities of Kouchibouguac, Rexton and Main River with roots going back to the early 19th century. Shawn Graham was born the year after his father's first election as MLA for Kent County, New Brunswick.
Graham graduated from the University of New Brunswick, as an alumnus of both Harrison House and Neill House, after which he completed an education degree at St Thomas University in Fredericton. Graham spent much of his career before entering elected politics working for the province's civil service and when his father resigned from the legislature in 1998, Shawn Graham was elected to replace him in a by-election as a member of the Liberal Party. Following the general election of 1999, the Liberals were reduced to 10 seats from 45, and by early 2001 they were down to 7 seats following the resignation of several former cabinet ministers. This gave the young politician the chance to rise to prominence.
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