The councilor in the borough of Saint-Laurent Aref Salem becomes interim leader of Ensemble Montreal after the departure of Denis Coderre at the head of the party.
Mr. Salem, who is councilor of the Norman-McLaren district, will thus have the difficult task of “rebuilding” a party which suffered a defeat on November 7 in the face of the formation of Valérie Plante, Projet Montréal, again in the majority on the municipal council for a second term of four years.
During a press briefing to the media on Tuesday morning, Salem said he intends to follow the City’s heels in anticipation of the next budget to ensure that the municipal tax hike does not exceed 2%, as promised by Mrs. Plante. The elected representative also intends to closely monitor the hiring of new police officers, also promised by the re-elected mayor.
The party also hopes to increase the number of elected officials in certain districts at the end of the judicial counts requested in particular in Côte-des-Neiges – Notre-Dame-de-Grâce.
Mr. Salem was appointed interim leader of the party following an internal process. He plans to hold this office for at least three years, until the official party leader has been chosen.
Further details will follow.
Watch video