In Longueuil, the only councilor not part of or being allied with Catherine Fournier’s team, Jacques Lemire, was appointed leader of the official opposition at city hall on Wednesday. The main interested party already promises to work “in a different way”.
“It’s a new era that begins. The people have opted for change. She also sent us the message that she wants the opposition to work in a different way, ”he said Wednesday in a statement released by his party, Longueuil Ensemble, whose leader Josée Latendresse came second at mayor with 18.37% of the votes, against 60.62% for Catherine Fournier.
Elected municipal by experience, Jacques Lemire has been a councilor for the district of Laflèche, in the borough of Saint-Hubert, for 25 years now. He also retained his district with a strong majority in the last elections, ie 50.77% of the votes.
However, all the rest of the council is not in his favor: Coalition Longueuil, led by Catherine Fournier, retains 13 councilor seats, in addition to the town hall. The three other elected officials – those of Option Greenfield Park: Sylvain Joly, Susan Rasmussen and Éric Normandin – for their part support the party of Mr.me Fournier.
In this context, the new leader of the opposition affirms that his action will be first and foremost “constructive”. “What will Longueuil look like at the end of this mandate? Many answers will depend on our decisions. I will be vigilant to ensure that we take steps forward, every day. I wish everyone a happy four years, in harmony and cooperation, ”he said on this subject.
On Facebook, Catherine Fournier said on Wednesday that the first meeting of the municipal council of her administration, which was held the day before, “was marked by a complete change of tone”. “Even the leader and only member of the opposition, Jacques Lemire, underlined the new era of harmony which is now opening within our city. It feels good. It can only be positive for the future, ”she wrote.
In addition to his role in the opposition, Jacques Lemire has also just been appointed to the City’s Finance Committee, at his request. Tuesday evening, during the city council, he voted among other things in favor of reducing the salary of the mayor, a flagship promise of Mr.me Fournier during his campaign.