Municipal elections | A glance elsewhere in Quebec

Overview of the struggles that have taken place across the province.

Ariane Krol
Press

Marie-Eve Morasse
Press

Drummondville

Councilor Lacoste dislodges Mayor Carrier

Independent candidate Stéphanie Lacoste, who had been a municipal councilor in Drummondville since 2015, won a resounding victory over outgoing mayor, Alain Carrier. “My team is the one elected today. Let us stand united, and do honor to the city we cherish! “, Said the new mayor on her Facebook page on Sunday. Elected without opposition in September 2020, Mr. Carrier therefore failed to convince voters to keep him in office.

Gatineau

Action Gatineau loses the town hall

Independent candidate France Bélisle becomes the first woman to win Gatineau mayoralty. M^me Bélisle, who until last spring was CEO of Tourisme Outaouais since 2015, won over Maude Marquis-Bissonnette, from Action Gatineau, the party of outgoing mayor, Maxime Pedneaud-Jobin. The new mayor, who did her university studies in journalism, began her career as a journalist and producer, before going to work in public relations for CBC / Radio-Canada in Ottawa. Describing herself as a “fan of common sense” on her web profile, she announced her candidacy last February.

Granby

A first woman at the head of the city

Julie Bourdon, who has been a municipal councilor since 2015, becomes the very first woman to lead Granby. She managed to obtain a large majority against the three other candidates who presented themselves in the hope of succeeding Pascal Bonin, who chose to leave the municipal scene after two terms. Among the candidates in the running was Michel Duchesneau, who was trying to return to town hall after having been mayor from 1993 to 2000. During the election campaign, Julie Bourdon pledged to facilitate access to housing, to promote of culture and to further protect natural environments.

Rimouski

Guy Caron wins hands down

Independent candidate Guy Caron won hands down over outgoing city councilor Virginie Proulx. A newcomer to the municipal scene, Mr. Caron was, however, a known political face in the region, after having been the NDP MP for Rimouski-Neigette – Témiscouata – Les Basques from 2011 to 2019. Since 2019, he was general manager of Héritage Bas-Saint-Laurent, an organization dedicated to the maintenance and development of the English-speaking communities of Bas-Saint-Laurent.

Rouyn-Noranda

Outgoing mayor narrowly reelected

In Abitibi, the outgoing mayor of Rouyn-Noranda, Diane Dallaire, was re-elected for a second term, but the fight was very close between Jean-Marc Belzile, a former journalist who was on his first foray into politics, and her . During the election campaign, M^me Dallaire capitalized on his experience and made a commitment to make Rouyn-Noranda a city that fights against climate change, in particular by making bus transportation free in the city.

Saguenay

A new mayor after a close race

The race for mayor of Saguenay was tight until the very end of the campaign, but it was ultimately the former municipal councilor Julie Dufour who was elected, with among other promises that of revitalizing downtown. the district of Jonquière. M^me Dufour, 41, has also pledged to impose a freeze on property taxes for the year 2022. The outgoing mayor and head of the Democratic Renewal Team (ERD), Josée Néron, will not have succeeded in obtaining the second term she coveted. Former Liberal minister Serge Simard is third.

Saint-Hyacinthe

André Beauregard wins by a narrow margin

André Beauregard won the mayoral election by 235 votes over his opponent Marijo Demers. Mr. Beauregard had presented himself as the candidate for continuity after 12 years as a municipal councilor. He campaigned as an independent candidate while M^me Demers, who had been a candidate for Québec solidaire in the riding of Saint-Hyacinthe in 2018, ran for the municipal office under the banner of Saint-Hyacinthe united. Having campaigned under the slogan “Cultivons notre pride maskoutaine”, Mr. Beauregard becomes the 23^e Mayor of Saint-Hyacinthe.

Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu

Andrée Bouchard dislodges the former mayor

The former president of the Hautes-Rivières school board Andrée Bouchard succeeded in dislodging the outgoing mayor, Alain Laplante, with a strong majority, by promising to “bring back citizen pride” and to ensure sound management of public finances. Recall that the former mayor Laplante received a 95-day suspension in 2019 by the Commission municipale du Québec for ethical breach. Mr. Laplante was also facing complaints of psychological harassment lodged by three senior officials with the Committee on Standards, Equity, Health and Safety at Work. – Marie-Eve Morasse, Press

Sept-Iles

Steeve Beaupré wins after a hot fight

Three candidates were in the running to replace Réjean Porlier, who left the town hall of Sept-Îles after eight years. It was the 44-year-old lawyer Steeve Beaupré who won with 51% of the vote. He had put the attraction of the workforce at the heart of his priorities. This close to the Coalition futur Quebec also promised to build social housing and a house for seniors. The fight for mayor was tight: outgoing municipal councilor Michel Bellavance came second with 44% of the vote.

Shawinigan

Mayor Angers remains in the saddle

Michel Angers, who has occupied Shawinigan town hall since 2009 and had confirmed his candidacy a year before the elections, was given a new mandate by the voters. With 53% of the vote, Mr. Angers won with a comfortable lead over his closest opponent, Luc Trudel, who had been MP for Saint-Maurice from 2012 to 2014 under the banner of the Parti Québécois. The proposals of the third candidate for mayor, Claude Cournoyer, who had promised to reduce the remuneration of the mayor by half and to lower taxes, convinced only a small proportion of the electorate.

Sherbrooke

Évelyne Beaudin defeats the outgoing mayor

After four years as a municipal councilor under the banner of Sherbrooke Citoyen, Évelyne Beaudin won the town hall for her party. She thus preceded the former liberal provincial deputy Luc Fortin as well as the outgoing mayor, Steve Lussier. A fourth candidate, the independent Patrick Tétreault, won less than 1% of the vote, as in 2017. Mr.^me Beaudin, an economist, was the only candidate to run for the head of a party. Sherbrooke Citoyen campaigned on an ambitious platform, promising in particular greater power in the boroughs and the addition of 200 affordable housing units per year.

Three Rivers

A strong majority for the outgoing mayor

The outgoing mayor, Jean Lamarche, obtained a strong second mandate, with more than 60% of the votes. In office for just over two years only due to the resignation of former mayor Yves Lévesque during his mandate, Mr. Lamarche campaigned by promising a green shift for Trois-Rivières, in particular with the electrification of the park. municipal automobile. Mr. Lamarche also wishes to retain university students in the city of Trois-Rivières once their studies are completed. Outgoing city councilor Valérie Renaud-Martin came in second.