Denis Lebel PC (born May 26, 1954) is a Canadian politician who served as mayor of Roberval, Quebec, and deputy leader of the Official Opposition. Lebel was born in Roberval, Quebec.
Denis Lebel | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Deputy Leader of the Opposition | |
| In office November 19, 2015 – July 24, 2017 | |
| Leader | Rona Ambrose Andrew Scheer |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Succeeded by | Lisa Raitt |
| Deputy Leader of the Conservative Party | |
| In office November 18, 2015 – July 20, 2017 | |
| Leader | Rona Ambrose (interim) Andrew Scheer |
| Preceded by | Peter MacKay |
| Succeeded by | Lisa Raitt |
| Minister of Infrastructure, Communities and Intergovernmental Affairs | |
| In office March 15, 2013 – November 4, 2015 | |
| Prime Minister | Stephen Harper |
| Preceded by | Peter Penashue |
| Succeeded by | Justin Trudeau |
| Minister of Transport | |
| In office May 18, 2011 – July 15, 2013 | |
| Prime Minister | Stephen Harper |
| Preceded by | Chuck Strahl |
| Succeeded by | Lisa Raitt |
| Member of Parliament for Lac-Saint-Jean (Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean; 2007–2015) | |
| In office September 17, 2007 – August 9, 2017 | |
| Preceded by | Michel Gauthier |
| Succeeded by | Richard Hébert |
| Mayor of Roberval | |
| In office 2000–2007 | |
| Preceded by | Claude Munger |
| Succeeded by | Michel Larouche |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Denis Lebel May 26, 1954 Roberval, Quebec, Canada |
| Political party | Conservative (2007–present) |
| Other political affiliations | Bloc Québécois (1993-2001) |
| Spouse | Danielle Girard |
| Residence | Roberval, Quebec |
| Profession | hotel manager, restaurateur |
Political career
editLebel was elected to the House of Commons of Canada on September 17, 2007, in the Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean by-election, as a member of the Conservative Party. Four years later, it emerged that he had been an active member of the Bloc Quebecois from 1993 to 2001. Lebel stated that he joined the Conservatives because Prime Minister Stephen Harper recognized the Québécois nation, and maintains that he has always been a Quebec nationalist.[1][2]
On October 30, 2008, he was appointed to Harper's cabinet as minister of the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec.[3] Following the 2011 election, Lebel was promoted to minister of transport.[4] He was shuffled out of the post in July 2013, shortly after the Lac-Megantic rail disaster.[5][6]
He was also the minister of infrastructure, communities and intergovernmental affairs and served as the Harper government's Quebec lieutenant.[7]
In the 2015 election, Lebel was re-elected in the new Lac-Saint-Jean riding.[8][9]
After the election, he and fellow member of Parliament (MP) Michelle Rempel proposed to become joint interim leaders of the party but ultimately lost to Rona Ambrose.[10]
On November 18, 2015 he was named deputy leader of the Conservative Party and thus deputy Opposition leader.[11]
Career after politics
editLebel announced on June 19, 2017, that he would step down as an MP in the following weeks, before the House of Commons resumed sitting in the fall.[12] The seat was lost to the Liberals in the following by-election.
The Montreal Gazette reported on June 20, 2017, that Lebel was to be appointed as the CEO of Québec Forest Industry Council.[13] It was also reported that then-premier of Quebec, Philippe Couillard was interested in recruiting Lebel to run for the Quebec Liberals in the 2018 Quebec general election, but he did not run.[14]
Electoral history
edit| 2015 Canadian federal election: Lac-Saint-Jean | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Conservative | Denis Lebel | 18,393 | 33.27 | -8.99 | – | |||
| New Democratic | Gisèle Dallaire | 15,735 | 28.46 | -3.68 | – | |||
| Liberal | Sabin Simard | 10,193 | 18.44 | +15.19 | – | |||
| Bloc Québécois | Sabin Gaudreault | 10,152 | 18.37 | -2.63 | – | |||
| Green | Laurence Requilé | 806 | 1.46 | +0.12 | – | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 55,279 | 100.0 | $278,464.25 | |||||
| Total rejected ballots | 925 | – | – | |||||
| Turnout | 56,204 | – | – | |||||
| Eligible voters | 85,337 | |||||||
| Source: Elections Canada[15][16] | ||||||||
| 2011 Canadian federal election: Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Conservative | Denis Lebel | 18,438 | 45.68 | +2.14 | $99,662 | |||
| New Democratic | Yvon Guay | 11,182 | 27.70 | +22.99 | $1,983 | |||
| Bloc Québécois | Claude Pilote | 8,577 | 21.25 | -18.40 | $70,809 | |||
| Liberal | Bernard Garneau | 1,615 | 4.00 | -6.09 | $5,913 | |||
| Green | Steeve Simard | 553 | 1.37 | -0.63 | – | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 40,365 | 100.00 | $102,172 | |||||
| Total rejected ballots | 494 | 1.21 | +0.04 | |||||
| Turnout | 40,859 | 64.42 | +5.43 | |||||
| 2008 Canadian federal election: Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Conservative | Denis Lebel | 16,055 | 43.54 | -16.14 | $88,243 | |||
| Bloc Québécois | Claude Pilote | 14,619 | 39.65 | +12.89 | $79,101 | |||
| Liberal | Bernard Garneau | 3,721 | 10.09 | +0.54 | $9,041 | |||
| New Democratic | Catherine Forbes | 1,738 | 4.71 | +2.40 | – | |||
| Green | Jocelyn Tremblay | 737 | 2.00 | +0.29 | – | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 36,870 | 100.00 | $98,690 | |||||
| Total rejected ballots | 437 | 1.17 | – | |||||
| Turnout | 37,307 | 58.99 | – | |||||
| Conservative hold | Swing | -14.18 | ||||||
| Canadian federal by-election, September 17, 2007: Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | Expenditures | |||
| Conservative | Denis Lebel | 17,463 | 59.68 | +22.50 | $95,449 | |||
| Bloc Québécois | Céline Houde | 7,830 | 26.76 | -18.44 | $93,915 | |||
| Liberal | Louise Boulanger | 2,795 | 9.55 | +1.80 | $51,293 | |||
| New Democratic | Éric Dubois | 675 | 2.31 | -3.22 | $3,123 | |||
| Green | Jean-Luc Boily | 499 | 1.71 | -2.63 | – | |||
| Total valid votes/expense limit | 29,262 | 100.00 | $95,677 | |||||
| Total rejected ballots | 265 | 0.90 | ||||||
| Turnout | 29,527 | 46.83 | ||||||
| Conservative gain from Bloc Québécois | Swing | +20.23 | ||||||
References
edit- ^ "Tory minister Lebel explains past sovereigntist ties". CBC News. Retrieved November 15, 2017.
- ^ "Liberals shut out in Quebec byelections". CBC News. September 17, 2007. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
- ^ "Quebec gets lost in the shuffle". The Globe and Mail. October 30, 2008. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
- ^ "New faces, but stability key in Harper cabinet shuffle". CBC News. May 18, 2011. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
- ^ "Harper cabinet shuffle: 8 new ministers named". Toronto Star. July 15, 2013. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
- ^ Martin, Pierre (July 18, 2013). "Lac-Mégantic disaster: Political winners and losers". Toronto Star. Retrieved November 5, 2015.
- ^ "Harper's Quebec hopes rooted in newly promoted duo". The Globe and Mail. July 16, 2013. Retrieved November 6, 2015.
- ^ "Conservative incumbent Denis Lebel keeps Lac-Saint-Jean". Global News. October 19, 2015. Retrieved November 6, 2015.
- ^ "Who's in and who's out: election night big wins and losses". CBC News. October 19, 2015. Retrieved November 6, 2015.
- ^ "Here's something new: Rempel and Lebel want to be co-leaders of the Tories". David Akin's On the Hill. October 31, 2015. Archived from the original on November 2, 2015. Retrieved October 31, 2015.
- ^ "Denis Lebel devient chef adjoint du Parti conservateur". Radio-Canada. November 18, 2015. Retrieved November 18, 2015.
- ^ "Longtime Conservative MP Denis Lebel quitting politics - 570 NEWS". June 19, 2017.
- ^ "Denis Lebel to head Quebec's Forest Industry Council". Montreal Gazette. June 21, 2017. Retrieved May 1, 2019.
- ^ "Departure of former Conservative minister Denis Lebel sets up intriguing Quebec byelection: Hébert - Toronto Star". thestar.com.
- ^ "Voter Information Service - Who are the candidates in my electoral district?". www.elections.ca.
- ^ Elections Canada – Preliminary Election Expenses Limits for Candidates Archived August 15, 2015, at the Wayback Machine
External links
edit- Denis Lebel official site
- Profile at Parliament of Canada
- Denis Lebel – Parliament of Canada biography
- Speeches, votes and activity at OpenParliament.ca