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The 1987 Gatineau municipal election was held on November 1, 1987, to elect a mayor and councillors in Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. Incumbent mayor Gaétan Cousineau was narrowly re-elected over a challenge from former mayor John Luck.
1987 Gatineau election, Councillor, District Eight
Candidate
Total votes
% of total votes
(incumbent)Richard Migneault
1,434
76.07
Annette Laurin
451
23.93
Total valid votes
1,885
100.00
1987 Gatineau election, Councillor, District Nine
Candidate
Total votes
% of total votes
(incumbent)Rene-Jean Monnette
accl.
1987 Gatineau election, Councillor, District Ten
Candidate
Total votes
% of total votes
Richard Cote
1,375
56.61
(incumbent)Jacques Vezina
745
30.67
Gerald Joly
309
12.72
Total valid votes
2,429
100.00
1987 Gatineau election, Councillor, District Eleven
Candidate
Total votes
% of total votes
(incumbent)François Leclerc
1,064
52.13
Catherine Filion
977
47.87
Total valid votes
2,041
100.00
1987 Gatineau election, Councillor, District Twelve
Candidate
Total votes
% of total votes
Marlene Goyet
1,088
42.55
Irene Schingh-Seguin
557
21.78
(incumbent)Charles Vaillancourt
408
15.96
Michel Constantineau
371
14.51
Lary Seguin
133
5.20
Total valid votes
2,557
100.00
Post-election changes
Gaétan Cousineau resigned as mayor in early 1988, and a by-election was held to choose his replacement.
Jean Deschênes was born on March 26, 1940, in Sainte-Flavie, Quebec. He has a Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Ottawa, began working as a school principal in 1972, and later received a Master of Public Administration degree. Deschênes first ran for mayor of Gatineau in 1979, losing to incumbent John Luck, and ran a second time in a by-election called after the resignation of Gaetan Cousineau in 1988. He highlighted his skills as an administrator and sought a municipal tax freeze in the latter campaign. Despite an endorsement from Luck, he finished third against Robert Labine. He was later elected to the Gatineau city council in 1995, representing the city’s fifth ward. In 1996, Deschênes was arrested by Gatineau police under very controversial circumstances while returning home from a charity function; despite passing three breathalyzer tests, he was taken to the station in handcuffs and given a fourth test before being released. The officers were later reprimanded for not following proper procedure. At the time of the incident, Deschênes chaired a city committee that was looking into cutbacks for city staff, including the police; he, and many others, later described the police actions as intimidation and harassment. He was narrowly defeated by Joseph de Sylva in 1999. He also sought election in 2001, but was defeated. Deschênes has been active in the Liberal Party of Canada.
Hubert Leroux was born in Hawkesbury, Ontario. An insurance broker, he served on the Gatineau city council from 1979 to 1987. Known as a maverick politician, Leroux was one of only two councillors to vote against the city's 1986 budget, arguing that more spending cuts could have been made. He also opposed Mayor Gaétan Cousineau's plans for a new city hall building. He lost to Richard Canuel in the 1987 election. He was forty-eight years old during the 1988 election and described himself as a "small-c" conservative. The latter point notwithstanding, he called for a significant business tax increase to keep property taxes down.
Note: Candidate campaign colours, unless a member of a party, are based on the prominent colour used in campaign items (signs, literature, etc.) or colours used in polling graphs and are used as a visual differentiation between candidates.
Sources: "Final official results of weekend Outaouais civic elections," Ottawa Citizen, 6 November 1987, C3; "Cousineau wins, Luck continues to contest result" , Ottawa Citizen, 16 November 1987, C1; David Gamble, "Labine wins tight race for mayor in Gatineau," Ottawa Citizen, 6 June 1988, A1.
References
Philip Authier, "Gatineau mayor resigns," Ottawa Citizen, 18 February 1988, A1; George Kalogerakis, "Mayor of Gatineau calls it quits, says he's tired of 'scapegoat role'," Montreal Gazette, 19 February 1988, A4.
Fonds Jean-Deschênes, City of Gatineau, accessed 15 April 1991; David Gamble, "Latest candidate for Gatineau mayor endorsed by Luck," Ottawa Citizen, 7 April 1988, B1.
David Gamble, "Deschenes says Gatineau mayor should be qualified administrator," Ottawa Citizen, 4 May 1988, B3.
David Gamble, "Latest candidate for Gatineau mayor endorsed by Luck," Ottawa Citizen, 7 April 1988, B1.
Mike Shahin, "Hull ward to undergo recount," Ottawa Citizen, 7 November 1995, B5.
Patrick Brethour and Carrie Buchanan, "Councillor calls arrest harassment," Ottawa Citizen, 29 April 1996, D1 (the councillor referred to in the title was not Deschenes); Carrie Buchanan, "Force suspends Gatineau officers for improper arrests of city councillor," Ottawa Citizen, 22 June 1996, C6; Bob Phillips, "Conduct of police in Gatineau hot bar topic," Ottawa Citizen, 2 July 1996, B3; Carrie Buchanan, "Gatineau councillor tells story of arrest: Witness describes ‘climate of fear’," Ottawa Citizen, 11 March 1997, B3; Michael LaPalme, "Storm helps police get off the hook," Ottawa Citizen, 15 January 1998, D4.
Jean-Michel Gauthier, "Élections municipales 99 : Jean Deschênes perd son siège; De Sylva cause la grande surprise," Le Devoir, 8 November 1999, p. 5.
David Gamble, "Ex-councillor in mayoral race to help ‘little guy’ in Gatineau," Ottawa Citizen, 20 May 1988, C3.
David Gamble, "Former Gatineau councillor enters race for mayor's job," Ottawa Citizen, 27 April 1988, B1.
David Gamble, "Gatineau approves 4% tax jump," Ottawa Citizen, 18 December 1986, B3.
Jack Aubry, "Gatineau unveils proposals for new city hall," Ottawa Citizen, 8 January 1987, B1; David Gamble, "Gatineau awards contract for city hall," Ottawa Citizen, 11 February 1987, B1.
David Gamble, "Luck scrapes past Cousineau," Ottawa Citizen, 2 November 1987, C1.
He added that he was once active with the Social Credit Party of Canada but no longer had any political affiliation. See David Gamble, "Ex-councillor in mayoral race to help 'little guy' in Gatineau," Ottawa Citizen, 20 May 1988, C3.
David Gamble, "Mayoral candidate says business tax should go up 37%," Ottawa Citizen, 25 May 1988, B1.
