James Bernard Boudreau (born July 25, 1944) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

lawyer and politician.

Provincial politics

Boudreau was elected to the

Nova Scotia House of Assembly The Nova Scotia House of Assembly (french: Assemblée législative de la Nouvelle-Écosse; gd, Taigh Seanaidh Alba Nuadh), or Legislative Assembly, is the deliberative assembly of the General Assembly of Nova Scotia of the province of Nova Scotia ...

from

Cape Breton The Lakes Cape Breton The Lakes was a provincial electoral district in Nova Scotia, Canada, that elected one member of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly. It was created in 1978 out of areas which were formerly included in the Cape Breton North, Cape Breto ...

in the 1988 provincial election. He was re-elected in

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

, and was appointed to the

Executive Council of Nova Scotia The Executive Council of Nova Scotia (informally and more commonly, the Cabinet of Nova Scotia) is the cabinet of the Canadian province of Nova Scotia. Almost always made up of members of the Nova Scotia House of Assembly, the Cabinet is sim ...

as Minister of Finance in the

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

government of John Savage. From 1996, he served as Minister of Health. When Savage resigned in 1997, Boudreau entered the leadership race to succeed him, but was defeated by

Russell MacLellan Russell Gregoire MacLellan (born January 16, 1940) is a Canadian politician who served as the 24th premier of Nova Scotia from 1997 to 1999. Early life MacLellan was born in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Federal politics He was first elected to the H ...

, prompting Boudreau to leave provincial politics.

Federal politics

In October 1999,

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister is not ...

Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. Born and raised in Shawinigan Falls, Quebec, Chrétien is a law graduate from Uni ...

recommended Boudreau for appointment to the

Senate of Canada The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The Senate is modelled after the B ...

, and to the

Cabinet Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to: Furniture * Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers * Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets * Filing ...

as Leader of the Government in the Senate, replacing

Alasdair Graham Alasdair Bernard Graham (May 21, 1929 – April 22, 2015) was a Canadian politician, journalist and businessman. Political career Graham attempted to win a seat in the House of Commons of Canada in the 1958 election from Nova Scotia, but was ...

who had been Nova Scotia's representative in the government since June 1997. It was also announced that Boudreau would be a candidate when the next federal election was held in order to help rebuild the federal Liberals in Nova Scotia, after the party lost all eleven seats in the 1997 federal election. Prior to the 2000 election, Boudreau was appointed

Minister of State Minister of State is a title borne by politicians in certain countries governed under a parliamentary system. In some countries a Minister of State is a Junior Minister of government, who is assigned to assist a specific Cabinet Minister. In o ...

for the

Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency In Canada, the Regional Development Agencies (RDA) are the seven federal government agencies responsible for addressing key economic challenges and furthering economic development, diversification, and job creation specific to their respective regio ...

. Boudreau resigned from the Senate in order to run in Dartmouth for a

seat A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but also headquarters in a wider sense. Types of seat The following are examples of different kinds of seat: * Armchair (furniture), ...

in the

House of Commons of Canada The House of Commons of Canada (french: Chambre des communes du Canada) is the lower house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the Senate of Canada, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada. The House of Common ...

. After a hotly contested campaign, he was defeated by incumbent

New Democratic Party The New Democratic Party (NDP; french: Nouveau Parti démocratique, NPD) is a federal political party in Canada. Widely described as social democratic,The party is widely described as social democratic: * * * * * * * * * * * * t ...

Member of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

Wendy Lill Wendy Lill (born November 2, 1950) is a Canadian playwright, screenwriter and radio dramatist who served as an NDP Member of Parliament from 1997 to 2004. Her stage plays have been performed extensively in theatres across Canada as well as inter ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Boudreau, Bernie 1944 births Living people Canadian senators from Nova Scotia Canadian people of Acadian descent Liberal Party of Canada senators Members of the 26th Canadian Ministry Members of the King's Privy Council for Canada Members of the Executive Council of Nova Scotia Nova Scotia Liberal Party MLAs Nova Scotia Ministers of Health Lawyers in Nova Scotia People from Sydney, Nova Scotia