Gilles Rocheleau (28 August 1935 – 27 June 1998) was a member of 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 ...

from 1988 to 1993. He co-founded the

Bloc Québécois The Bloc Québécois (BQ; , "Québécois people, Quebecer Voting bloc, Bloc") is a list of federal political parties in Canada, federal political party in Canada devoted to Quebec nationalism and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty movement, Que ...

with

Lucien Bouchard Lucien Bouchard (; born December 22, 1938) is a Canadian lawyer, diplomat and retired politician. Minister for two years in the Mulroney cabinet, Bouchard then led the emerging Bloc Québécois and became Leader of the Opposition in the House ...

in 1990. Rocheleau was born in

Hull, Quebec Hull is the central business district and oldest neighbourhood of the city of Gatineau, Quebec, Canada. It is located on the west bank of the Gatineau River and the north shore of the Ottawa River, directly opposite Ottawa. As part of the Canadia ...

, he was a businessman by career. His post-secondary education was at the

University of Ottawa The University of Ottawa (french: Université d'Ottawa), often referred to as uOttawa or U of O, is a bilingual public research university in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on directly to the northeast of Downtown Ottawa ...

. He became a city councillor in 1967, then mayor from 1974 to 1981. He was elected as a member of the

National Assembly of Quebec The National Assembly of Quebec (officially in french: link=no, Assemblée nationale du Québec) is the legislative body of the province of Quebec in Canada. Legislators are called MNAs (Members of the National Assembly; french: link=no, déput ...

in 1981 in Hull as a member of the

Liberal Party of Quebec The Quebec Liberal Party (QLP; french: Parti libéral du Québec, PLQ) is a provincial political party in Quebec. It has been independent of the federal Liberal Party of Canada since 1955. The QLP has always been associated with the colour red; e ...

. He was again elected to the Assembly in 1985 and became a cabinet minister in Premier

Robert Bourassa Robert Bourassa (; July 14, 1933 – October 2, 1996) was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as the 22nd premier of Quebec from 1970 to 1976 and from 1985 to 1994. A member of the Liberal Party of Quebec, he served a total of just un ...

's administration. He left provincial politics to campaign in the 1988 federal election in the

Hull—Aylmer Hull—Aylmer (formerly known as Hull) is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1917. It was created as "Hull" in 1914 from parts of Labelle and Wright ridings. It ...

electoral district for the national

Liberal party The Liberal Party is any of many political parties around the world. The meaning of ''liberal'' varies around the world, ranging from liberal conservatism on the right to social liberalism on the left. __TOC__ Active liberal parties This is a li ...

. He served in the

34th Canadian Parliament The 34th Canadian Parliament was in session from December 12, 1988, until September 8, 1993. The membership was set by the 1988 federal election on November 21, 1988, and it changed only somewhat due to resignations and by-elections until it wa ...

until he left the party on 2 July 1990 following the implosion of the

Meech Lake Accord The Meech Lake Accord (french: Accord du lac Meech) was a series of proposed amendments to the Constitution of Canada negotiated in 1987 by Prime Minister Brian Mulroney and all 10 Canadian provincial premiers. It was intended to persuade the gove ...

. After several months as an independent, he became a charter member of the Bloc Québécois party on 20 December 1990. However, Rocheleau's embrace of

Quebec sovereigntism The Quebec sovereignty movement (french: Mouvement souverainiste du Québec) is a political movement whose objective is to achieve the sovereignty of Quebec, a province of Canada since 1867, including in all matters related to any provision of ...

did not play well in his strongly federalist riding, and he was roundly defeated by

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 ...

candidate

Marcel Massé Marcel Massé (born June 23, 1940) is a Canadian politician and civil servant. Biography Massé was born in Montreal, Quebec in 1940 and graduated from McGill University and Pembroke College, Oxford (as Rhodes Scholar in 1963). He served ...

in the 1993 federal election, losing almost half of his vote from 1988. He was married twice: to Denise Gagné in 1956 and then later to Hélène Roy. Rocheleau died in Hull at the age of 62.

Electoral record (partial)

References

External links

* *
Hansard (House of Commons Debates) #128: The Late Gilles Rocheleau
29 September 1998. 1935 births 1998 deaths Bloc Québécois MPs Members of the House of Commons of Canada from Quebec Liberal Party of Canada MPs Mayors of Hull, Quebec Quebec Liberal Party MNAs University of Ottawa alumni {{Quebec-mayor-stub