Nathalie Normandeau (born May 8, 1968 in

Maria, Quebec Maria is a municipality in Quebec, Canada. History Maria had been the location of a Mi'kmaq summer coastal community prior to European settlement. In 1774, the area began to be settled by American Loyalists, and Scottish and Irish settlers. In 184 ...

) is a

Quebec Quebec ( ; )According to the Canadian government, ''Québec'' (with the acute accent) is the official name in Canadian French and ''Quebec'' (without the accent) is the province's official name in Canadian English is one of the thirtee ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. She was MNA for the riding of

Bonaventure Bonaventure ( ; it, Bonaventura ; la, Bonaventura de Balneoregio; 1221 – 15 July 1274), born Giovanni di Fidanza, was an Italian Catholic Franciscan, bishop, cardinal, scholastic theologian and philosopher. The seventh Minister G ...

in the Gaspésie region between 1998 and 2011. She was also

Deputy Premier A deputy prime minister or vice prime minister is, in some countries, a government minister who can take the position of acting prime minister when the prime minister is temporarily absent. The position is often likened to that of a vice president, ...

and a member of the

Quebec Liberal Party 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 ...

Biography

Normandeau attended the

Université Laval Université Laval is a public research university in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. The university was founded by royal charter issued by Queen Victoria in 1852, with roots in the founding of the Séminaire de Québec in 1663 by François de Montmo ...

in the early 1990s and obtained a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

and a certificate in

African studies African studies is the study of Africa, especially the continent's cultures and societies (as opposed to its geology, geography, zoology, etc.). The field includes the study of Africa's history (pre-colonial, colonial, post-colonial), demography ...

. While at university, she worked in the Quebec Premier's Office as a public relations officer and a

secretary A secretary, administrative professional, administrative assistant, executive assistant, administrative officer, administrative support specialist, clerk, military assistant, management assistant, office secretary, or personal assistant is a w ...

. She was elected

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...

of the small Gaspésie town of Maria where she grew up, and held office from 1992 to 1995. She actively participated as a member of several local groups in the region. Normandeau entered provincial politics in

1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...

and was elected as the MNA for Bonaventure. She became the opposition critic for

natural resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. O ...

fisheries Fishery can mean either the enterprise of raising or harvesting fish and other aquatic life; or more commonly, the site where such enterprise takes place ( a.k.a. fishing ground). Commercial fisheries include wild fisheries and fish farms, both ...

and

regions In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

. In

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

, when

Jean Charest John James "Jean" Charest (; born June 24, 1958) is a Canadian lawyer and former politician who served as the 29th premier of Quebec from 2003 to 2012 and the fifth deputy prime minister of Canada in 1993. Charest was elected to the House of ...

's Liberals defeated the

Parti Québécois The Parti Québécois (; ; PQ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establishin ...

, Normandeau was re-elected for a second term and was named the Minister for

regional development Regional development is a broad term but can be seen as a general effort to reduce regional disparities by supporting (employ) economin regions. In the past, regional development policy tended to try to achieve these objectives by means developmen ...

and tourism as well as the Minister responsible for the Gaspésie-Îles-de-la-Madeleine region. Following a

cabinet shuffle A cabinet reshuffle or shuffle occurs when a head of government rotates or changes the composition of ministers in their cabinet, or when the Head of State changes the head of government and a number of ministers. They are more common in parlia ...

in 2005, she was promoted to the position of Municipal Affairs replacing

Jean-Marc Fournier Jean-Marc Fournier (born October 7, 1959) is a Quebec politician and a lawyer. He represented the riding of Saint-Laurent in the National Assembly of Quebec from 2010 to 2018, and previously represented the riding of Châteauguay from 1994 to 2 ...

who became the Education Minister. She was re-elected in

2007 File:2007 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Steve Jobs unveils Apple's first iPhone; TAM Airlines Flight 3054 overruns a runway and crashes into a gas station, killing almost 200 people; Former Pakistani Prime Minister of Pakistan, Pr ...

to become the new Deputy Premier and one of the prominent forces of the new

minority government A minority government, minority cabinet, minority administration, or a minority parliament is a government and Cabinet (government), cabinet formed in a parliamentary system when a political party or Coalition government, coalition of parties do ...

. She retained her position as Minister of Municipal Affairs and Regions and Minister for her region. On April 23, 2009, Normandeau admitted to dating

François Bonnardel François Bonnardel (born November 8, 1967) is a Canadian politician. He is the Member of the National Assembly of Quebec, National Assembly of Quebec, Canada, for the Electoral district (Canada), riding of Granby (electoral district), Granby. H ...

, a member of the opposition

Action démocratique du Québec Action may refer to: * Action (narrative), a literary mode * Action fiction, a type of genre fiction * Action game, a genre of video game Film * Action film, a genre of film * ''Action'' (1921 film), a film by John Ford * ''Action'' (1980 fil ...

(ADQ) caucus. Normandeau said Premier Charest was aware of the relationship and had no problem with it. During a cabinet shuffle, Normandeau was named the Minister of Natural Resources and Wildlife succeeding

Claude Béchard Claude Béchard (June 29, 1969 – September 7, 2010) was a politician in Quebec, Canada. He served as Quebec Liberal Party Member of the National Assembly (MNA) for the riding of Kamouraska-Témiscouata in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region; as ...

who was named the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food.

Laurent Lessard Laurent Lessard (born October 28, 1962 in Thetford Mines, Quebec) is a politician and notary in Quebec, Canada. He was the Member of the National Assembly for the provincial ridings of Frontenac and Lotbinière-Frontenac from 2003 to 2018 in Ce ...

inherited the municipal affairs portfolio. On September 6, 2011, she announced her resignation as minister and member of the National Assembly, citing personal reasons. She has been romantically involved with former Montreal Police Chief Yvan Delorme.

Corruption Arrest

In April 2012, Normandeau was the subject of a

Radio-Canada The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (french: Société Radio-Canada), branded as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian public broadcaster for both radio and television. It is a federal Crown corporation that receives funding from the government. ...

report over alleged ties to a construction industry executive while a cabinet minister. In April 2014, UPAC investigation involves Normandeau in Liberal Party obscure financing In March 2016, she is arrested by the UPAC, Quebec's anti-corruption unit, over illegal campaign financing. She was charged on six counts, including corruption, of a member of the legislature, fraud and bribery. In September 2020, a judge dropped the charges due to unreasonable delays by the prosecution.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Normandeau, Nathalie 1968 births Quebec Liberal Party MNAs Living people Mayors of places in Quebec Women MNAs in Quebec Women mayors of places in Quebec Université Laval alumni People from Maria, Quebec Deputy premiers of Quebec 21st-century Canadian politicians 21st-century Canadian women politicians Women government ministers of Canada