An 2011 Bloc Québécois leadership election was held on December 11, 2011 to replace

Gilles Duceppe Gilles Duceppe (; born July 22, 1947) is a Canadian retired politician, proponent of the Quebec sovereignty movement and former leader of the Bloc Québécois. He was a Member of Parliament in the House of Commons of Canada for over 20 years and ...

, who resigned on May 2, 2011, after the party lost 43 of its 47 seats, including his own seat, in the 2011 federal election. It was won by Daniel Paillé. Voter turnout for the leadership election was 38%.

Timeline

*March 15, 1997:

wins the leadership election taking over for Michel Gauthier as party president (leader). *March 25, 2011:

Stephen Harper Stephen Joseph Harper (born April 30, 1959) is a Canadian politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015. Harper is the first and only prime minister to come from the modern-day Conservative Party of Canada, ...

's government is defeated in a Motion of no confidence losing 156—145 which sets-up the May 2 election. *May 2, 2011: The election is held. 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 ...

won only 4 ridings after having 47 at dissolution of Parliament. The party lost official party status. Gilles Duceppe loses his own riding in

Laurier—Sainte-Marie Laurier—Sainte-Marie is a federal electoral district in Downtown Montreal, Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1988. Its population in 2016 was 111,835. Geography The district includes Côte Sai ...

and announces his resignation. *May 3, 2011:

Vivian Barbot Vivian Barbot (born July 7, 1941) is a Canadian teacher, activist, and politician. She is a former president of the Fédération des femmes du Québec, a former Member of Parliament and former vice-president of the Bloc Québécois. She was the ...

becomes interim president after failing to regain her riding the night before. *May 11, 2011: Former MP

Pierre Paquette Pierre A. Paquette (born June 1, 1955) is a Canadian economist, professor, union leader and politician. Born in Sorel, Quebec, Paquette was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada as a member of the Bloc Québécois in the 2000 Canadia ...

announces his interest in running for leader and his intention to tour Quebec this summer to consult party members on the future of the Bloc. *June 2, 2011: Louis Plamondon is named the Bloc's interim parliamentary leader. *June 8, 2011: Party executive sets dates for the leadership election. *August 12, 2011: Paquette tells '' Le Devoir'' that he will not be a candidate and urges the party to delay the leadership election for a year. *September 17, 2011: BQ General Council meets to decide the official rules for the leadership election, the council affirmed its decision to hold the leadership election in 2011 rejecting calls to delay the election until 2012; official start of leadership race. *October 28, 2011: Deadline to submit signatures of 1,000 party members and become an official candidate. *October 31 – November 18, 2011: Advance voting at the BQ's national office during business hours. *November 8, 2011, 6:30 pm: Candidates debate (Quebec City) at Loews Hôtel Le Concorde. *November 11, 2011: Deadline for new members to join the party. *November 15, 2011, 6:30 pm: Candidates debate (Montreal) at Hôtel Delta Montréal. *November 16, 2011: Deadline for membership renewals. *November 22, 2011, 7 pm: Internet candidates debate. *December 10, 2011: Deadline for completed mail-in ballots to be received. *December 11, 2011: Daniel Paillé declared winner after the second ballot.

Candidates

Official candidates

Jean-François Fortin

;Background MP for Haute-Gaspésie—La Mitis—Matane—Matapédia (2011–present)
Former mayor of

Sainte-Flavie, Quebec Sainte-Flavie is a parish municipality in the La Mitis Regional County Municipality of Quebec, Canada, located on the south shore of the Saint Lawrence River, about northwest of Mont-Joli. It is named after Flavia, a martyred saint. Sainte-Flav ...

Only newly elected BQ MP in the current caucus :Date campaign launched: September 17, 2011 ;Supporters *Past MPs: (14) Claude Guimond, Rimouski-Neigette—Témiscouata—Les Basques; Paul Crête,

Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup Montmagny—L'Islet—Kamouraska—Rivière-du-Loup (formerly Rivière-du-Loup—Montmagny) is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 2004. Its population in 2006 was ...

;

Marc Lemay Marc Lemay (born April 4, 1951) is a Canadian politician who served as the Member of Parliament (MP) for Abitibi—Témiscamingue from 2004 to 2011. He is a member of the Bloc Québécois (BQ). Biography Lemay was born in Amos, Quebec. A lawye ...

, Abitibi—Témiscamingue; Suzanne Tremblay,

Rimouski-Neigette-et-La Mitis Rimouski (also known as Rimouski—Témiscouata, Rimouski—Mitis and Rimouski-Neigette-et-la Mitis) was a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1867 to 2003. It was created by ...

;

Yvon Lévesque Yvon Lévesque (born March 10, 1940) is a retired politician in Quebec, Canada. He is the former Bloc Québécois Member of Parliament for the riding of Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou. Biography Born in Lac-au-Saumon, he was an electr ...

Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik—Eeyou (formerly known as Abitibi, Abitibi—Baie-James—Nunavik, and Nunavik—Eeyou) is a federal riding in the province of Quebec, Canada, that have been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1 ...

;

Robert Bouchard Robert Bouchard (born March 30, 1943) is a Canadian politician. Born in Saint-Émond, Quebec, Bouchard represented the riding of Chicoutimi—Le Fjord Chicoutimi—Le Fjord (formerly known as Chicoutimi) is a federal electoral district in Q ...

, Chicoutimi—Le Fjord;

Yves Lessard Yves Lessard (born January 2, 1943) is a Canadian politician. From 2001 to 2004, Lessard served as a city councillor in Saint-Basile-le-Grand, Quebec. In the 2004 Canadian federal election he was elected into the House of Commons of Canada as ...

Chambly—Borduas Chambly—Borduas (also previously known as Chambly and Chambly—Verchères) was a federal electoral district in the province of Quebec, Canada, that was represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1867 to 1935, and from 1968 to 2015. ...

; Ève-Mary Thaï Thi Lac, Saint-Hyacinthe—Bagot;

Jean-Yves Laforest Jean-Yves Laforest (born June 13, 1949 in Shawinigan, Quebec) is a former Canadian politician who served as the member of Parliament for the riding of Saint-Maurice—Champlain from 2006 to 2011. Background Before he entered politics, Lafor ...

, Saint-Maurice—Champlain;

Diane Bourgeois Diane Bourgeois (born November 14, 1949) is a Canadian politician. She was a Bloc Québécois Member of the House of Commons of Canada, representing the riding Terrebonne—Blainville from 2000 until 2011. She was the Bloc critic for the interna ...

, Terrebonne—Blainville;

Roger Gaudet Roger Gaudet (born May 26, 1945) is a Canadian politician and former restaurant owner. Gaudet served as a councillor in Saint-Liguori from 1985 to 1989. In 1989 he was elected mayor of Saint-Liguoiri, and then in 1993 he became reeve of the Mo ...

, Montcalm;

Madeleine Dalphond-Guiral Madeleine Dalphond-Guiral (born June 6, 1938) is a Canadian nurse, professor and politician. Dalphond-Gurial was a registered nurse by training and later a professor of nursing. She was first elected to the House of Commons of Canada as a Bloc Qu ...

, Laval Centre; Nicole Demers,

Laval Laval means ''The Valley'' in old French and is the name of: People * House of Laval, a French noble family originating from the town of Laval, Mayenne * Laval (surname) Places Belgium * Laval, a village in the municipality of Sainte-Ode, Luxem ...

;

Hélène Alarie Hélène Alarie (6 June 1941 – 26 October 2023) was a Canadian politician who was a member of the House of Commons from 1997 to 2000. By career, she had work in teaching, government and agriculture. Born in La Pocatière, Quebec, she was e ...

, Louis-Hébert *Provincial politicians: (6)

Danielle Doyer Danielle Doyer (born December 17, 1951 in Mont-Joli, Quebec) is a Quebec politician and teacher. She is the current Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Matapédia in the Gaspésie region. She is a member of the Parti Québé ...

MNA for Matapédia;

Marie Bouillé Marie Bouillé is a Canadian politician. Bouillé was elected to represent the riding of Iberville in the National Assembly of Quebec in the 2008 provincial election. She is a member of the Parti Québécois. Bouille is a graduate from the U ...

MNA for Iberville;

Émilien Pelletier Émilien Pelletier (born September 13, 1945) is a Canadian politician in the province of Quebec. Pelletier was elected to represent the riding of Saint-Hyacinthe in the National Assembly of Quebec in the 2008 provincial election. He is a member ...

MNA for Saint-Hyacinthe; Irvin Pelletier MNA for Rimouski;

Pascal Bérubé Pascal Bérubé (born February 16, 1975, in Matane, Quebec) is a Canadian politician and television host. He is the current Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Matane-Matapédia (formerly Matane) and represents the Parti Québ ...

MNA for Matane; André Simard MNA for Kamouraska-Témiscouata *Other prominent individuals: (1) Former Portneuf—Jacques-Cartier candidate Richard Côté

Maria Mourani

;Background MP for

Ahuntsic Ahuntsic (; French pronunciation ) is a district in the northern part of Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Originally an independent village, Ahuntsic was first annexed by Montreal in 1910, then merged into the borough of Ahuntsic-Cartierville in 2002. ...

(2006–present)
Only BQ MP remaining from the Montreal area :Date campaign launched: September 21, 2011 ;Supporters *Past MPs: (7)

Christian Ouellet Christian Ouellet (April 22, 1934 – December 21, 2021) was a Canadian politician from the province of Quebec. He represented Brome—Missisquoi in the House of Commons of Canada from 2006 to 2011 as a member of the Bloc Québécois. He is not ...

, Brome—Missisquoi; Johanne Deschamps, Laurentides—Labelle;

France Bonsant France Bonsant (born August 18, 1952 in Waterville, Quebec) is a Canadian politician. Biography She was a Bloc Québécois member of the House of Commons of Canada. She represented the district of Compton—Stanstead from 2004 to 2011. From 1 ...

, Compton—Stanstead; Meili Faille, Vaudreuil-Soulanges; Marcel Lussier, Brossard—La Prairie;

Osvaldo Nunez Osvaldo may refer to the following people: Given name *Osvaldo Alonso, Cuban football player *Osvaldo Ardiles (born 1952), an Argentine football player and coach *Osvaldo Bagnoli, an Italian football coach *Osvaldo Brandão, a Brazilian football c ...

, Bourassa; Francine Lalonde,

La Pointe-de-l'Île La Pointe-de-l'Île () is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 2004. Its population in 2001 was 98,878. The riding was created in 2003 from parts of Anjou—Rivière- ...

*Other prominent individuals: (4) Jean Campeau, former MNA for Crémazie; former Brome—Missisquoi candidate Christelle Bogosta; comedian

François Parenteau François () is a French masculine given name and surname, equivalent to the English name Francis. People with the given name * Francis I of France, King of France (), known as "the Father and Restorer of Letters" * Francis II of France, King o ...

; Forum jeunesse du Bloc Québécois, youth wing of the Bloc Québécois ;Other information *Mourani has campaigned on making the BQ more independent of the Parti Québécois.

Daniel Paillé

;Background Former MP for Hochelaga (2009–2011)
Former MNA for Prévost (1994–1996)
Former Quebec Minister of Industry (1994–1996) :Date campaign launched: October 4, 2011 ;Supporters *MPs: (1)

André Bellavance André Bellavance (born June 3, 1964) is a Canadians, Canadian politician, who served in the House of Commons of Canada from 2004 to 2015 and was the mayor of Victoriaville, Quebec from 2016 to 2021. Born in Victoriaville, Quebec, Bellavance w ...

, Richmond—Arthabaska *Past MPs: (16) Claude DeBellefeuille, Beauharnois—Salaberry;

Guy André Guy André (born November 17, 1959) is a Canadian politician who was elected to the House of Commons from the riding of Berthier—Maskinongé from 2004 to 2011. He is a member of the Bloc Québécois. A social worker who lives in Pointe-du-Lac ...

Berthier—Maskinongé Berthier—Maskinongé (formerly known as Berthier and Berthier—Maskinongé—Lanaudière) is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1925 to 1953, from 1968 to 1988, and ...

;

Roger Pomerleau Roger Pomerleau (born 7 June 1947) is a Canadian politician and carpenter. He served in the House of Commons of Canada from 1993 to 1997 and again from 2008 to 2011. Born in Montreal, Quebec, Pomerleau was elected in the Anjou—Rivière-des-P ...

, Drummond;

Richard Nadeau Richard Nadeau (born April 5, 1959 in Hawkesbury, Ontario) is a teacher and Bloc Québécois politician in Quebec, Canada. He is the former Member of Parliament for the riding of Gatineau. Nadeau attended the University of Ottawa where he recei ...

Gatineau Gatineau ( ; ) is a city in western Quebec, Canada. It is located on the northern bank of the Ottawa River, immediately across from Ottawa, Ontario. Gatineau is the largest city in the Outaouais administrative region and is part of Canada's N ...

; Pascal-Pierre Paillé, Louis-Hébert;

Gérard Asselin Gérard Asselin (born April 19, 1950 in Sainte-Flavie, Quebec - February 9, 2013) was a Canadian politician who was a Bloc Québécois member of the House of Commons of Canada, representing the riding of Manicouagan from 2004 to 2011 and Char ...

Manicouagan Manicouagan may refer to: *Manicouagan crater, an impact crater in Quebec *Manicouagan Reservoir, formed when the Manicouagan impact crater was converted to a reservoir. *Manicouagan Regional County Municipality, Quebec *Manicouagan River *Manicouag ...

;

Nicolas Dufour Nicolas Dufour (born June 1, 1987) is a Canadians, Canadian politician, who has been mayor of Repentigny, Quebec since the 2021 Quebec municipal elections#Repentigny, 2021 mayoral election. Previously, he represented the electoral district (Cana ...

, Repentigny;

Luc Desnoyers Luc Desnoyers (born October 2, 1950) is a Canadian trade unionist and politician, who was elected to represent the electoral district of Rivière-des-Mille-Îles in the 2008 Canadian federal election. He is a member of the Bloc Québécois. Af ...

, Rivière-des-Mille-Îles;

Monique Guay Monique Guay (born October 27, 1959) is a Quebec politician. She was the Bloc Québécois Member of Parliament for the riding of Rivière-du-Nord. Born in L'Île-Bizard, Quebec, she was an administrator and businesswoman before she was first ele ...

, Rivière-du-Nord; Carole Lavallée, Saint-Bruno—Saint-Hubert;

Claude Bachand Claude Bachand (born January 3, 1951, in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, Quebec) is a Quebec politician who represented the riding of Saint-Jean in the House of Commons of Canada from 1993 until 2011 as a member of the Bloc Québécois. Bachand was t ...

, Saint-Jean; Robert Vincent, Shefford;

Paule Brunelle : ''For the musician, see Paul Brunelle.'' Paule Brunelle (born August 21, 1953) is a Canadian politician. She was the Bloc Québécois member of the House of Commons of Canada from the riding of Trois-Rivières from 2004 to 2011. She was the Bl ...

, Trois-Rivières;

Serge Cardin Serge Cardin (born July 2, 1950) is a Quebec politician. He was a Parti Québécois member of the National Assembly of Quebec for the Sherbrooke electoral district from 2012 to 2014, and was formerly a Bloc Québécois Member of Parliament for th ...

, Sherbrooke; Raynald Blais, Gaspésie—Îles-de-la-Madeleine;

Thierry St-Cyr Thierry St-Cyr (born November 7, 1977) is an engineer and former Bloc Québécois politician in Quebec, Canada. He served as the Member of Parliament for Jeanne-Le Ber from 2006 to 2011. Education and career background Born in La Plaine, Qu ...

, Jeanne-Le Ber *Provincial politicians: (21)

Carole Poirier Carole Poirier (born October 2, 1958) is a Canadian politician. Poirier was elected to represent the Hochelaga-Maisonneuve district in the National Assembly of Quebec in the 2008 provincial election. She is a member of the Parti Québécois (PQ) ...

MNA for Hochelaga-Maisonneuve; Yves-François Blanchet MNA for Drummond;

Étienne-Alexis Boucher Étienne-Alexis Boucher is a Canadian politician. Boucher was elected to represent the riding of Johnson in the National Assembly of Quebec in the 2008 provincial election. He is a member of the Parti Québécois. Boucher is a graduate from th ...

MNA for Johnson; Noëlla Champagne MNA for

Champlain Samuel de Champlain (; Fichier OrigineFor a detailed analysis of his baptismal record, see RitchThe baptism act does not contain information about the age of Samuel, neither his birth date nor his place of birth. – 25 December 1635) was a Fr ...

;

Alexandre Cloutier Alexandre Cloutier (born September 1, 1977) is a Canadians, Canadian politician and lawyer. He was a member of National Assembly of Quebec for the Riding (division), riding of Lac-Saint-Jean (provincial electoral district), Lac-Saint-Jean in the S ...

MNA for Lac-Saint-Jean;

Claude Cousineau Claude Cousineau (born February 20, 1950 in Montreal, Quebec) is a Canadian politician and teacher, who represented the constituency of Bertrand in the National Assembly as a member of the Parti Québécois from 1998 to 2018. Cousineau studied a ...

MNA for Bertrand;

Sylvain Gaudreault Sylvain Gaudreault (born July 8, 1970) is a Canadian politician and teacher. He was the Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Jonquière in the city of Saguenay from 2007 to 2022. He represents the Parti Québécois. On May 6, ...

MNA for Jonquière; Guy Leclair MNA for Beauharnois; Martin Lemay MNA for Sainte-Marie–Saint-Jacques;

Marie Malavoy Marie Malavoy (born March 23, 1948, in Berlin, Germany) is a Canadian politician and teacher. She was a member of the National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Taillon in the Montérégie region for the Parti Québécois. Following the PQ v ...

MNA for Taillon; Agnès Maltais MNA for Taschereau;

Nicolas Marceau Nicolas Marceau (born June 23, 1964) is a Canadians, Canadian economist, university professor, politician and former Minister of Finance (Quebec), Minister of Finance. He was previously a professor of economics at the Université du Québec à M ...

MNA for Rousseau;

Claude Pinard Claude Pinard (born June 15, 1949) is a politician in Quebec, Canada. He serves as Member of the National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Saint-Maurice in the Mauricie region from 1994 to 2007 and since the 2008 provincial elections. Ba ...

MNA for Saint-Maurice;

Scott McKay Scott McKay (born December 2, 1960) is a Canadians, Canadian politician, who served as a former leader of the Green Party of Quebec and a former Montreal council member. McKay was elected in 2008 to the Quebec National Assembly for the Parti Q ...

MNA for L'Assomption;

Gilles Robert Gilles Robert (born March 5, 1955) is a Canadian politician and teacher. Robert represented the riding of Prévost in the National Assembly of Quebec from 2008 to 2012. He is a member of the Parti Québécois. Born in Saint-Jérôme, Quebec, R ...

MNA for Prévost; Sylvain Simard MNA for

Richelieu Richelieu (, ; ) may refer to: People * Cardinal Richelieu (Armand-Jean du Plessis, 1585–1642), Louis XIII's chief minister * Alphonse-Louis du Plessis de Richelieu (1582–1653), French Carthusian bishop and Cardinal * Louis François Armand ...

; Mathieu Traversy MNA for Terrebonne; Guillaume Tremblay MNA for Masson; Denis Trottier MNA for Roberval; Dave Turcotte MNA for Saint-Jean;

André Villeneuve André Villeneuve is a Canadian politician. Villeneuve was elected to represent the riding of Berthier in the National Assembly of Quebec in the 2008 provincial election. He is a member of the Parti Québécois. Villeneuve attended the CEGEP ...

MNA for Berthier *Other prominent individuals: (9) Former LaSalle—Émard candidate Carl Dubois; former Westmount—Ville-Marie candidate Véronique Roy; former

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 ...

candidate Dino Lemay; former Mégantic—L'Érable candidate Pierre Turcotte, former Honoré-Mercier candidate Martin Laroche; former Outremont candidate Élise Daoust; former

Beauport—Limoilou Beauport—Limoilou is a federal electoral district in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 2004. The riding was created in 2003 as "Beauport" from parts of Beauport—Montmorency—Cô ...

candidate Michel Létourneau; former

Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean Roberval—Lac-Saint-Jean (formerly known as Roberval) was a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 1949 until 2015. The riding was created in 1947 from parts of Lake St-John—Ro ...

candidate Claude Pilote; former

Jonquière—Alma Jonquière—Alma was a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada from 2004 to 2011. It was created in 2003 from parts of Jonquière and Lac-Saint-Jean—Saguenay ridings. It co ...

candidate Pierre Forest

Declined

Bernard Bigras Bernard Bigras (born June 4, 1969) is a Canadian politician. Born in Montreal, Quebec, Bigras was a Bloc Québécois member of the House of Commons of Canada from 1997 to 2011, representing the district of Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie Rosem ...

, former MP for

Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie (formerly known as Rosemont and Rosemont—Petite-Patrie) is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the House of Commons of Canada since 1979. Geography The district includes ...

(2004–2011) *

, former MP for

Joliette Joliette is a city in southwest Quebec, Canada. It is approximately northeast of Montreal, on the L'Assomption River and is the seat of the Regional County Municipality of Joliette. It is considered to be a part of the North Shore of Greate ...

(2000–2011), after initially expressing interest, announced in August that he will not be a candidate and called for the leadership election to be delayed until late 2012. He indicated that he may re-enter the contest if the leadership vote were delayed.

Results

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bloc Quebecois leadership election, 2011

2011 File:2011 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: a protester partaking in Occupy Wall Street heralds the beginning of the Occupy movement; protests against Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi, who was killed that October; a young man celebrate ...

2011 elections in Canada 2011 in Quebec December 2011 events in Canada Bloc Québécois leadership election