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Robert LeSage

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Robert LeSage (born February 15, 1937) is a retired Canadian politician and civil servant. He served in the National Assembly of Quebec from 1989 to 1998 as a member of the Liberal Party. His name is sometimes given as Lesage.

Early life and career

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LeSage was born in Hull (Gatineau), Quebec, and studied legislation and administration at the École des hautes études commerciales at Carleton University in Ottawa. He became a civil servant in Hull in 1961 and served for nineteen years as the city's clerk. He was president of the Liberal Party association in Hull from 1979 to 1981.[1]

Legislator

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LeSage entered political life in 1989, winning the Liberal nomination for a provincial by-election in Hull.[2] While seeking the nomination, he championed a four-lane highway extension from Hull to Aylmer through the southern end of Gatineau Park and dismissed concerns from environmentalists that it would jeopardize the area's wildlife.[3] He was elected without difficulty in the by-election and was returned again in the 1989 general election a few months later. The Liberal Party had a majority government in this period, and LeSage served as a backbench supporter of Robert Bourassa's administration. He supported Bourassa's compromise language legislation, which required that outdoor commercial signs be in the French language while indoor signs were allowed to be bilingual.[4] He was also a supporter of the Meech Lake Accord, which was designed to recognize Quebec as a "distinct society" within the Canadian constitution.

The Meech Lake Accord was rejected in June 1990. LeSage was critical of Queen Elizabeth II's visit to Hull shortly thereafter, saying "Perhaps the queen wants to celebrate the grand Canadian unity, but it doesn't exist."[5]

A Canadian federalist, LeSage was appointed to a legislative committee to study the costs of Quebec sovereigntism in 1991.[6] In 1993, he suggested that the Outaouais region would separate from Quebec (and remain a part of Canada) if Quebec ever chose to separate from Canada.[7] He was quoted as saying, "it's almost criminal to promote Quebec sovereignty in the Outaouais because the federal government is so important to the area's survival.[8]

As a backbencher, LeSage was a vocal proponent of building the Casino du Hull. The casino was eventually constructed in 1996, two years after its approval by the Liberal government.[9]

LeSage was re-elected in the 1994 provincial election, defeating former mayor Michel Légère. The Liberals lost power to the Parti Québécois, and LeSage served as his party's critic for Revenue in the official opposition.[10] He campaigned for the "Non" side in the 1995 Quebec referendum on sovereignty.

LeSage offered to resign his seat in 1998 to allow Jean Charest to enter the National Assembly (he made this offer when Charest was being encouraged to seek the leadership of the Quebec Liberal Party, but before he had decided to leave federal politics).[11] Charest ultimately did not take up LeSage's offer and instead ran in Sherbrooke in the 1998 provincial election. LeSage did not seek re-election in this campaign.

Electoral record

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1994 Quebec general election: Hull
Party Candidate Votes %
Liberal Robert LeSage 19,184 56.56
Parti Québécois Michel Légère 13,947 41.12
Lemon Denis Patenaude 452 1.33
Natural Law Michel Dubois 231 0.68
Commonwealth of Canada Harold Quesnel 56 0.17
Marxist–Leninist Françoise Roy 46 0.14
Total valid votes 33,916
Rejected and declined votes 291
Turnout 34,207 78.33
Electors on the lists 43,670
1989 Quebec general election: Hull
Party Candidate Votes %
Liberal Robert LeSage 13,980 55.25
Parti Québécois Marcel Villeneuve 9,434 37.29
Unity Glen E.P. Kealey 751 2.97
New Democratic Charles Rheault 673 2.66
Lemon Denis Patenaude 391 1.55
Marxist–Leninist Pierre Soublière 72 0.28
Total valid votes 25,301 100.00
Rejected and declined votes 279
Turnout 25,580 62.23
Electors on the lists 41,107
Quebec provincial by-election, May 29, 1989: Hull
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Robert LeSage 9,223 67.16
Parti Québécois Paul Lemaire 4,510 32.84
Total valid votes 13,733 100.00
Rejected and declined votes 291
Turnout 14,024 35.46
Electors on the lists 39,544
Source: Official Results, Government of Quebec

References

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  1. ^ "Biography". Dictionnaire des parlementaires du Québec de 1792 à nos jours (in French). National Assembly of Quebec.
  2. ^ "Two seek Liberal nod in byelection," Ottawa Citizen, 20 February 1989, C2; "Liberals choose municipal clerk," Ottawa Citizen, 2 March 1989, C3. The nomination vote was 456 to 167 for LeSage over rival candidate Pierre-Louis Lapointe.
  3. ^ He was quoted as saying, "Do we want to put development of the region in jeopardy for the sake of frogs and birds?" See "Hull city clerk is seeking Liberal nomination in Hull," Ottawa Citizen, 9 December 1988, C1.
  4. ^ George Kalogerakis, "Grits hope to repeat landslide," Ottawa Citizen, 19 September 1989, C3.
  5. ^ Christine Tierney, "DISGRUNTLED QUEBECERS BAULK AT QUEEN'S VISIT," Reuters News, 29 June 1990.
  6. ^ "MNA Williams not included on constitutional committees," Montreal Gazette, 5 June 1991, A5.
  7. ^ Howard Williams, "If Quebec secedes from Canada, some want Hull to secede from Quebec," Agence France-Presse, 11 August 1994.
  8. ^ "Outaouais will leave sovereign Quebec, LeSage cautions," Ottawa Citizen, 8 November 1993, A3.
  9. ^ Mike Shahin, "Premier hints casino safe bet," Ottawa Citizen, 4 March 1994, B1; Daniel Drolet, "PQ win leaves Outaouais casino in limbo," Ottawa Citizen, 15 September 1994, B5.
  10. ^ Philip Authier, "Less-critical portfolios given to anglo MNAs in shadow cabinet," Montreal Gazette, 3 November 1994, A7.
  11. ^ "Charest likely to go to Quebec, Tory House leader predicts," Ottawa Citizen, 15 March 1998, A1.
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