Diane Bellemare

The Honourable
Diane Bellemare
Senator for Alma, Quebec
Assumed office
September 6, 2012
Nominated by Stephen Harper
Appointed by David Johnston
Personal details
Born (1949-10-13) October 13, 1949
Political party Non-affiliated (2016-present)
Other political
affiliations		 Action démocratique du Québec (2003-2008)
Conservative Party of Canada (2012-2016)

Diane Bellemare (born October 13, 1949) is a Canadian economist and politician from Quebec, who was appointed to the Senate of Canada on September 6, 2012.[1]

Background

From 1972 to 1994, she was a professor at the Université du Québec à Montréal. In 1994, she was appointed chief executive officer of the Société québécoise de développement de la main-d'oeuvre (SQDM) by the Parti Québécois government of Jacques Parizeau.

2003 election

Bellemare ran as one of the Action démocratique du Québec (ADQ) star candidates in the 2003 election. She finished third with 21% of the vote in the district of Blainville. PQ incumbent Richard Legendre won the election with 43% of the vote.

Conseil du patronat du Québec

From September 2003 to April 2007, she held executive jobs with the Conseil du patronat du Québec, including Senior Vice-President and Chief Economist from April 2006 to April 2007.[2]

Political candidacies

After April 2007, Bellemare acted as an adviser to ADQ leader Mario Dumont concerning issues dealing with the economy. She ran as the party’s candidate to fill the seat vacated by former PQ leader André Boisclair in the Montreal-based district of Pointe-aux-Trembles. She finished third with 14% of the vote and lost the by-election held on May 12, 2008 against former PQ MNA Nicole Léger.[3][4] Bellemare also ran as the party's candidate in the district of Bertrand in the general election of 2008. She finished third with 11% of the vote.

Senator

Bellemare was appointed to the Senate on the advice of Prime Minister Stephen Harper in 2012 and sat as a member of the Conservative Party of Canada caucus until March 2016 when she resigned to sit as an Independent. In May 2016, she was appointed Deputy Government Representative to the Senate by Government Representative Peter Harder.[5]

Footnotes

  1. ↑ "New Conservative senator warns EI reform will drive down wages". The Globe and Mail, September 7, 2012.
  2. ↑ Le CPQ remercie Diane Bellemare pour sa contribution à l’organisme, April 23, 2007
  3. ↑ L'ADQ s'effondre trois fois, Tommy Chouinard, La Presse, May 12, 2008
  4. ↑ Les favoris élus, Radio-Canada, May 12, 2008
  5. ↑ http://www.huffingtonpost.ca/2016/05/04/liberal-senate-positions-peter-harder-liaison_n_9837088.html
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the 11/10/2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.