Jean-Sébastien Lamoureux
Encyclopedia
Jean-Sébastien Lamoureux (born February 28, 1974) is a politician and manager in the Canadian
province of Quebec
. He served in the National Assembly of Quebec
as a Liberal from 1998 until his resignation in 2001.
. He worked as an intern in the office of the Canadian minister of Foreign Affairs
from 1994 to 1995 and in the office of the leader of the official opposition of Quebec in 1996. Lamoureux received a law degree from the Université de Montréal
in 1996, was called to the bar of Quebec the following year, and worked with the firm Leduc, Leblanc from 1997 to 1998. In 2001, he received a graduate degree in management from HEC Montréal
.
His father, Jacques Lamoureux, has served as president of the Quebec Liberal Party.
. The governing Parti Québécois
(PQ) had won the seat by a narrow margin in the previous election
, and the contest was expected to be close. Lamoureux focused his campaign on opposition to another referendum on Quebec sovereignty, in the aftermath of the Canadian federalist
option's narrow victory in 1995. On election day, he defeated incumbent PQ cabinet minister Pierre Bélanger
by only 143 votes.
The PQ won a second consecutive majority government
in 1998, and Lamoureux served as a member of the official opposition. He was appointed as his party's immigration critic and supported a policy of encouraging increased settlement of new immigrants in Quebec's regions. He also spoke against growing anti-Muslim prejudice in the aftermath of the attacks of September 11, 2001.
indicated that he would welcome an investigation from the province's electoral office, so as to provide clarity in the matter.
In August 1999, Quebec election officials charged four persons with electoral fraud in relation to the Anjou vote. In May 2001, Claude Lavigne was convicted of paying poor people ten dollars every time they voted for the Liberals. In September of the same year, former Liberal Party campaign worker Alberto Berardinucci was fined ten thousand dollars for hiring people to vote several times using false names.
The province's chief electoral officer concluded that the Liberal Party had not orchestrated the vote-buying scheme, and Lamoureux was not personally implicated in the scandal. He nonetheless resigned from the legislature on September 19, 2001, one day after Berardinucci's conviction, on the grounds that doubts had been cast on the validity of his election. A Montreal Gazette columnist later noted that no-one was certain if enough fraudulent votes had been cast to affect the outcome of the vote.
Lamoureux was not a candidate in the by-election
that followed his resignation.
. In 2006, he was appointed as vice-president of subsidiaries for Investissement Quebec and chief executive officer of FIER Partenaires.
Lamoureux joined the board of directors of the École polytechnique de Montréal
and the company Innovatech in March 2009. The following year, he joined the Kirchner Private Capital Group and served on the board of Réseau capital.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
province of Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
. He served in the National Assembly of Quebec
National Assembly of Quebec
The National Assembly of Quebec is the legislative body of the Province of Quebec. The Lieutenant Governor and the National Assembly compose the Parliament of Quebec, which operates in a fashion similar to those of other British-style parliamentary systems.The National Assembly was formerly the...
as a Liberal from 1998 until his resignation in 2001.
Early life and career
Lamoureux was born in Anjou on the east end of the Island of MontrealIsland of Montreal
The Island of Montreal , in extreme southwestern Quebec, Canada, is located at the confluence of the Saint Lawrence and Ottawa Rivers. It is separated from Île Jésus by the Rivière des Prairies....
. He worked as an intern in the office of the Canadian minister of Foreign Affairs
Minister of Foreign Affairs (Canada)
The Minister of Foreign Affairs is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for overseeing the federal government's international relations section of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada....
from 1994 to 1995 and in the office of the leader of the official opposition of Quebec in 1996. Lamoureux received a law degree from the Université de Montréal
Université de Montréal
The Université de Montréal is a public francophone research university in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It comprises thirteen faculties, more than sixty departments and two affiliated schools: the École Polytechnique and HEC Montréal...
in 1996, was called to the bar of Quebec the following year, and worked with the firm Leduc, Leblanc from 1997 to 1998. In 2001, he received a graduate degree in management from HEC Montréal
HEC Montréal
HEC Montréal , is the independent affiliated business school of the Université de Montréal, and the oldest management School in Canada. It holds accreditations from AACSB, EQUIS and AMBA, one of three schools in North America to hold triple accreditation in management education...
.
His father, Jacques Lamoureux, has served as president of the Quebec Liberal Party.
Legislator
Lamoureux's was nominated as the Liberal candidate for Anjou in the buildup to the 1998 provincial electionQuebec general election, 1998
The Quebec general election of 1998 was held on November 30, 1998, to elect members of the National Assembly of the Province of Quebec, Canada. The incumbent Parti Québécois, led by Lucien Bouchard, won re-election, defeating the Quebec Liberal Party, led by Jean Charest.After the narrow defeat of...
. The governing Parti Québécois
Parti Québécois
The Parti Québécois is a centre-left political party that advocates national sovereignty for the province of Quebec and secession from Canada. The Party traditionally has support from the labour movement. Unlike many other social-democratic parties, its ties with the labour movement are informal...
(PQ) had won the seat by a narrow margin in the previous election
Quebec general election, 1994
The Quebec general election of 1994 was held on September 12, 1994, to elect members of the National Assembly of Quebec, Canada. The Parti Québécois, led by Jacques Parizeau, defeated the incumbent Quebec Liberal Party, led by Daniel Johnson, Jr.....
, and the contest was expected to be close. Lamoureux focused his campaign on opposition to another referendum on Quebec sovereignty, in the aftermath of the Canadian federalist
Canadian federalism
Canada is a federation with two distinct jurisdictions of political authority: the country-wide federal government and the ten regionally-based provincial governments. It also has three territorial governments in the far north, though these are subject to the federal government...
option's narrow victory in 1995. On election day, he defeated incumbent PQ cabinet minister Pierre Bélanger
Pierre Bélanger
Pierre Bélanger is a lawyer and politician in the Canadian province of Quebec. He was a Parti Québécois member of the National Assembly of Quebec from 1992 to 1998 and was a cabinet minister in the government of Lucien Bouchard....
by only 143 votes.
The PQ won a second consecutive majority government
Majority government
A majority government is when the governing party has an absolute majority of seats in the legislature or parliament in a parliamentary system. This is as opposed to a minority government, where even the largest party wins only a plurality of seats and thus must constantly bargain for support from...
in 1998, and Lamoureux served as a member of the official opposition. He was appointed as his party's immigration critic and supported a policy of encouraging increased settlement of new immigrants in Quebec's regions. He also spoke against growing anti-Muslim prejudice in the aftermath of the attacks of September 11, 2001.
Resignation
Reports surfaced in February 1999 that voter fraud had played a role in the outcome of the 1998 election in Anjou. The PQ filed an official complaint with Quebec's chief returning officer, and defeated candidate Pierre Bélanger indicated that his party had identified forty confirmed instances of voting irregularities. Lamoureux responded that he had no knowledge of voter fraud and had done nothing wrong. This notwithstanding, Liberal leader Jean CharestJean Charest
John James "Jean" Charest, PC, MNA is a Canadian politician who has been the 29th Premier of Quebec since 2003. He was leader of the federal Progressive Conservative Party of Canada from 1993 to 1998 and has been leader of the Quebec Liberal Party since 1998....
indicated that he would welcome an investigation from the province's electoral office, so as to provide clarity in the matter.
In August 1999, Quebec election officials charged four persons with electoral fraud in relation to the Anjou vote. In May 2001, Claude Lavigne was convicted of paying poor people ten dollars every time they voted for the Liberals. In September of the same year, former Liberal Party campaign worker Alberto Berardinucci was fined ten thousand dollars for hiring people to vote several times using false names.
The province's chief electoral officer concluded that the Liberal Party had not orchestrated the vote-buying scheme, and Lamoureux was not personally implicated in the scandal. He nonetheless resigned from the legislature on September 19, 2001, one day after Berardinucci's conviction, on the grounds that doubts had been cast on the validity of his election. A Montreal Gazette columnist later noted that no-one was certain if enough fraudulent votes had been cast to affect the outcome of the vote.
Lamoureux was not a candidate in the by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
that followed his resignation.
Subsequent career
Lamoureux returned to practicing law from 2001 to 2003, working with the firm of Osler, Hoskin and Harcourt. From 2003 to 2006, he was chief of staff to Quebec's Treasury Board president, Monique Jérôme-ForgetMonique Jérôme-Forget
Monique Jérôme-Forget is a psychologist and a former Quebec politician. She was the Member of National Assembly for the riding of Marguerite-Bourgeois in the Montreal region as a member of the Quebec Liberal Party between 1998 and 2009...
. In 2006, he was appointed as vice-president of subsidiaries for Investissement Quebec and chief executive officer of FIER Partenaires.
Lamoureux joined the board of directors of the École polytechnique de Montréal
École Polytechnique de Montréal
The École Polytechnique de Montréal is an engineering school/faculty affiliated with the University of Montreal in Montreal, Canada. It ranks first in Canada for the scope of its engineering research. It is occasionally referred to as Montreal Polytechnic, although in Quebec English its French...
and the company Innovatech in March 2009. The following year, he joined the Kirchner Private Capital Group and served on the board of Réseau capital.