Karl Blackburn is a business owner and former political figure in 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 represented Roberval

Roberval (provincial electoral district)

Roberval is a provincial electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that elects members to the National Assembly of Quebec. The riding was created in 1930 from parts of the Lac-Saint-Jean provincial electoral district...

 in the Quebec National Assembly from 2003 to 2007 as a Liberal.

He was born in Chicoutimi, Quebec

Chicoutimi, Quebec

Chicoutimi is one of the three boroughs of Saguenay, Quebec, Canada, and was a separate city in its own right until 2002. Chicoutimi had a population of 59,764 in the Canada 2001 Census, the last census in which Chicoutimi was counted as a separate city....

, the son of Gaston Blackburn

Gaston Blackburn

Gaston Blackburn is a merchant, business owner and former political figure in Quebec. He represented Roberval in the Quebec National Assembly from 1988 to 1994 as a Liberal....

 and Nicole Desbiens, and was educated in London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

 and at the Université du Québec à Chicoutimi

Université du Québec à Chicoutimi

The Université du Québec à Chicoutimi is a branch of the Université du Québec founded in 1969 and based in the Chicoutimi borough of Saguenay, Quebec. UQAC has secondary study centers in La Malbaie, Saint-Félicien, Alma and Sept-Îles...

. Blackburn is director general of the family business and owner of a hardware business. He has served as chairman of the Roberval Chamber of Commerce and vice-president of the Saint-Félicien Chamber of Commerce. Blackburn was a member of the Quebec cabinet, serving as Minister of Minister of Economic and Regional Development and as Minister of Public Safety. He was defeated when he ran for reelection in 2007.