Montreal Citizens' Movement
Encyclopedia
The Montreal Citizens' Movement (MCM, or ) was a municipal political party
in Montreal
, Quebec
, Canada
. It existed from 1973 to 2001.
(NDP); union activists from the Montreal Councils of the CSN
and FTQ
federations; and many others with backgrounds in student, community or political movements.
Amongst the founders were journalist Nick Auf der Maur
, Louise Harel
, later a member of the Provincial government, and other activists who were not satisfied with the management style of the administration Jean Drapeau
.
While FRAP had seen itself as a radical social movement as well as a municipal political party, the MCM defined itself as an electoralist party with firm community roots.
in 1974, constituting the first significant and effective opposition group since Drapeau became mayor more than a decade earlier. However the party was eventually plagued by internal divisions. Councillors Nick Auf der Maur
and Robert Keaton founded the Municipal Action Group with a group of dissidents, which split the opposition vote. In 1978, the total elected opposition in city council consisted of Auf Der Maur for MAG and Michael Fainstat
for the MCM.
The MCM was put back on the way to recovery when Jean Doré
became its leader and mayoral candidate in 1982. Doré finished a strong second and fifteen of his candidates were elected.
In 1984, Doré won a by-election
and became the City Councillor of the district of Saint-Jean-Baptiste.
The party was devastated when longstanding members and sitting city councillors Pierre-Yves Melancon, Sam Boskey,Marvin Rotrand, and Pierre Goyer quit the party, accusing Doré of cozying up to powerful interests and betraying the MCM notion of reform. (They would later found the Democratic Coalition of Montreal (Coalition démocratique de Montréal). Doré had lost also much anglophone support by encouraging the enforcement of the controversial anti-English sign law Bill 178, and by renaming Dorchester Boulevard to Boulevard René-Lévesque. As well, the Overdale scandal - involving the demolition on an entire inner-city block and the expulsion of its low-income tenants - and tax hikes on businesses, as well as a poor financial climate, would erode support for the MCM.
In 1990, Doré and his team would be re-elected with a reduced majority. Four more MCM councillors quit during this sitting.
The Doré administration is credited with:
Nonetheless, it faced growing criticism by fiscal conservatives for its perceived ineffective style of government, including lax policies toward city employees, as well as an unwillingness to pay down the massive debt left by the projects of former mayor Jean Drapeau. The party was also badly damaged by the Overdale
fiasco.
left the party and announced that she would support Jacques Duchesneau
- a former police chief - for Mayor.
In 1998, MCM candidate Michel Prescott
finished third with 14.4% of the vote. Only four of his candidates were elected. The party survived for a few more years. But in the wake of the province-wide Municipal Merger of 2001
, the MCM was absorbed by Gérald Tremblay
's organization. In July 2001, the party formally merged with the Union des citoyens et des citoyennes de l’Île de Montréal
. A few months later, Tremblay was elected mayor.
Victories are indicated with bold fonts.
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in Montreal
Montreal
Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...
, 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....
, Canada
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...
. It existed from 1973 to 2001.
Origins
The Montreal Citizens' Movement was founded shortly before the 1974 municipal elections by a variety of groups: members of the Front d'Action Politique (FRAP), a left-leaning coalition of community-based action groups which had unsuccessfully run in the 1970 election; the Urban Progressive Movement (UPM), a mostly English-speaking group of community activists with links to the New Democratic PartyNew Democratic Party
The New Democratic Party , commonly referred to as the NDP, is a federal social-democratic political party in Canada. The interim leader of the NDP is Nycole Turmel who was appointed to the position due to the illness of Jack Layton, who died on August 22, 2011. The provincial wings of the NDP in...
(NDP); union activists from the Montreal Councils of the CSN
Confédération des Syndicats Nationaux
The Confédération des syndicats nationaux , is the second largest trade union federation in Quebec by membership.- History :...
and FTQ
Fédération des travailleurs du Québec
The Fédération des travailleurs et travailleuses du Québec , or FTQ, is the largest labour federation in Quebec in terms of its membership. It has over 500,000 members, who account for 44% of the unionised workers in Quebec. This ratio is 60% in the private sector, in which most members work...
federations; and many others with backgrounds in student, community or political movements.
Amongst the founders were journalist Nick Auf der Maur
Nick Auf der Maur
Nick Auf der Maur was a journalist, politician and "man about town" boulevardier in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was also the father of rock musician Melissa Auf der Maur, through his marriage to Linda Gaboriau....
, Louise Harel
Louise Harel
Louise Harel is a Québec politician. In 2005 she served as interim leader of the Parti Québécois following the resignation of Bernard Landry. She was also interim leader of the opposition in the National Assembly of Quebec. She represented the riding of Hochelaga-Maisonneuve in the Montreal region...
, later a member of the Provincial government, and other activists who were not satisfied with the management style of the administration Jean Drapeau
Jean Drapeau
Jean Drapeau, was a Canadian lawyer and politician who served as mayor of Montreal from 1954 to 1957 and 1960 to 1986...
.
While FRAP had seen itself as a radical social movement as well as a municipal political party, the MCM defined itself as an electoralist party with firm community roots.
Opposition to Jean Drapeau
Eighteen of the party's candidates were elected to City HallCity hall
In local government, a city hall, town hall or a municipal building or civic centre, is the chief administrative building of a city...
in 1974, constituting the first significant and effective opposition group since Drapeau became mayor more than a decade earlier. However the party was eventually plagued by internal divisions. Councillors Nick Auf der Maur
Nick Auf der Maur
Nick Auf der Maur was a journalist, politician and "man about town" boulevardier in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was also the father of rock musician Melissa Auf der Maur, through his marriage to Linda Gaboriau....
and Robert Keaton founded the Municipal Action Group with a group of dissidents, which split the opposition vote. In 1978, the total elected opposition in city council consisted of Auf Der Maur for MAG and Michael Fainstat
Michael Fainstat
Michael Fainstat was a Canadian politician and a City Councillor in Montreal, Quebec.-Background:In the early seventies he became a founding member of the progressive Montreal Citizens' Movement, also known as Rassemblement des citoyens et citoyennes de Montréal in French.-City Councillor:He was...
for the MCM.
The MCM was put back on the way to recovery when Jean Doré
Jean Doré
Jean Doré is a Canadian politician and former mayor of the City of Montreal, Quebec.-Background:Jean Doré studied law at the Université de Montréal, where he was president of the student union from 1967 to 1968. He received a Master's Degree of Political Science from McGill University...
became its leader and mayoral candidate in 1982. Doré finished a strong second and fifteen of his candidates were elected.
In 1984, Doré won a by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
and became the City Councillor of the district of Saint-Jean-Baptiste.
The Doré administration and its accomplishments
Doré was elected mayor in 1986 and 55 of his candidates were elected. The MCM Executive Committee consisted of Michael Fainstat, Chairman, Robert Perreault, Vice-Chairman; John Gardiner, 42, who oversaw housing and city planning; Kathleen Verdon, who was in charge of culture, tourism and relations with cultural communities; Jacqueline Bordeleau, who was responsible for public works and fire prevention; and Lea Cousineau, who was in charge of recreation, social affairs, health and the status of women.The party was devastated when longstanding members and sitting city councillors Pierre-Yves Melancon, Sam Boskey,Marvin Rotrand, and Pierre Goyer quit the party, accusing Doré of cozying up to powerful interests and betraying the MCM notion of reform. (They would later found the Democratic Coalition of Montreal (Coalition démocratique de Montréal). Doré had lost also much anglophone support by encouraging the enforcement of the controversial anti-English sign law Bill 178, and by renaming Dorchester Boulevard to Boulevard René-Lévesque. As well, the Overdale scandal - involving the demolition on an entire inner-city block and the expulsion of its low-income tenants - and tax hikes on businesses, as well as a poor financial climate, would erode support for the MCM.
In 1990, Doré and his team would be re-elected with a reduced majority. Four more MCM councillors quit during this sitting.
The Doré administration is credited with:
- the renewal of the Old Port and the parks and beaches of Île Sainte-Hélène
- the completion of Berri Square (Place Émilie-Gamelin), Place Charles de Gaulle and the Archaeology Museum at Pointe-à-CallièrePointe-à-Callière MuseumPointe-à-Callière Museum is the Montreal museum of archaeology and history located in Old Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It was founded in 1992 as part of celebrations to mark Montreal's 350th birthday...
; - the establishment of the fist public commissions at City Hall;
- the adoption of Montreal's first Master Urban Plan.
Nonetheless, it faced growing criticism by fiscal conservatives for its perceived ineffective style of government, including lax policies toward city employees, as well as an unwillingness to pay down the massive debt left by the projects of former mayor Jean Drapeau. The party was also badly damaged by the Overdale
Overdale, Montreal
Overdale was a small residential district in downtown Montreal which became a famous symbol of the struggle between urban conservationists and land developers....
fiasco.
Decline and merger
By 1994, the MCM was voted out of office and held onto only 6 seats on Council. Doré, although he had won a seat on Council, decided not to sit. Internal struggles over the succession of Jean Doré undermined the party's credibility. After she won the MCM nomination for the 1998 mayoral election, City Councillor Thérèse DaviauThérèse Daviau
Thérèse Daviau, also known as Thérèse Daviau-Bergeron, was a Canadian politician, an attorney and a City Councillor in Montreal, Quebec.-Background:Daviau was born in 1946 and received a Law degree from Université de Montréal...
left the party and announced that she would support Jacques Duchesneau
Jacques Duchesneau
Jacques Duchesneau, CM is a French Canadian civil servant and former Chief of Police.He holds a Master's Degree in Public Administration from the École nationale d'administration publique and a Bachelor of Science degree from the Université de Montréal...
- a former police chief - for Mayor.
In 1998, MCM candidate Michel Prescott
Michel Prescott
Michel Prescott is a Canadian politician and a City Councillor in Montreal, Quebec.-City Councillor:He was a member of the progressive Montreal Citizens' Movement, also known as Rassemblement des citoyens et citoyennes de Montréal in French. He was elected to Montreal's City Council in 1982...
finished third with 14.4% of the vote. Only four of his candidates were elected. The party survived for a few more years. But in the wake of the province-wide Municipal Merger of 2001
Municipal reorganization in Quebec
The most recent episode of municipal reorganization in Quebec, Canada, was undertaken in 2002 by the Parti Québécois Government of Quebec, headed by Premier Lucien Bouchard and his successor Bernard Landry....
, the MCM was absorbed by Gérald Tremblay
Gérald Tremblay
Gérald Tremblay is a Canadian politician and businessman currently serving his third term as mayor of Montreal and as president of the Montreal Metropolitan Community...
's organization. In July 2001, the party formally merged with the Union des citoyens et des citoyennes de l’Île de Montréal
Union Montreal
Union Montreal is a municipal political party in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. It currently governs Montreal's city government.-Origins:It was established as the Montreal Island Citizens Union in the aftermath of the province-wide municipal merger of 2001 and not long before the municipal election...
. A few months later, Tremblay was elected mayor.
Mayoral candidates
| Election | Mayoral Candidate | Popular Vote for Mayor | Number of Councillors |
1974 | Jacques Couture Jacques Couture Jacques Couture is a Canadian auto racer. He is known for opening North America's first racing school in Quebec. He was inducted into the Canadian Motorsport Hall of Fame in 2000. He has been credited as the "instructor who taught the young Gilles Villeneuve how to race."-References:... | 39% | 18/55 |
1978 | Guy Duquette | 12% | 1/54 |
1982 | Jean Doré Jean Doré Jean Doré is a Canadian politician and former mayor of the City of Montreal, Quebec.-Background:Jean Doré studied law at the Université de Montréal, where he was president of the student union from 1967 to 1968. He received a Master's Degree of Political Science from McGill University... | 36% | 15/57 |
1986 | Jean Doré | 68% | 55/58 |
1990 | Jean Doré | 59% | 41/50 |
1994 | Jean Doré | 32% | 7/51 |
1998 | Michel Prescott Michel Prescott Michel Prescott is a Canadian politician and a City Councillor in Montreal, Quebec.-City Councillor:He was a member of the progressive Montreal Citizens' Movement, also known as Rassemblement des citoyens et citoyennes de Montréal in French. He was elected to Montreal's City Council in 1982... | 14% | 4/51 |
Victories are indicated with bold fonts.