Damien Hétu

Damien Hétu (October 24, 1926 – February 15, 2010) was a politician in the Canadian province of Quebec. He served as mayor of Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts on two separate occasions and was a Liberal member of the National Assembly of Quebec from 1985 to 1989.

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Early life and career

Hétu was born in Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts and received his early education in the town. He trained as an electrician and radio/television technician, and in 1952 he began working as an electrician and entrepreneur in his home community.[1] He successfully campaigned for a local sports center, which was opened in the 1970s.[2]

Hétu was a municipal councillor in Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts from 1959 to 1965 and was the community's mayor from 1970 to 1974. In the same period, he was an organizer for both the Liberal Party of Canada and the Quebec Liberal Party. He ran for the Quebec legislature in the 1981 provincial election and lost to incumbent Parti Québécois cabinet minister Jacques Léonard in Labelle.[3]

Legislator

Hétu was elected to the national assembly on his second attempt in the 1985 provincial election. The Liberal Party won a majority government in this election under Robert Bourassa's leadership, and Hétu served for the next four years as a government backbencher. A 1988 newspaper report indicates that he had one of the best attendance records in the legislature, missing fewer than one per cent of recorded votes.[4]

He was defeated by Léonard a second time when seeking re-election in 1989.

Return to municipal politics

Hétu was re-elected as mayor of Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts in 1990 and served until 1994. He presided over a water boil advisory for the community in 1992, due to concerns about contamination from lead pipes.[5]

Death

Hétu died in February 2010, after an extended illness.[6]

Electoral record

1989 Quebec provincial election : Labelle edit
Party Candidate Votes % +/-
     Parti Québécois Jacques Léonard 16,897 54.80
     Liberal (x)Damien Hétu 13,938 45.20
Total valid votes 30,835 100.00
Rejected and declined votes 971
Turnout 31,806 74.07
Electors on the lists 42,938
1985 Quebec provincial election : Labelle edit
Party Candidate Votes % +/-
     Liberal Damien Hétu 15,197 50.36 +11.60
     Parti Québécois Yvon Cormier 12,690 42.05 -15.65
     Progressive Conservative Bernard Campeau 1,546 5.12
     Parti indépendantiste Diane Cloutier 603 2.00
     Christian Socialist Diane Chevrier 143 0.47
Total valid votes 30,179 100.00
Rejected and declined votes 347
Turnout 30,526 73.89 -6.04
Electors on the lists 41,314
1981 Quebec provincial election : Labelle edit
Party Candidate Votes % +/-
     Parti Québécois (x)Jacques Léonard 17,596 57.70
     Liberal Damien Hétu 11,822 38.76
     Union Nationale Roger Labonté 1,079 3.54
Total valid votes 30,497 100.00
Rejected and declined votes 246
Turnout 30,743 79.93
Electors on the lists 38,460

References

  1. ^ Biography: Damien Hétu (in French), National Assembly of Quebec, accessed 27 April 2011.
  2. ^ Daniel Deslauriers, "L’ex-maire Damien Hétu n’est plus", L'information du nord, 16 February 2010, accessed 27 April 2011.
  3. ^ Biography: Damien Hétu (in French), National Assembly of Quebec, accessed 27 April 2011.
  4. ^ Nancy Wood, "Missing from action: MNAs absent for 22 of 135 votes," Montreal Gazette, 14 January 1988, A6.
  5. ^ Ann McLaughlin, "High levels of lead found in Ste. Agathe water," Montreal Gazette, 14 July 1992, A5.
  6. ^ Daniel Deslauriers, "L’ex-maire Damien Hétu n’est plus", L'information du nord, 16 February 2010, accessed 27 April 2011.