| The Honourable Mauril A. Bélanger |
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|---|---|
| Member of Parliament for Ottawa-Vanier |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 1995 |
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| Preceded by | Jean-Robert Gauthier |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 15, 1955 Mattawa, Ontario |
| Political party | Liberal |
| Spouse(s) | Catherine Bélanger |
| Residence | Ottawa |
| Profession | Administrator, political adviser |
| Religion | Roman Catholic[1] |
Mauril A. Bélanger, PC, MP (born June 15, 1955) is a Member of the Canadian Parliament. He is a member of the Liberal Party. Bélanger has been involved in advocacy for the rights of Franco-Ontarians.
Bélanger was first elected to Parliament on February 13, 1995 in a by-election. His predecessor, Jean-Robert Gauthier, was appointed to the Senate.
Bélanger represents the riding of Ottawa-Vanier in the eastern part of the city, an electoral district containing diverse economic and social classes. It is home to many ethnic communities and has a large Francophone population. Ottawa-Vanier is considered a solid Liberal riding, having returned a Liberal MP since its creation in 1935, usually in a landslide. Bélanger himself has won by large margins in the 1997, 2000, 2004, 2006, and 2008 elections.
As member of Parliament, Bélanger has served as Chair of the Standing Committee on Official Languages, member of the Standing Committee on the Library of Parliament and member of the Prime Minister's Task Force on Urban Issues. From July 1998 to August 2000, he was Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Canadian Heritage. In December 2003, he was appointed Deputy Leader of the Government in the House of Commons and Chief Government Whip.
Prior to entering politics, Bélanger held various positions in the public and private sectors. He graduated from the University of Ottawa in 1977, where he had served as President of the Student Federation. In the early 1980s, he worked for the Honourable Jean-Luc Pépin, then Minister of Transport. In the mid to late 1980s, he worked as a registered investment advisor. He was the Chief of Staff to the Chair of the Regional Council of Ottawa-Carleton prior to his election to the House of Commons.
Bélanger was born in Mattawa, Ontario, a small logging town in Eastern Ontario.
| Canadian federal by-election, February 13, 1995 : Ottawa—Vanier edit | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | +/- | Expenditures | |
| Liberal | Mauril Bélanger | 11,918 | 60.06 | -10.41 | $52,001 | |
| Reform | Kevin Gaudet | 4,034 | 20.33 | +12.44 | $36,995 | |
| Progressive Conservative | Françoise Guenette | 1,899 | 9.57 | -0.96 | $30,933 | |
| New Democratic Party | Bob Lawson | 1,259 | 6.34 | -0.16 | $5,764 | |
| Christian Heritage | Gilles Gauthier | 299 | 1.51 | $1,751 | ||
| Green | Frank de Jong | 218 | 1.10 | -0.24 | $0 | |
| Natural Law | Ian A.G. Campbell | 109 | 0.55 | -0.35 | $131 | |
| Marxist-Leninist | Serge Lafortune | 61 | 0.31 | +0.02 | $136 | |
| Abolitionist | John C. Turmel | 46 | 0.23 | +0.17 | $0 | |
| Total valid votes | 19,843 | 100.00 | ||||
| Total rejected ballots | 201 | |||||
| Turnout | 20,004 | 30.39 | -32.04 | |||
| Electors on the lists | 65,824 | |||||
| 27th Ministry – Cabinet of Paul Martin | ||
| Cabinet Posts (3) | ||
|---|---|---|
| Predecessor | Office | Successor |
| vacant | Minister for Internal Trade 2005–2006 |
vacant |
| Albina Guarnieri | Associate Minister of National Defence 2004–2006 |
vacant |
| Minister of State 2003–2004 styled as Deputy Leader of the Government in the House of Commons |
||
| Special Cabinet Responsibilities | ||
| Predecessor | Title | Successor |
| Pierre Pettigrew | Minister responsible for Official Languages (2004–2006) |
Josée Verner |
| Jacques Saada | Minister responsible for Democratic Reform (2004–2005) |
Position retitled - see Belinda Stronach |
| Special Parliamentary Responsibilities | ||
| Predecessor | Title | Successor |
| Paul DeVillers | Deputy Leader of the Government in the House of Commons (2003–2006) |
vacant |
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