Serge Bélanger

Serge Bélanger is a former politician in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. He was a member of the Montreal city council from 1975 to 1986 and served on the Montreal executive committee in the 1980s. Bélanger was a member of mayor Jean Drapeau's Civic Party of Montreal.

Bélanger was a building contractor in private life.[1] He was first elected to city council in the 1974 municipal election for the Sainte-Marie division and was re-elected in 1978 and 1982. He served on the executive committee during the final years of Drapeau's administration.[2]

Drapeau retired with the 1986 municipal election, in which the opposition Montreal Citizens' Movement (MCM) won a landslide majority on city council under Jean Doré's leadership. Bélanger was defeated by MCM candidate Serge Lajeunesse in Sainte-Marie. During this campaign, Lajeunesse accused Bélanger of attempting to scare voters in low-income neighbourhoods and retirement homes by claiming that municipal subsidies would be cut off in the event of a MCM victory. Bélanger denied the charge.[3]

Bélanger was elected to the Civic Party executive in May 1989 as a supporter of the party's Drapeau-era establishment against internal reformers.[4] He tried to return to council in the 1990 municipal election and finished third in the François-Perrault division against MCM candidate Vittorio Capparelli.[5]

Bélanger was an ally of Liberal Member of Parliament (MP) Jean-Claude Malepart, who helped canvass for his municipal campaigns.[6]

Electoral record

References

  1. ^ "MCM has firm grip in most 'Dore country' districts," Montreal Gazette, 6 November 1986, p. 4.
  2. ^ "Bio-tech centre to employ 220 by 1986: scientist," Montreal Gazette, 9 March 1985, p. 3; "Dupras says Civic Party will rise again," Montreal Gazette, 10 November 1986, p. 3.
  3. ^ "MCM has firm grip in most 'Dore country' districts," Montreal Gazette, 6 November 1986, p. 4.
  4. ^ "Old guard wins control of Civic Party executive," Montreal Gazette, 14 May 1989, p. 3.
  5. ^ Claude Arpin and Tu Thanh Ha, "We'd cut councillors' pay: Civic Party chief; Gagnon-Larocque proposes slashing taxes to stimulate investment," Montreal Gazette, 5 October 1990, p. 3.
  6. ^ "Mayor will turn 70 next week; Drapeau thinks about quitting and sifts possible successors," Montreal Gazette, 15 February 1986, p. 1.