Denis Paradis
Encyclopedia
Denis Paradis, PC
(born April 1, 1949) is a politician and lawyer from the Canadian
province of Quebec
. He served in the Canadian House of Commons
from 1995 to 2006 and was a minister in the governments of Jean Chrétien
and Paul Martin
. Paradis is a member of the Liberal Party of Canada
.
His brother, Pierre Paradis
, is a veteran Liberal Party member of the Quebec National Assembly and a former provincial cabinet minister. The Paradis brothers are political allies.
. He has a Bachelor of Commerce
degree (1970) and a Bachelor of Civil Law
degree (1975) from the University of Ottawa
and was admitted to the Quebec Bar in 1976. In 1985, he co-authored the book, Régles de procédure devant les tribunaux administratifs.
After working as a partner in the firm Paradis-Poulin, he became the president of the Quebec Bar Association in 1993. In June of the same year, he criticized the overcrowded state of some provincial courthouses.
Paradis owns a winery
in Saint-Armand, Quebec
.
in a 1995 by-election
, called after the sitting Bloc Québécois
member for Brome—Missisquoi
was killed in an automobile accident. Paradis championed the Canadian federalist
cause in the campaign and said that his election would confirm Brome-Missisquoi's place within a united Canada. The election was initially considered too close to call, but Paradis won by a significant margin. His victory was seen as helping the federalist cause in the buildup to the 1995 Quebec referendum on sovereignty
.
Paradis entered parliament as a backbench supporter of Jean Chrétien
's government. In late 1995, he helped launch a Summer Work/Student Exchange project that encouraged students to develop their second-language skills. He was elected chair of the Liberal Party's Quebec caucus in February 1997.
Paradis was returned to a second parliamentary mandate in the 1997 federal election
, and in late 1997 he co-chaired a special committee that recommended Quebec's schools be divided on linguistic rather than denominational lines. He was named as parliamentary secretary
to the minister for International Cooperation
in January 1999, and in September of the same year he was promoted to parliamentary secretary to the minister of Foreign Affairs
. He was again returned to parliament in the 2000 federal election
.
in Chrétien's government on January 15, 2002. These were ministerial positions but not full cabinet portfolios.
Africa
Shortly after his appointment, Paradis met with Nigeria
n Information Minister Jerry Gana
in an effort to prevent the execution of Safiya Hussaini
. He later supported the Commonwealth
's decision to suspend Zimbabwe
for one year in the aftermath of that country's disputed 2002 presidential election
.
Paradis accompanied Chrétien on a 2002 delegation to Africa that included stops in Morocco
, Algeria
, Nigeria
, Senegal
, Ethiopia
and South Africa
. He supported the New Partnership for Africa's Development
(NEPAD), and in October 2002 he pledged more than two million dollars to promote security and good governance in francophone Africa.
In March 2003, Paradis announced that Canada would provide one hundred million dollars to Ethiopia, Senegal, Ghana
, Mali
, Mozambique
, and Tanzania
under the Canada Fund for Africa
. The stated intent of this funding was to recognize improved commitments to human rights and democracy. Later in the same year, Paradis represented Canada at Olusegun Obasanjo's inauguration for a second term as President of Nigeria
.
Paradis nominated former United Nations
Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali
to be named to the Order of Canada
in 2002. Boutros-Ghali received the honour in 2004.
Latin America
Paradis led a Canadian trade delegation to Cuba
in November 2002. This visit marked an improvement in relations between the countries, which had been strained for three years due to Canadian concerns about Cuba's human rights
practices.
In January 2003, Paradis hosted a diplomatic event called the Ottawa Initiative on Haiti. At this meeting, representatives from Canada, France
, the United States of America, and the Organization of American States
discussed Haiti
's political future. No representatives of the Haitian government were present. A few months later, journalist Michel Vastel
leaked information about the meeting that he said was given to him by Paradis. Writing in L'Actualite
, Vastel claimed that the delegates decided that Haitian President
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
should be replaced by a United Nations
trusteeship within a year. Paradis has denied Vastel's claim.
The francophonie
In December 2002, Paradis called for the creation of a watchdog organization to target human rights violations in Francophonie nations.
(MPs) who supported Paul Martin
's leadership ambitions. He nevertheless supported Martin at the 2003 Liberal Party leadership convention, which was held to elect Chrétien's successor. Martin won a landslide victory and became prime minister on December 12, 2003. When he formed his first ministry, he appointed Paradis as minister of state for Financial Institutions.
Paradis led several roundtable discussions with business, academic, and social groups in months that followed, during the buildup to the Martin government's 2004 budget. Shortly before budget day, he said that the government would return to a practice of setting aside four billion dollars per year to cover emergency spending or an economic downturn.
over Bloc challenger Christian Ouellet
. He was not re-appointed to the ministry and returned to the government backbenches. He lost his seat to Ouellet in the 2006 election
, amid losses for the Liberal Party across Quebec
.
Paradis supported Stéphane Dion
in the Liberal Party's 2006 leadership election. Dion won an upset victory in this contest, defeating Michael Ignatieff
on the fourth ballot. Paradis attempted to reclaim his seat in the 2008 federal election
but was narrowly defeated by Ouellet in a rematch from 2006.
Paradis ran for re-election in the 2011 federal election but lost to Pierre Jacob
of the New Democratic Party
amid a strong provincial swing to the NDP.
Queen's Privy Council for Canada
The Queen's Privy Council for Canada ), sometimes called Her Majesty's Privy Council for Canada or simply the Privy Council, is the full group of personal consultants to the monarch of Canada on state and constitutional affairs, though responsible government requires the sovereign or her viceroy,...
(born April 1, 1949) is a politician and lawyer from the Canadian
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...
province of 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 served in the Canadian House of Commons
Canadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
from 1995 to 2006 and was a minister in the governments of Jean Chrétien
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
and Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
. Paradis is a member of the Liberal Party of Canada
Liberal Party of Canada
The Liberal Party of Canada , colloquially known as the Grits, is the oldest federally registered party in Canada. In the conventional political spectrum, the party sits between the centre and the centre-left. Historically the Liberal Party has positioned itself to the left of the Conservative...
.
His brother, Pierre Paradis
Pierre Paradis
Pierre Paradis is a politician in the Canadian province of Quebec. He has represented Brome—Missisquoi in the National Assembly of Quebec since 1980 as a member of the Liberal Party...
, is a veteran Liberal Party member of the Quebec National Assembly and a former provincial cabinet minister. The Paradis brothers are political allies.
Early life and private career
Paradis was born in Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu, QuebecQuebec
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 has a Bachelor of Commerce
Bachelor of Commerce
A Bachelor of Commerce is an undergraduate degree in commerce and related subjects. The degree is also known as the Bachelor of Commerce and Administration, or BCA...
degree (1970) and a Bachelor of Civil Law
Bachelor of Civil Law
Bachelor of Civil Law is the name of various degrees in law conferred by English-language universities. Historically, it originated as a postgraduate degree in the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, but many universities now offer the BCL as an undergraduate degree...
degree (1975) from the University of Ottawa
University of Ottawa
The University of Ottawa is a bilingual, research-intensive, non-denominational, international university in Ottawa, Ontario. It is one of the oldest universities in Canada. It was originally established as the College of Bytown in 1848 by the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate...
and was admitted to the Quebec Bar in 1976. In 1985, he co-authored the book, Régles de procédure devant les tribunaux administratifs.
After working as a partner in the firm Paradis-Poulin, he became the president of the Quebec Bar Association in 1993. In June of the same year, he criticized the overcrowded state of some provincial courthouses.
Paradis owns a winery
Winery
A winery is a building or property that produces wine, or a business involved in the production of wine, such as a wine company. Some wine companies own many wineries. Besides wine making equipment, larger wineries may also feature warehouses, bottling lines, laboratories, and large expanses of...
in Saint-Armand, Quebec
Saint-Armand, Quebec
Saint-Armand is a municipality in the Canadian province of Quebec, located within the Brome-Missisquoi Regional County Municipality. The population as of the Canada 2006 Census was 1,166.-Population:Population trend...
.
Member of Parliament
Paradis was first elected to the Canadian House of CommonsCanadian House of Commons
The House of Commons of Canada is a component of the Parliament of Canada, along with the Sovereign and the Senate. The House of Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 308 members known as Members of Parliament...
in a 1995 by-election
By-election
A by-election is an election held to fill a political office that has become vacant between regularly scheduled elections....
, called after the sitting Bloc Québécois
Bloc Québécois
The Bloc Québécois is a federal political party in Canada devoted to the protection of Quebec's interests in the House of Commons of Canada, and the promotion of Quebec sovereignty. The Bloc was originally a party made of Quebec nationalists who defected from the federal Progressive Conservative...
member for Brome—Missisquoi
Brome—Missisquoi
Brome—Missisquoi is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 1925...
was killed in an automobile accident. Paradis championed the Canadian federalist
Canadian federalism
Canada is a federation with two distinct jurisdictions of political authority: the country-wide federal government and the ten regionally-based provincial governments. It also has three territorial governments in the far north, though these are subject to the federal government...
cause in the campaign and said that his election would confirm Brome-Missisquoi's place within a united Canada. The election was initially considered too close to call, but Paradis won by a significant margin. His victory was seen as helping the federalist cause in the buildup to the 1995 Quebec referendum on sovereignty
1995 Quebec referendum
The 1995 Quebec referendum was the second referendum to ask voters in the Canadian province of Quebec whether Quebec should secede from Canada and become an independent state, through the question:...
.
Paradis entered parliament as a backbench supporter of Jean Chrétien
Jean Chrétien
Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien , known commonly as Jean Chrétien is a former Canadian politician who was the 20th Prime Minister of Canada. He served in the position for over ten years, from November 4, 1993 to December 12, 2003....
's government. In late 1995, he helped launch a Summer Work/Student Exchange project that encouraged students to develop their second-language skills. He was elected chair of the Liberal Party's Quebec caucus in February 1997.
Paradis was returned to a second parliamentary mandate in the 1997 federal election
Canadian federal election, 1997
The Canadian federal election of 1997 was held on June 2, 1997, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 36th Parliament of Canada. Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's Liberal Party of Canada won a second majority government...
, and in late 1997 he co-chaired a special committee that recommended Quebec's schools be divided on linguistic rather than denominational lines. He was named as parliamentary secretary
Parliamentary Secretary
A Parliamentary Secretary is a member of a Parliament in the Westminster system who assists a more senior minister with his or her duties.In the parliamentary systems of several Commonwealth countries, such as the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, it is customary for the prime minister to...
to the minister for International Cooperation
Minister for International Cooperation (Canada)
The Minister for International Cooperation is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for overseeing Canadian international development strategy, including responsibility for the Canadian International Development Agency . The current Minister is Bev Oda.-Ministers:Key:...
in January 1999, and in September of the same year he was promoted to parliamentary secretary to the minister of Foreign Affairs
Minister of Foreign Affairs (Canada)
The Minister of Foreign Affairs is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for overseeing the federal government's international relations section of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada....
. He was again returned to parliament in the 2000 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2000
The 2000 Canadian federal election was held on November 27, 2000, to elect 301 Members of Parliament of the Canadian House of Commons of the 37th Parliament of Canada....
.
Chrétien government
Paradis was appointed as secretary of state for the Francophonie and secretary of state for Latin America and AfricaSecretary of State for Latin America and Africa (Canada)
The Secretary of State for Latin America and Africa is a former ministerial position in the government of Canada. It was one of several Secretary of State positions created by Jean Chrétien in 1993...
in Chrétien's government on January 15, 2002. These were ministerial positions but not full cabinet portfolios.
Africa
Shortly after his appointment, Paradis met with Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
n Information Minister Jerry Gana
Jerry Gana
Jerry Gana is a Nigerian scholar, politician and former Minister for Information under Ernest Shonekan. He was the director of the Mass Mobilization for Social Justice and Economic Recovery, popularly known as MAMSER....
in an effort to prevent the execution of Safiya Hussaini
Safiya Hussaini
Safiya Hussaini Tungar Tudu is a Nigerian woman condemned to death for adultery in 2002. She gave birth to a child as a single woman in Sokoto, a Nigerian state under Sharia law...
. He later supported the Commonwealth
Commonwealth of Nations
The Commonwealth of Nations, normally referred to as the Commonwealth and formerly known as the British Commonwealth, is an intergovernmental organisation of fifty-four independent member states...
's decision to suspend Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three...
for one year in the aftermath of that country's disputed 2002 presidential election
Zimbabwean presidential election, 2002
A presidential election was held in Zimbabwe between 9 and 11 March 2002. The election was contested by the incumbent Robert Mugabe, Movement for Democratic Change leader Morgan Tsvangirai, ZANU-Ndonga leader Wilson Kumbula, Shakespeare Maya of the National Alliance for Good Governance and...
.
Paradis accompanied Chrétien on a 2002 delegation to Africa that included stops in Morocco
Morocco
Morocco , officially the Kingdom of Morocco , is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of more than 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², and also primarily administers the disputed region of the Western Sahara...
, Algeria
Algeria
Algeria , officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria , also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.In terms of land area, it is the largest country in Africa and the Arab...
, Nigeria
Nigeria
Nigeria , officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a federal constitutional republic comprising 36 states and its Federal Capital Territory, Abuja. The country is located in West Africa and shares land borders with the Republic of Benin in the west, Chad and Cameroon in the east, and Niger in...
, Senegal
Senegal
Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
, Ethiopia
Ethiopia
Ethiopia , officially known as the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a country located in the Horn of Africa. It is the second-most populous nation in Africa, with over 82 million inhabitants, and the tenth-largest by area, occupying 1,100,000 km2...
and South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
. He supported the New Partnership for Africa's Development
New Partnership for Africa's Development
The New Partnership for Africa's Development is an economic development program of the African Union. NEPAD was adopted at the 37th session of the Assembly of Heads of State and Government in July 2001 in Lusaka, Zambia...
(NEPAD), and in October 2002 he pledged more than two million dollars to promote security and good governance in francophone Africa.
In March 2003, Paradis announced that Canada would provide one hundred million dollars to Ethiopia, Senegal, Ghana
Ghana
Ghana , officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country located in West Africa. It is bordered by Côte d'Ivoire to the west, Burkina Faso to the north, Togo to the east, and the Gulf of Guinea to the south...
, Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
, Mozambique
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique , is a country in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west and Swaziland and South Africa to the southwest...
, and Tanzania
Tanzania
The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state...
under the Canada Fund for Africa
Canada Fund for Africa
The Canada Fund for Africa was a program operated by the government of Canada through the Canadian International Development Agency . Established in June 2002 with a budget of five hundred million dollars, its stated purpose was to support the G8 Africa Action Plan in response to priorities...
. The stated intent of this funding was to recognize improved commitments to human rights and democracy. Later in the same year, Paradis represented Canada at Olusegun Obasanjo's inauguration for a second term as President of Nigeria
President of Nigeria
The President of Nigeria is the Head of State and head of the national executive. Officially styled President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces. The current President of Nigeria is Goodluck Jonathan.-History:On October 1, 1960, Nigeria gained...
.
Paradis nominated former United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
Secretary-General Boutros Boutros-Ghali
Boutros Boutros-Ghali
Boutros Boutros-Ghali is an Egyptian politician and diplomat who was the sixth Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1992 to December 1996...
to be named to the Order of Canada
Order of Canada
The Order of Canada is a Canadian national order, admission into which is, within the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, the second highest honour for merit...
in 2002. Boutros-Ghali received the honour in 2004.
Latin America
Paradis led a Canadian trade delegation to Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
in November 2002. This visit marked an improvement in relations between the countries, which had been strained for three years due to Canadian concerns about Cuba's human rights
Human rights
Human rights are "commonly understood as inalienable fundamental rights to which a person is inherently entitled simply because she or he is a human being." Human rights are thus conceived as universal and egalitarian . These rights may exist as natural rights or as legal rights, in both national...
practices.
In January 2003, Paradis hosted a diplomatic event called the Ottawa Initiative on Haiti. At this meeting, representatives from Canada, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, the United States of America, and the Organization of American States
Organization of American States
The Organization of American States is a regional international organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States...
discussed Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
's political future. No representatives of the Haitian government were present. A few months later, journalist Michel Vastel
Michel Vastel
Michel Vastel was a Québécois journalist and columnist for Le Journal de Montréal and other medias. He was born in Saint-Pierre-de-Cormeilles, Eure, France and immigrated to Canada in 1970....
leaked information about the meeting that he said was given to him by Paradis. Writing in L'Actualite
L'actualité
L'actualité is a Canadian French-language news and general interest magazine published in Montreal by Les Éditions Rogers, which is owned by Rogers Communications. The magazine has over a million readers, according to Canada's Print Measurement Bureau, from its circulation which is mainly...
, Vastel claimed that the delegates decided that Haitian President
President of Haiti
The President of the Republic of Haiti is the head of state of Haiti. Executive power in Haiti is divided between the president and the government headed by the Prime Minister of Haiti...
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide
Jean-Bertrand Aristide is a Haitian former Catholic priest and politician who served as Haiti's first democratically elected president. A proponent of liberation theology, Aristide was appointed to a parish in Port-au-Prince in 1982 after completing his studies...
should be replaced by a United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
trusteeship within a year. Paradis has denied Vastel's claim.
The francophonie
In December 2002, Paradis called for the creation of a watchdog organization to target human rights violations in Francophonie nations.
Martin government
During Jean Chrétien's tenure as prime minister, Paradis did not belong to the group of Liberal Members of ParliamentMember of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MPs) who supported Paul Martin
Paul Martin
Paul Edgar Philippe Martin, PC , also known as Paul Martin, Jr. is a Canadian politician who was the 21st Prime Minister of Canada, as well as leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
's leadership ambitions. He nevertheless supported Martin at the 2003 Liberal Party leadership convention, which was held to elect Chrétien's successor. Martin won a landslide victory and became prime minister on December 12, 2003. When he formed his first ministry, he appointed Paradis as minister of state for Financial Institutions.
Paradis led several roundtable discussions with business, academic, and social groups in months that followed, during the buildup to the Martin government's 2004 budget. Shortly before budget day, he said that the government would return to a practice of setting aside four billion dollars per year to cover emergency spending or an economic downturn.
Later political career
Paradis was narrowly re-elected in the 2004 federal electionCanadian federal election, 2004
The Canadian federal election, 2004 , was held on June 28, 2004 to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 38th Parliament of Canada. The Liberal government of Prime Minister Paul Martin lost its majority, but was able to form a minority government after the elections...
over Bloc challenger Christian Ouellet
Christian Ouellet
Christian Ouellet, MP is a politician from the Canadian province of Quebec. He has represented Brome—Missisquoi in the Canadian House of Commons since 2006 as a member of the Bloc Québécois...
. He was not re-appointed to the ministry and returned to the government backbenches. He lost his seat to Ouellet in the 2006 election
Canadian federal election, 2006
The 2006 Canadian federal election was held on January 23, 2006, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 39th Parliament of Canada. The Conservative Party of Canada won the greatest number of seats: 40.3% of seats, or 124 out of 308, up from 99 seats in 2004, and 36.3% of votes:...
, amid losses for the Liberal Party across 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....
.
Paradis supported Stéphane Dion
Stéphane Dion
Stéphane Maurice Dion, PC, MP is a Canadian politician who has been the Member of Parliament for the riding of Saint-Laurent–Cartierville in Montreal since 1996. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and the Leader of the Opposition in the Canadian House of Commons from 2006 to 2008...
in the Liberal Party's 2006 leadership election. Dion won an upset victory in this contest, defeating Michael Ignatieff
Michael Ignatieff
Michael Grant Ignatieff is a Canadian author, academic and former politician. He was the leader of the Liberal Party of Canada and Leader of the Official Opposition from 2008 until 2011...
on the fourth ballot. Paradis attempted to reclaim his seat in the 2008 federal election
Canadian federal election, 2008
The 2008 Canadian federal election was held on Tuesday, October 14, 2008 to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 40th Canadian Parliament after the previous parliament had been dissolved by the Governor General on September 7, 2008...
but was narrowly defeated by Ouellet in a rematch from 2006.
Paradis ran for re-election in the 2011 federal election but lost to Pierre Jacob
Pierre Jacob
Pierre Jacob is a Canadian politician, who was elected to the Canadian House of Commons in the 2011 election. He represents the electoral district of Brome—Missisquoi as a member of the New Democratic Party....
of the New Democratic Party
New 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...
amid a strong provincial swing to the NDP.