Martin Cauchon
Encyclopedia
Martin Cauchon, PC
(born August 23, 1962) is a Canadian
lawyer and politician. He is a former Liberal
Cabinet
Minister.
Cauchon was born in La Malbaie
, Quebec
and studied law at the University of Ottawa
and the University of Exeter
. He has worked as a lawyer
from 1985 to 1993, and since 2004.
Brian Mulroney
in the riding
of Charlevoix
in the 1988 election
, and was defeated. He first won a seat in the Canadian House of Commons
in the 1993 election
in the riding of Outremont
in Montreal
, and was re-elected in the 1997
and 2000 elections
.
Cauchon was appointed Secretary of State
for the Federal Office of Regional Development - Quebec
by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien
in 1996. He became a full cabinet minister in 1999 when he was given the position of Minister of National Revenue
. On January 15, 2002, he became Minister of Justice
and Quebec lieutenant
. As justice minister, Cauchon argued in cabinet in favour of same-sex marriage
and the decriminalization of marijuana
(indeed, when asked whether he had used marijuana in the past, he responded "Yes, of course").
Cauchon was a Chrétien loyalist and opposed Paul Martin
's attempt to force Chrétien to retire. When Chrétien announced his resignation, Cauchon was touted as a possible candidate to succeed him but did not end up running in the 2003 leadership election. Cauchon refused to back Martin's leadership bid, and supported John Manley
instead. Cauchon was not included in Martin's first cabinet.
Cauchon did not run for re-election in the 2004 election
. It was reported he was seeking out Chrétien loyalists , many of whom were outcast when Paul Martin became leader of the party, and rallying them for a possible leadership bid in the 2006 Liberal leadership election. However, he decided not to run, and instead supported Bob Rae
. He has made no secret of the fact that he still covets the leadership, however. He is currently special counsel to the law firm of Gowling, Lafleur and Henderson. He works in Montreal
.
However, Cauchon has signalled his intentions to run again for the Liberals in the next election in the riding of Outremont. Current Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff's Quebec Lieutenant and longtime Cauchon rival Denis Coderre
opposed Cauchon's return, and instead decided to appoint prominent businesswoman Nathalie le Prohon in the riding. However, amid speculation that Coderre only wanted to thwart Cauchon's comeback because he saw him as a future leadership rival, internal party pressure, notably from Bob Rae and Jean Chrétien, prompted Ignatieff to open the nomination to Cauchon. The fallout from this decision led to Coderre's resignation as Quebec Lieutenant and Liberal Defense Critic, saying he no longer had the "moral authority" to continue. Le Prohon was to run in the Montreal riding of Jeanne-Le Ber
but this did not happen. In the May 2011 federal election, Cauchon lost badly to Thomas Mulcair
of the NDP, who has held the riding since 2007.
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 August 23, 1962) is a 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...
lawyer and politician. He is a former Liberal
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...
Cabinet
Cabinet of Canada
The Cabinet of Canada is a body of ministers of the Crown that, along with the Canadian monarch, and within the tenets of the Westminster system, forms the government of Canada...
Minister.
Cauchon was born in La Malbaie
La Malbaie, Quebec
La Malbaie is a municipality in the Charlevoix-Est Regional County Municipality in the province of Quebec, Canada, situated on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River, at the mouth of the Malbaie River...
, 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....
and studied law at 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 the University of Exeter
University of Exeter
The University of Exeter is a public university in South West England. It belongs to the 1994 Group, an association of 19 of the United Kingdom's smaller research-intensive universities....
. He has worked as a lawyer
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...
from 1985 to 1993, and since 2004.
Federal politics
He first entered politics when he ran against Prime MinisterPrime Minister of Canada
The Prime Minister of Canada is the primary minister of the Crown, chairman of the Cabinet, and thus head of government for Canada, charged with advising the Canadian monarch or viceroy on the exercise of the executive powers vested in them by the constitution...
Brian Mulroney
Brian Mulroney
Martin Brian Mulroney, was the 18th Prime Minister of Canada from September 17, 1984, to June 25, 1993 and was leader of the Progressive Conservative Party of Canada from 1983 to 1993. His tenure as Prime Minister was marked by the introduction of major economic reforms, such as the Canada-U.S...
in the riding
Electoral district (Canada)
An electoral district in Canada, also known as a constituency or a riding, is a geographical constituency upon which Canada's representative democracy is based...
of Charlevoix
Charlevoix (electoral district)
Charlevoix was a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that was represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1867 to 1917 and from 1949 to 2004....
in the 1988 election
Canadian federal election, 1988
The Canadian federal election of 1988 was held November 21, 1988, to elect members of the Canadian House of Commons of the 34th Parliament of Canada. It was an election largely fought on a single issue: the Canada-U.S. Free Trade Agreement ....
, and was defeated. He first won a seat 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...
in the 1993 election
Canadian federal election, 1993
The Canadian federal election of 1993 was held on October 25 of that year to elect members to the Canadian House of Commons of the 35th Parliament of Canada. Fourteen parties competed for the 295 seats in the House at that time...
in the riding of Outremont
Outremont (electoral district)
Outremont is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons from 1935 to 1949, and since 1968...
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...
, and was re-elected in the 1997
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 2000 elections
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....
.
Cauchon was appointed Secretary of State
Secretary of State (Canada)
Secretary of State was a title given to some Ministers of State in the Government of Canada sitting outside Cabinet from 1993 to 2003 and again from 2007 to 2008. Secretaries of State were members of the ministry and the Queen's Privy Council for Canada...
for the Federal Office of Regional Development - Quebec
Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec
The title Minister responsible for the Economic Development Agency of Canada for the Regions of Quebec was accorded to full members of the Cabinet of Canada from the Campbell Ministry through the first months of Paul Martin government...
by Prime Minister 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....
in 1996. He became a full cabinet minister in 1999 when he was given the position of Minister of National Revenue
Minister of National Revenue (Canada)
The Minister of National Revenue is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the Canada Revenue Agency and the administration of taxation law and collection....
. On January 15, 2002, he became Minister of Justice
Minister of Justice (Canada)
The Minister of Justice is the Minister of the Crown in the Canadian Cabinet who is responsible for the Department of Justice and is also Attorney General of Canada .This cabinet position is usually reserved for someone with formal legal training...
and Quebec lieutenant
Quebec lieutenant
In Canadian politics, a Quebec lieutenant is a politician, from Quebec, usually a francophone and most often a Member of Parliament or at least a current or former candidate for Parliament, who is selected by a senior politician such as the Prime Minister or the leader of a national federal party,...
. As justice minister, Cauchon argued in cabinet in favour of same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage in Canada
On July 20, 2005, Canada became the fourth country in the world and the first country in the Americas to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide with the enactment of the Civil Marriage Act which provided a gender-neutral marriage definition...
and the decriminalization of marijuana
Cannabis (drug)
Cannabis, also known as marijuana among many other names, refers to any number of preparations of the Cannabis plant intended for use as a psychoactive drug or for medicinal purposes. The English term marijuana comes from the Mexican Spanish word marihuana...
(indeed, when asked whether he had used marijuana in the past, he responded "Yes, of course").
Cauchon was a Chrétien loyalist and opposed 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 attempt to force Chrétien to retire. When Chrétien announced his resignation, Cauchon was touted as a possible candidate to succeed him but did not end up running in the 2003 leadership election. Cauchon refused to back Martin's leadership bid, and supported John Manley
John Manley (politician)
John Paul Manley, PC, OC is a Canadian lawyer, businessman and politician. He served as Liberal Member of Parliament for Ottawa South from 1988 to 2004, and a Cabinet Minister from 1993 to 2003. He is presently President and CEO of the Canadian Council of Chief Executives.-Background:Manley was...
instead. Cauchon was not included in Martin's first cabinet.
Cauchon did not run for re-election in the 2004 election
Canadian 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...
. It was reported he was seeking out Chrétien loyalists , many of whom were outcast when Paul Martin became leader of the party, and rallying them for a possible leadership bid in the 2006 Liberal leadership election. However, he decided not to run, and instead supported Bob Rae
Bob Rae
Robert Keith "Bob" Rae, PC, OC, OOnt, QC, MP is a Canadian politician. He is the Member of Parliament for Toronto Centre and interim leader of the Liberal Party of Canada....
. He has made no secret of the fact that he still covets the leadership, however. He is currently special counsel to the law firm of Gowling, Lafleur and Henderson. He works 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...
.
However, Cauchon has signalled his intentions to run again for the Liberals in the next election in the riding of Outremont. Current Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff's Quebec Lieutenant and longtime Cauchon rival Denis Coderre
Denis Coderre
Denis Coderre, PC, MP is a Canadian politician from Quebec, Canada. Coderre is the Liberal Member of Parliament for the Montreal riding of Bourassa.-Background:...
opposed Cauchon's return, and instead decided to appoint prominent businesswoman Nathalie le Prohon in the riding. However, amid speculation that Coderre only wanted to thwart Cauchon's comeback because he saw him as a future leadership rival, internal party pressure, notably from Bob Rae and Jean Chrétien, prompted Ignatieff to open the nomination to Cauchon. The fallout from this decision led to Coderre's resignation as Quebec Lieutenant and Liberal Defense Critic, saying he no longer had the "moral authority" to continue. Le Prohon was to run in the Montreal riding of Jeanne-Le Ber
Jeanne-Le Ber
Jeanne-Le Ber is a federal electoral district in Quebec, Canada, that has been represented in the Canadian House of Commons since 2004. Its population in 2006 was 112,863.-Geography:...
but this did not happen. In the May 2011 federal election, Cauchon lost badly to Thomas Mulcair
Thomas Mulcair
Thomas J. "Tom" Mulcair is a Canadian lawyer, university professor, and politician. He is the federal Member of Parliament for Outremont, Quebec, Canada, and currently holds a seat in the New Democratic Party of Canada...
of the NDP, who has held the riding since 2007.