As part of a broader weakening of Quebec’s Liberal Party in the provincial election in late March, Natural Resources Minister Pierre Corbeil was soundly beaten in his Abitibi-Est riding by Parti Quebecois candidate Alexis Wawanoloath.
Always deeply involved in the local community, Corbeil worked as a dentist in the Abitibi region for two and half decades before trying his hand at provincial politics in 2003.
He served as minister for Forestry, Wildlife and Parks from April 2003 to February 2005, when he became Natural Resources minister.
Of note, his vanquisher, Wawalonoath, is the first aboriginal to win a seat in Quebec’s legislature. A 23-year-old rabble-rouser from the Abenaki tribe, Wawanoloath is said to have capitalized on frustration in the region over job losses in the forestry sector.
The PQ swept the gold-rich Abitibi region, also taking the ridings of Rouyn-Noranda-Temiscamingue, Abitibi-Ouest, and Ungava.
The Liberal Party saw its majority shrink to a minority, with the following seat tally: Liberals, 48; Action Democratique du Quebec, 41; and the separatist PQ, 36.
In all, four Liberal cabinet ministers were defeated: Corbeil, Carole Theberge, Michel Despres, and Francoise Gauthier.
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