As part of a broader weakening of Quebec’s Liberal Party in yesterday’s provincial election, 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 Val d’Or area for two and half decades before turning to provincial politics in 2003.
He served as minister for Forest Wildlife and Parks from April 2003 to February 2005, when he became Natural Resources minister.
Of note, Wawalonoath is the first aboriginal to win a seat in Quebec’s legislature. A fairly young 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 Rouyn-Noranda-Temiscamingue, Abitibi-Ouest and Ungava ridings.
The Liberal Party saw its majority shrink to a minority, with the following final 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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