By Geneviève April
www.thesuburban.com
Of the close to 50 independent candidates running for mayor or counsellors, most didn’t get even get one per cent of the votes. Only two managed to win voters’ trust: Jacques St. Jean—the only returning councillor from the previous administration—and Michel Trottier, who won Fabreville.
Even though they teamed up, tried alternative approaches, used social media and went door to door as much as or even more than party candidates, Laval voters sent a clear message that they would rather trust and elect candidates affiliated with a political party.
Jacques Foucher, who was running for mayor, ended up with only 3.2% of the popular vote. Even though he attracted the most media coverage of any independent candidate, and advanced a credible platform, he could not keep pace with the party machines.
Candidates who left the Nouveau parti des lavallois in the midst of allegations of fraud concerning NPL Leader Guy Landry were largely neglected by Laval citizens. It could be speculated that their affiliation with the NPL played against them, although almost every independent got a similar score.
Some fared a little better, like Jean Lavoie (Vimont), who managed to attract more than 20 per cent of the vote, well behind the 29.3 per cent score of Michel Poissant (Mouvement lavallois).
Sainte Dorothée’s Louis-Martin Beaumont got almost 19 per cent of the vote, but nonetheless placed third behind winner Ray Khalil (Mouvement lavallois) and Action Laval’s Yana Lukasheh.
Previously with Vaillancourt’s PRO party, Claire Dubreuil fared rather well in L’Orée des Bois with her 26.15 per cent, close behind Alain Lecompte (Mouvement Lavallois), who was elected with 28.99 per cent suffrage. The same can be said of Denis Robillard in Sainte Rose, also previously with the PRO, also second to winner Virginie Dufour (Mouvement lavallois) with his 25.77 per cent to her whopping 41.87%.
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