NDP MP Boulerice to run for Quebec politics, sit as independent until the fall

OTTAWA — Alexandre Boulerice, the NDP’s lone Quebec MP, has announced he will be seeking the nomination for Québec solidaire (QS) in the Montreal riding of Gouin and that he will be sitting as an independent MP until the election set to happen in the fall.

That means that Mark Carney’s Liberals will have to wait several months before they can call another byelection and possibly increase their majority in the House of Commons.

In a lengthy statement on social media, Boulerice said that, after serving 15 years in the NDP, his choice to run provincially is not only a homecoming but also a “new challenge” and “a continuity in my political implication as progressive, ecologist and humanist.”

He added that he is leaving Ottawa with his mind at ease, knowing that new NDP Leader Avi Lewis will be able to “show the real conservative face” of the Carney government.

It is still a huge blow to Lewis, who had urged Boulerice to stay on board with the NDP after his election last month. The NDP leader will be reacting to the news later today.

Boulerice was first elected under the NDP banner in Rosemont—La Petite-Patrie in 2011 during the “Orange Wave” that saw Jack Layton sweep 59 out of 73 seats in Quebec.

Boulerice was the only candidate who managed to get re-elected four times after that.

Speaking to the press, Boulerice said he was already considering bidding farewell to federal politics when he was approached by QS co-spokesperson Ruba Ghazal to run in the riding of Gouin, which he knows well since it overlaps with his federal constituency.

Ghazal said the contact came naturally, as they live close by and often see each other at local events. She said she had been hoping to bring him onto the team for some time.

More details to follow…

National Post calevesque@postmedia.com

Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark nationalpost.com and sign up for our newsletters here.