Bernard Drainville

Bernard Drainville (born June 6, 1963) is a Canadian politician, television host and journalist. He was the Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Marie-Victorin in Longueuil from 2007 to 2016, representing the Parti Québécois.

Bernard Drainville
Bernard Drainville, Minister of Education.
MNA for Lévis
Assumed office
October 3, 2022
Preceded byFrançois Paradis
Quebec Minister of Education
Assumed office
October 20, 2022
Preceded byJean-François Roberge
MNA for Marie-Victorin
In office
April 25, 2007 – June 13, 2016
Preceded byCécile Vermette
Succeeded byCatherine Fournier
Personal details
Born (1963-06-06) June 6, 1963 (age 60)
La Visitation-de-la-Sainte-Vierge-de-l'Isle-du-Pads, Quebec, Canada
Political partyCoalition Avenir Québec
Other political
affiliations
Parti Québécois (2007–2022)
ResidenceQuebec City
Professionjournalist, television host
PortfolioHealth and Castonguay Commission (2008) affairs

Since 2022 He was the Member of National Assembly of Quebec for the riding of Lévis, representing the Coalition Avenir Québec. He is currently serving as the Minister of Education.

Biography

Drainville was born in La Visitation-de-l'Île-Dupas, Quebec. He attended the University of Ottawa, where he was president of the Student Federation of the University of Ottawa in 1984–85, and obtained a bachelor's degree in political science and a master's degree in international relations at the London School of Economics.

In 1989, Drainville joined Radio-Canada as a journalist, where he worked at the Windsor affiliate. He became a correspondent for Latin America in 2001, where he was arrested once in Mexico and detained by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia. Prior to 2007, he was a television host at the network's news channel RDI and the correspondent at the National Assembly, and a correspondent for the House of Commons of Canada from 1998 to 2001. He hosted the City of Montreal mayoral debate between Gérald Tremblay and Pierre Bourque during the 2005 municipal election campaign.

Drainville jumped into provincial politics and was elected in the 2007 elections in Marie-Victorin and was named the PQ's critic in health. He was re-elected in the 2008 and 2012 general elections.

On September 19, 2012, he became Minister responsible for Democratic Institutions and Active Citizenship[1] under the Marois government. He was responsible for introducing the controversial Quebec Charter of Values, which would have banned state employees from wearing religious symbols.

He was re-elected in 2014, despite his party's defeat and was appointed the official opposition critic for energy and natural resources.[2]

On October 20, 2014, he declared his candidacy for the Parti Québécois leadership election[3] but dropped out on April 22, 2015, and endorsed Pierre-Karl Péladeau.[4]

On September 7, 2015, he was appointed the Opposition House leader by Péladeau.

On June 13, 2016, he announced he was leaving politics, saying that Mr. Péladeau's departure had prompted a reflection on his own career. He is going back to work in the media, co-hosting with Éric Duhaime a noon hour radio show on FM93 in Quebec City.

On June 7, 2022, it was announced that Drainville was running as a candidate for the CAQ in Lévis in the upcoming 2022 Quebec general election.[5] He was re-elected in the riding of Lévis and appointed Minister of education.

In April 2023, he announced plans to ban prayer in all provincial public schools.[6][7][8][9]

Electoral record

2022 Quebec general election: Lévis
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Coalition Avenir QuébecBernard Drainville18,05148.79
ConservativeKarine Laflamme7,67720.75
Parti QuébécoisPierre-Gilles Morel4,77512.91
Québec solidaireValérie Cayouette-Guilloteau4,24411.47
LiberalRichard Garon1,8995.13
GreenMehdi Lahlou2130.58
Climat QuébecAndré Voyer1380.37
Total valid votes36,99798.64
Total rejected ballots5111.36
Turnout37,50873.73
Electors on the lists50,875
2014 Quebec general election
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Parti QuébécoisBernard Drainville11,61438.17-8.94
LiberalJean-Guy Tremblay7,92626.05+8.51
Coalition Avenir QuébecGuillaume Provencher6,26920.60-1.02
Québec solidaireCarl Lévesque3,51811.56+3.35
GreenCatherine Lovatt-Smith7072.32+0.35
Option nationaleFabien Villemaire2440.80-1.73
Marxist–LeninistPierre Chénier1070.35
Équipe AutonomisteFlorent Portron440.14
Total valid votes30,42998.09
Total rejected ballots5911.91+0.44
Turnout31,02066.32-5.55
Electors on the lists46,770
Parti Québécois holdSwing-8.72
2012 Quebec general election
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Parti QuébécoisBernard Drainville15,50647.10-4.00
Coalition Avenir QuébecSimon Jolin-Barrette7,11921.63+10.30
LiberalFarida Chemmakh5,77317.54-11.77
Québec solidaireCarl Lévesque2,7028.21+3.83
Option nationaleOlivier Chauvin8322.53
GreenMathieu Yargeau6481.97-1.09
Coalition pour la constituanteJean Baillargeon2440.74
Parti indépendantisteYves Ménard940.29-0.54
Total valid votes32,91898.54
Total rejected ballots4891.46
Turnout33,40771.88
Electors on the lists46,478
Parti Québécois holdSwing-7.15


2008 Quebec general election: Marie-Victorin
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Parti QuébécoisBernard Drainville11,02651.56+11.96
LiberalIsabelle Mercille6,18528.92+7.52
Action démocratiqueRoger Dagenais2,36911.08-17.32
Québec solidaireSebastien Robert9574.48-0.60
GreenReal Langelier6653.11-1.64
Parti indépendantisteYves Menard1820.85
Total valid votes21,38498.22
Total rejected ballots3881.78+0.52
Turnout21,77253.29-15.26
Electors on the lists40,858
Parti Québécois holdSwing+2.22
2007 Quebec general election: Marie-Victorin
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Parti QuébécoisBernard Drainville11,05539.61-5.78
Action démocratiqueRoger Dagenais7,92728.40+12.81
LiberalNic Leblanc5,97421.40-13.52
Québec solidaireCyr François1,4185.08+3.47
GreenRéal Langelier1,3274.75
Bloc PotRichard Lemagnifique2110.76-0.89
Total valid votes27,91298.74
Total rejected ballots3571.26-0.43
Turnout28,26968.54+1.50
Electors on the lists41,242
Parti Québécois holdSwing-9.30

Notes and references

External links